Assignments
Saturday, December 15, 2007
Well, the era of the new NBC-17 newsroom is almost here. I am sitting here in the newsroom, behind the battle-scarred desk that has been here since I don’t know when. The desk is worn—tape covers the bottom edges where the wood has been chipped and worn away with age. The carpet here should have a groove from my desk over to the bank of scanners on the other side, since I slide over there to hear radio calls sometimes. I can see the future—just by looking across the room, where our new desks will be, as well as the opening for the studio.
The new NBC-17 News set looks awesome…LCD screens just about everywhere, with splashes of color abound. With this many screens, that studio would be great for football season!! All we’d need is a set of easy chairs we could roll in there, and Studio A could be the place to be for football season. Oh, well….wishful thinking on my part. Anyway, back to the newsroom…we’ll have a nice new assignment desk with plenty of room, as well as the Satellite News Center right there behind us. I’m sure all of this is hard to imagine, but once it hits air, it will look great!!
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 12/15 at 12:28 PM
Friday, November 23, 2007
Can you possible plan ahead too far?
I’ve recently noticed my job as a Planning Editor is slowly spilling over to my personal life. What people don’t realize is, when you spend countless hours planning ahead, you hardly ever just let things happen, and live in the now. I’ve been the laughing stalk of the newsroom since Monday at 10:05am. Why you may ask, because I just bought concert tickets for get this….JANUARY 20, 2009, YES 2009.
The biggest-selling female artist of ALL time will be in town on that night, and I can hardly wait! On December 15th, 2007 Celine Dion will take her final bow in Las Vegas and end her record breaking show A NEW DAY. A few months later she will begin her Taking Chances World Tour with stops in Africa, Asia, and Canada and of course North America. I had the pleasure of seeing her show in Las Vegas a few years back and it was worth every penny.
Now the question to you is, is there any artist you would buy a ticket for the moment it comes out, even if it’s over a year away? Please tell me I’m not the only one.
Although I don’t know what my future holds, or where this life may take me, I do know where I hope to be on January 20, 2009. Enjoying the amazing sounds of Celine Dion in section 1 on the main floor, being thankful I planned ahead!
Best,
Dominique
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 11/23 at 04:45 PM
Thursday, November 22, 2007
!
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 11/22 at 05:10 PM
It is is usually like a ghost-town in the newsroom on Holidays. That is especially true on Thanksgiving and Christmas. The only people in the building are the handful of people in the newsroom who have to make sure we are covering the news of the day. And much like the limited people in the newsroom, there is usually little to no breaking news going on during the holidays.
So what exactly do we cover on holidays? Of course we try to cover as many events (dinners, shopping, and shelters) as possible, but we also like to make sure we are representing the other news that is happening. This morning, we had a fire that broke out at a duplex. By listening to the police and fire scanners, it did not sound like a very big deal. But I chose to send a photographer to get some video just in case it turned out to be something more. Well, that it did. Raleigh police have arrested someone in connection with the blaze and there appears to be more of a story than we first thought.
So even though all of us love to cover the rescue mission serving meals, the parents getting in some early shopping, and the people hitting the gym, we must continue to gather the news that happens.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 11/22 at 01:34 PM
Monday, November 19, 2007
I talk to people all day long….on the phone…in person….via email…text message…okay, you get my point. By far, the ones that stand out are the phone calls from people asking for our news tip contact information.
Often times, during a newscast, we advertise a phone # and email address to send us news tips. Generally, within 10 seconds of the news tips information being aired, my phone rings. Here’s how the conversation usually goes:
(ring ring)
Me: NBC-17 News, this is Jason.
Caller: Yes, I just saw this number on your tv and want to know what’s the best # to call in a news tip?
Me: Sir/Mam, this number you just called is the best # to call. It’s staffed 24/7.
Caller: Thanks. (click)
Another favorite type of conversations are the phone calls from PR people updating their contact database. Usually we get about four or five agencies a day that call with the sole purpose of updating their files. They usually like to know the names, phone #’s and email addresses to the assignment editors and morning show producers. Here’s how these fun conversations go:
(ring ring)
Me: NBC-17 News, this is Jason.
Caller: Hi. My name is (insert name here) from (insert PR company name here), and I’m calling to update our database of contacts. Who is your assignment manager?
Me: That would be me.
Caller: oh sorry. And , how what’s your name?
Me: It’s Jason Clough (pronounced cluff) but spelled C-L-O-U-G-H
Caller: I’m sorry what is it again? clow (which sounds like cow with an “L” added)
Me: No. It’s Clough (pronounced cluff) but spelled C-L-O-U-G-H
Caller: Okay. C…..L….
(silence)
Me: O-U-G-H
Caller:…..O…..U
Me: Right, G-H
Caller: Okay, so C-L-O-U-G-H…and how to pronounce it?
Me: Cluff
Caller: And what’s your email address?
Me: My first intial, last name @wncn.com
(We’ll stop the call transcription here…I think you get the point).
Finally, the ones that truly make me laugh are the people that call the news tips line…knowing they don’t have a news tip but want to complain or rant about something (and since it’s usually not the local news they are complaining about) I usually have to transfer them to someone else (which makes them crazy). Here’s how one conversation went:
(ring ring)
Me: NBC-17 News, this is Jason
Caller: Jason…My name is (insert name here)…and I don’t really have a news tip but I want to complain about why you took the Martha Stewart show off your air?
Me: Sir/Mam, that’s a question for our programming department. I’m in the newsroom but would be more than happy to transfer you, would you mind holding?
Caller: (sigh) I guess….
In the end, it’s my job to get people to those individuals that have the information being sought.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 11/19 at 09:56 AM
