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MAYO kicks off Year 2001 with a new feature on its website
"Eye On
PR"
Everything from tricks of the trade to getting on
the radar of high-tech editors
and industry analysts to making your company newsworthy. As a nationally recognized freelance writer
George S. McQuade III reports on the PR industry.
If
It Bleeds It Leads: The Hidden Truth Behind Broadcast News
By George S. Mc
Quade III
“I think the deciding factor is if it’s easy, it gets on TV, not if it bleeds it leads,” said Adam Symson, special assignment investigative producer, KCBS-TV, Los Angeles, told about 60 people attending a seminar sponsored by Public Communicators of Los Angeles, at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, March 14, 2001. The panel also included Vance Scott, assignment manager, KTLA-TV, Ch. 5, and Maryhelen Campa, assignment desk manager, KVEA-TV, Ch. 52, one of three Spanish-speaking stations in LA.
(L-R) Adam Symson, producer, KCBS-TV, Maryhelen Campa, Assign.
Mgr.,
KVEA-TV, Vance Scott, Assign. Mgr, KTLA-TV and moderator Barbara Osborn,
journalist, Fairness & Accuracy In Reporting at PCLA's workshop.
Most broadcast assignment
Editors prefer fax or snail mail and the “most unusual”
“We get 1,000 phone calls a
day, and the segment producers receives about 200 calls while their doing their
jobs, so it’s best to fax your story and follow up with a phone call later,”
explained Scott. “The Morning news is starving for news ideas, and it’s wide
open,” he said but you have to be “zany, crazy or out of the box before your
story idea will fly on the three hour news block in the AM. Don’t send Email.
Email is really used primarily for internal folks, and it takes me an hour just
to find something in my email inbox.”
Sometimes PR folks need to step aside according to Symson. “PR people are not always the right people to pitch a story,” he said. “If you give your boss or client the ammo he or she needs to pitch the story, it comes across much stronger.” Here’s another news tip:
“All TV assignment editors face
a time management and personnel crunch, and we do accept video news releases, if
we do not have a enough crews to cover the story, but we’re interested in your
story idea or event,” said Symson.
Viewers have “a morbid curiosity” says KTLA’s
Vance Scott
Vance Scott, Assign. Mgr, KTLA-TV
“I’ve spent my entire 32-year TV career running from PR folks,”
kidded Scott. “There is not much integrity to defend in TV news, because the
downfall began the day it became profitable. Everything we do is done for the
dollar. The industry was founded by journalists, and the whole motive then was
to sell newspapers, which is why there is a motive to run crime, it sells,
it’s cheap, it’s a no brainer, and people are fascinated.
When I ask the news director are we serving the public interests? He says
yes. KABC-TV ran a high-speed chase yesterday on their news, and KNBC did not.
KABC received higher ratings (A 7 rating, while KNBC received a 2),” he
said. Scott says big fires, nasty
accidents and someone going down the freeway at 120 miles per hour gets a
viewer’s attention. “People won’t admit they have a morbid curiosity,”
Scott told the crowd.
PR Pros need to take proactive view to
succeed
“We have often found that PR professionals take an oppositional stance when we do our investigative work,” noted Symson. “When I call and tell someone like the school district, for example, that they are spending $10 million a year, sending administrators all over the country, or we have an employee doing something wrong on video, the first response is ‘you’re lying,’ and later when I show them the invoices and receipts they change their tune. We would be irresponsible journalist to report something wrong without verifying the facts. A better response would be “we’ve suspended that person, or we’re looking into it, and we’ll get back to you right away. At least give us something,” Symson said.
Adam
Symson, investigative producer, KCBS-TV
Strong video and breaking news always leads “I don’t watch TV news,
and I don’t let my kids watch because there is so much violence,” said
Scott. “However, it is the strength of the video that determines the lead,
after all this is television. If we can get our hands on a bank robbery video it
will be the lead story. I did have a problem this week covering a story out of
Orange County, CA, which was only a rumor about a school shooting, planned over
the Internet. What’s flashy, titillating and of little conscience often
leads,” said Scott.
Don’t rule out radio news, millions are listening in traffic
A Frank Mottek, anchor/reporter, KNX, Frank
Stoltze, reporter, KPCC, and
James J. Lee, president, The Lee Strategy Group at the PCLA
workshop.
“We’re
interested in any community issue, however, you need to have a good
English-speaking person to get your message across,” said Frank Mottek,
anchor/reporter, KNX news radio. It needs to meet the question of ‘who cares
test,’ whether it is crime, business or a feature. The number one reason
people listen to KNX is for traffic. So we have to write shorter, sharper and
stronger stories. Sometimes I go to a news conference at 10:00 AM, and I might
be writing and calling in the story three to five minutes later. Keep your stories,
news releases and pitches short,” explained Mottek.
A Frank Mottek, anchor/reporter, KNX Newsradio 1070
“KNX still does news, on a national and regional and local basis, but we have
been impacted by the mudslide of tabloid kind of stories and the so-called water
cooler kicker stories. We don’t have to worry about pictures. Charles Osgood
said it best years ago ‘the pictures are better on the radio,’” said
Mottek. Mottek said building a relationship with a reporter is critical. He
recalled when the space shuttle “Challenger,” blew up and when a NASA announcer said, “abort to orbit” when an engine failed on
another launch he relied on a public affairs friend for new lingo in space
technology.
If it bleeds it leads doesn’t apply in public radio
Frank Stoltze, reporter, KPCC public radio
“If it bleeds it leads doesn’t apply in public radio,” Frank
Stoltze, reporter, KPCC told the crowd. “ We go for the big picture, trends
and we’ll also talk to the academic community to learn more detail about a
story, because we have more time. Since Minnesota public radio took over KPCC, our newsroom has grown from one person to six, and
we’re focusing more on local news. We have two hours of covering issues,news
and several talk shows.”
Reporters hate it when PR Pros hide the issues
“Instead of pretending like their side is the only issue, PR pros who give the other side of the story or sometimes even provide the opposition’s phone number, we appreciate it more. We get offended when you pretend there is no other side, and in fact we feel insulted by a cover-up. You know we’re going to call the other side for their opinion,” he said.
Pro Pros sometimes have to be pushy to get heard
“Never be afraid to call the newsroom if you feel you did not get a fair shake,” said Stoltze. “I would think three calls to the newsroom, and one to the news director would not be out of line if you feel your client did not get a fair shake or if you felt we should have run your story.” The fax number at KPCC is 626.585.3160.
“The best way to get on our story assignments is to call
the desk after you fax your story, and ask for Ronnie Branford, assignment
editor. Our Fax is 323.460.3275. We prefer faxes over email. We just like that
piece of paper to look at,” said Mottek.
Live interviews are another option. Both KNX’s Frank Mottek and KPCC Larry Mantle prefer having an interview by phone, than an audio feed, because there are other questions needed to be asked. As for exclusive stories, “it’s an over used term, and is not appealing,” said KPCC’s Frank Stoltze.
There is no matrix formula to covering news say Mottek and Mantle. Both agree that story assignments are weighed against what’s being reported in the newspaper, and in other media and how the news announcements (news releases) are relevant to those stories. One word of caution: “Know what station your calling before you pick up the phone, said Mottek. “You be surprised how many people call and ask what the name of the DJ’s are at our station and what kind of music we play, when we do all news.”
Yet Lock, vice president, City News Services says
most print, TV and Radio subscribe to his services
Broadcast news is
spoon-fed information by City News Service
”All TV and radio, and most newspaper outlets
subscribed to City News Service,” said Yet Lock, vice president, of the LA’s
only 24/7 metro newswire service. “AP,
Wall Street Journal, New York times and all of the different language media
subscribe to our services, which has been in business since 1939 when we wrote
our first contract with Long Beach press Telegram newspaper, which has a
contract still today. Five years ago we had to start charging for listing some
budget items, because stations began complaining there were more than 100 items
daily to read. We narrowed the event listings to 75 – 80. We do news
advisories and breaking news, and provide background details to top stories in
LA and Orange County. We opened a bureau in San Diego a few years ago, but our
primary audience is LA and Orange County. I find that celebrity or high profile
personality stories draw much more interest among broadcast news,” said Lock.
“No” doesn’t always mean “No” at the City News Service
“If we say no to putting your story or event up, there is also a
daybook budget listing for events, where we charge a small fee to list it.
Nonprofit runs $25 and others around $47,” explained Lock. “We have to limit the story
listing, due to complaints from our news clients. We have no deadlines, and we
have all day to do a the story, however we suggest that you try to get your
event or story in before 10 AM, and everything must have a contact name and
phone number, or we do not run it.
City News Service prefers faxes at 310.201.9124. Most newsrooms have the wire service via computer in their newsrooms, however some still prefer the teletype system.”
“Our viewers
are very conservative and concerned about family values and education, so our
focus is a little different, and we might do more stories on immigration,
because I’ll admit, many of our viewers are illegally here,” said Campa.
“Our audience is poor with the average immigrant making 20,000 a year, so
they’re powerless, and want to know how to get the best deals and get
documented. They are very interested in immigration, however, when the story is
violent, it is the way it goes and we try to maintain a balance with those
breaking stories, she explained.
Maryhelen Campa, assign. Mgr. switch from English speaking KNBC-TV
and KCAL-TV to all Spanish Speaking KVEA-TV. "We never have problems
finding a spokesperson to speak Spanish, which is half of LA's population."
Mary Helen Campa recently made the switch from assigning stories in
English at KNBC-TV and KCAL-TV to "more meaningful stories" at the
all-Spanish speaking station KVEA. “I made the switch, because I was looking
for some more challenging, different and new,” said Campa. “You might now
believe it, but we never have a problems finding
someone to speak in Spanish. We more interested in stories that offer
our viewers ways to better their lives. For example, how someone who makes
25,000 a year can buy a house, or better deals to fix their car. I predict that
all TV stations will also offer Spanish versions of their news in five years,
because of the bi-coastal viewers. KVEA
is about to buy KWHY-TV 22, another all Spanish speaking TV station, because of
the demand.”
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If you have an marketing communications or PR event or a trend that others should read about please send us an email. Please send the event notice two weeks in advance. If you got a PR, marcom or geek question for non-geeks send us your question, we'll get you an answer with our endless resources! gmcquade@MayoCommunications.com
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