CalItalian2 163 Posted March 11, 2010 Share Posted March 11, 2010 http://www.laobserved.com/archive/2010/03/la_tv_news_mostly_crime_a.php Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/6285-study-la-tv-news-mostly-crime-fluff/ Share on other sites More sharing options...
mbhcity 3 Posted March 11, 2010 Share Posted March 11, 2010 http://www.laobserved.com/archive/2010/03/la_tv_news_mostly_crime_a.php three things. -this is common in most, if not all, television markets these days -TV budgets and ratings are not what they used to be, it's cheaper to lay off staff, share resources with the competition, and do crime and fluff, otherwise John Beard and the 100+ people who were cut last year at Fox would still have their jobs. -people read LAobserved, and other blogs, which explains the reason for above statement. As accurate as this article is, I think it only helps for the professor to really examine the business of local television news, where layoffs, cuts, station sharing agreements, automation, are becoming the norm. This industry unfortunately is no longer as glamorous as the days of Jerry Dunphy and Hal Fishman, to which the quality of the newscasts reflected that glamour. Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/6285-study-la-tv-news-mostly-crime-fluff/#findComment-57819 Share on other sites More sharing options...
lazynetjunkie 34 Posted March 11, 2010 Share Posted March 11, 2010 This just gets me all the time.. These college/university professors just lack an understanding of the "TV News Business". TV News is not core journalism. It's a business to get ratings and make a profit. And I've seen this so much in the new "just out of college" hires and interns at stations I've worked at. They plug the students' heads with all the journalism rules but no understanding of the reality of the business. Many come in shocked that it's very different in here than what they've learned at school. They don't teach them about layoffs, automation, station budget cuts, having the work of 3 people being demanded out of only 1 person, etc.. Eh, here I am going to just go off again.. Really, if our newscasts were loaded with dull stories or stories that don't appeal to our senses or emotions, then nobody would be watching. TV News now is completely different than it was, heck, even a decade ago. People turn on local TV news now passively much more than actively. The news will just happen to be on a certain channel after or before their favorite TV show(s). They turn it on when they come home from work but not sit in front of it just to watch it. People will actively doing other things (eating, vacuuming, cooking, talking on the phone, cleaning, paying bills, homework, dozing off, etc.) while the news is on TV. These aren't the old days of people mainly actively turning on the TV and just sitting there to watch the news straight through. People care more about their American Idols or CSI's than the news. People have enough problems going on in their lives and just want to see or hear stories/reports that either effect them more directly or that appeals to their emotions, senses, or self-interests. A person actively turning on local news nowadays is usually interested in just the weather or a special report/story that the station has promoted. If local newscasts were loaded with just general/hard news stories, people will just lose interest in a newscast altogether and just turn it off or not even turn it on to begin with. People need something to grab their attention on a local newscast. You need crime stories to appeal to people's anger or fear. You need fluff to connect with people. You need investigative/on your side/consumer reports to to give the sense that your doing something good for your viewer. People in LA crave crime stories and high speed chases.. It's what keeps them tuned in. If the LA stations were to do the "pure journalistic" style newscasts that these professors would like, then you can just see ratings go down the toilet even more. I have to mention too that they really fail to mention at the schools that jobs in TV news are not plentiful like in the past. Many journalism professors still preach this false concept of "Because there's more news happening in our world now more than ever, more reporters, more writers, etc. are needed in the world TV/Newspaper/Radio/etc." All I can say is NO! NO! NO! These are all businesses making budget cuts, cutting people, combining staff, etc. At the first station I was at, the GM used to tell new just out of college hires, "Everything you've learned at journalism school, leave at the door because you're in for a roller coaster ride." It's true. These journalism schools' lack of the business aspect just drives me up a wall.. As for that report.. Just a load of toilet reading. I'm sure no LA station's GM or ND will give a rat's @$$ about it and the general news viewing public will have no idea of it. The only people that will know or care about it are the minority of online media followers (people like us) and a few that work at LA stations. I would just love to see those professors try to work in a newsroom nowadays.. Bwahahahahaha.. (evil laugh) Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/6285-study-la-tv-news-mostly-crime-fluff/#findComment-57821 Share on other sites More sharing options...
mbhcity 3 Posted March 11, 2010 Share Posted March 11, 2010 As for that report.. Just a load of toilet reading. I'm sure no LA station's GM or ND will give a rat's @$$ about it and the general news viewing public will have no idea of it. The only people that will know or care about it are the minority of online media followers (people like us) and a few that work at LA stations. I would just love to see those professors try to work in a newsroom nowadays.. Bwahahahahaha.. (evil laugh) You said it friend...but again this is a U$C study, not to disrespect them, but they do have one of those profitable and popular journalism schools in Annenberg. They're Student TV Newscast is quite as big a deal as their football team. Actually, there are a good number of professors who were at one time broadcast journalists, be they ND's, GM's, Editors, Reporters, but then again most professors worked in the industry back in the 1980's and early-to-mid 90's before the advent of the internet. And you're right there are those who basically got into teaching without ever having set foot in a newsroom. This was the case at my school, but actually, most of my professors did discuss the troubles that the business was facing and often we brought in people in the biz to share their advice with students. Personally my advice to these Journalism programs is to require students to take a second major outside of Communication, Film or something related to Journalism, NYU and Miami already does this, and most programs have minors. Additionally, all students must do at least one internship, (no coffee-making but real legitimate work). We also need to increase the rigorousness of the courses, rather than just offer a few writing classes and theory, as you mentioned we need to teach the business to student. I often notice a number of J-students going in just because its an easy major, as opposed to math, science, English, etc. Most of us, myself included, went in Journalism because of hatred of math, but I feel that J-schools need to step it up and let our students know that this not a glamorous biz as they perceive it to be . Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/6285-study-la-tv-news-mostly-crime-fluff/#findComment-57822 Share on other sites More sharing options...
CalItalian2 163 Posted March 12, 2010 Author Share Posted March 12, 2010 Q&A with FCC Commissioner Michael Copps on this today http://www.scpr.org/news/2010/03/11/usc-study-exposes-fluff-tv-news-journalism-la-fcc-/ Audio: http://www.scpr.org/programs/patt-morrison/ Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/6285-study-la-tv-news-mostly-crime-fluff/#findComment-57827 Share on other sites More sharing options...
mbhcity 3 Posted March 12, 2010 Share Posted March 12, 2010 Lol! KTTV just did a 30 second VO about this featuring former KTTVer Marcia Brandywine....I guess they do care. wink wink nudge nudge. Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/6285-study-la-tv-news-mostly-crime-fluff/#findComment-57829 Share on other sites More sharing options...
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