Local and National Reporters Interaction

[Mario500 3]

This is a subject of TV news that continues to fascinate me, yet the arrangement of such interaction remains a mystery. Does your local station air network news reports with the reporter signing off with the name of the local station and news anchor (“Bruce, back to you”, as one NBC News reporter said in a report that aired during WPMI’s 12:00 PM newscast today)? If so, how are these taped and live reports (with the national reporter interacting with the local anchor) arranged?

 

It’s worth noting how some of my local stations’ anchors would introduce a report:

 

WPMI: NBC 15’s Andrew Mitchell has the story.

 

WALA: FOX’s Caroline Shively has the story.

 

WKRG: News 5 national correspondent Lee Cowan has the story.

[chopper9 0]

If they are saying the station's anchor names, then it's either live or a look-live. If it's live stations will be assigned a window that they can get the reporter in the field live (the local station will sometimes dial into the IFB line so the anchors and the field reporter can talk to each other). Often in these cases you'll notice that the reporter has the station's mic flag on theirs.

 

Another trick you may have noticed is the station will take a live feed from a network reporter but when he or she signs off they'll just say "back to you." In this case, the stations are told that the reporter will be live at, say 6:02:00 and they have to plan their newscast to time out so the local anchors introduce the story and then seemlessly go into the live shot. This isn't often pulled off though, as you'll often have the anchors toss to the reporter and then the field person will stand there awkwardly for a few seconds before they begin talking.

[Mario500 3]

In the case of the NBC News report on WPMI's newscast, it was taped.

[LoadStar 363]

When they have a national (or national bureau, as in the case of Hearst-Argyle or similar) reporter doing live reports for a local station, and the national (bureau) reporter has a local mic flag, do they do the report over and over again, quickly swapping mics or mic flags between "takes"?

 

For instance, WISN will often carry reports from Sally Kidd, who I believe is with the Hearst-Argyle Washington bureau, and I'd imagine she does reports for many of the Hearst-Argyle stations... but it's always presented as "Here's WISN's Sally Kidd reporting from Crawford" or whatever... and Sally is holding a mic with a 12 flag, and signs off as "Sally Kidd, WISN-12 News."

[caliwxdude 252]

When they have a national (or national bureau, as in the case of Hearst-Argyle or similar) reporter doing live reports for a local station, and the national (bureau) reporter has a local mic flag, do they do the report over and over again, quickly swapping mics or mic flags between "takes"?

 

Yes. If you ever see one of the live shot platforms in Washington or when they travel to, say, Crawford, Texas, you'll see a huge pile of mic flags on the floor around the reporter. Check this post at Little Lost Robot, WYFF photographer JL Watkin's terrific blog (if you haven't checked LLR out, you definitely should) that shows how a WYFF reporter did live shots for many of the Hearst stations at the XX Olympic Winter Games last year in Torino: http://www.littlelostrobot.com/2006/02/lives.html.

 

As for NBC affiliates and O&Os, those network custom live shots (when the reporter says "Dick and Jane, back to you") can be booked through the live shot desk at NBC News Channel in Charlotte. They cost affiliate stations a few hundred bucks a pop.

[CDubya87 0]

As for NBC affiliates and O&Os, those network custom live shots (when the reporter says "Dick and Jane, back to you") can be booked through the live shot desk at NBC News Channel in Charlotte. They cost affiliate stations a few hundred bucks a pop.

 

Yes - we order them on the weekends. You can do it through a website which connects with the live desk. They give us sattellite coordinates we dial into and a time the feed will come down, then we simply put a tape in and record on it. The outcue is dependent on what the station orders.

We typically order just an outcue, the "In Washington, Reporter, KSN 16, Your Hometown News" and we format it in the request as "In location, reporter name, KSN 16, Your Hometown News." Sometimes if we get creative we can type in "In Location, Reporter Name, KSN 16, Your Hometown News, (talent name), back to you." Look live intros are also available, but we personally don't often order them (they seem too unnatural to us, especially if we toss to a look live at 10pm and the capitol behind them is in broad daylight (since they feed them live around 4pm))

As for the cost - I don't know if it's that much, but I do know it does cost a pretty penny.

[jbjimbo 0]

As well, CNN affilates can get story feeds through CNN Newsource (thats News Source). Nights and weekends its streamed on CNN Pipeline and I've seen the Newsource reporters due CNN and local station feeds.

[Ntropolis 593]

Yeah, BELO has a Washington reporter, Sarah Nakasone. She does live shots for my local station all customized with mic flag and stuff.

 

Yeah, WVEC has her. In Belo's studio, there's even a WVEC backdrop.

 

NBC News correspondents Steve Handelsman, Tracie Potts, and Brooke Hart have all done reports for WAVY with their tagout.

[chopper9 0]

WMAQ in the morning they say.

"Matt Lauer has a look of whats' coming up on the today show" [then to matt]

 

Some of the bigger NBC affiliates get customized coming up talks like this for Today and NBC Nightly News. There is also a taped version that I've seen and I believe Today does a live generic one shortly before the show starts that affiliates can take if they want.

 

On a similar topic, one thing I saw one station do once was with Al Roker and weather. He'd do the national overview and then the station would split screen him with their weather man in front of the key wall. He would then say "Thanks, Al" and do the forecast. Going back to the Today Show, they would just fade from the 7 day forecast to the network.

 

Do many other stations do this? It works well I think and helps cover up the little jump cuts that I see all the time when the local insert doesn't hit at the exact right time and you see the national weather map from the network briefly. This looks sloppy to me.

 

On the same topic, one time when the local forecast doesn't run for whatever reason it was odd because the network feeds out a bunch of national weather maps and leaves the hosts' mikes open so you can hear them talking to each other. It always struck me as odd that Al didn't provide a VO for the forecast or they play music or something. Maybe it was just a one-time mistake, though.

[A3N 996]

KNSD does the TODAY show chat at 6:28 pacific time every morning. They do not interact with Brian Williams at all instead NBC 7/39 just runs promos on what is coming up on the NBC Nightly News.

[tvpirate05 1]

Yeah, BELO has a Washington reporter, Sarah Nakasone. She does live shots for my local station all customized with mic flag and stuff.

 

Yeah, WVEC has her. In Belo's studio, there's even a WVEC backdrop.

Dave Cassidy (former 'VEC news director) will actually toss back to "Daybreak" 's anchors during his morning liveshots.

 

In the case of ABC or Belo packages, they'll say "(name of reporter), 13News".

[PelicanGuy 117]

Yeah, BELO has a Washington reporter, Sarah Nakasone. She does live shots for my local station all customized with mic flag and stuff.

 

I've seen her do stuff for WWL as well.

 

In addition, WWL has an arrangement with CBS News in which some CBS correspondents do taped reports and live shots for Channel 4. Susan Roberts, Jennifer Donelan, Gwen Belton and Manuel Gallegos (sp?) have all done the deed on several occasions, including saying "Channel 4, Eyewitness News (Nightwatch)."

[AutisticPsycho 0]

Now what about the morning news tossups. I know WHDH and WCVB both link up to GMA and Today? I'm wondering how much time Matt has to do because I know he's not just doing it for Boston.

[Gulf_Broadcasting 0]

WMAQ in the morning they say.

"Matt Lauer has a look of whats' coming up on the today show" [then to matt]

 

Some of the bigger NBC affiliates get customized coming up talks like this for Today and NBC Nightly News. There is also a taped version that I've seen and I believe Today does a live generic one shortly before the show starts that affiliates can take if they want.

 

On a similar topic, one thing I saw one station do once was with Al Roker and weather. He'd do the national overview and then the station would split screen him with their weather man in front of the key wall. He would then say "Thanks, Al" and do the forecast. Going back to the Today Show, they would just fade from the 7 day forecast to the network.

 

Do many other stations do this? It works well I think and helps cover up the little jump cuts that I see all the time when the local insert doesn't hit at the exact right time and you see the national weather map from the network briefly. This looks sloppy to me.

 

On the same topic, one time when the local forecast doesn't run for whatever reason it was odd because the network feeds out a bunch of national weather maps and leaves the hosts' mikes open so you can hear them talking to each other. It always struck me as odd that Al didn't provide a VO for the forecast or they play music or something. Maybe it was just a one-time mistake, though.

 

They do that here in dfw on KXAS & WFAA. I've also seen WFAA do it on Sundays for I don't remember the name of the show but it's with George Stephanopolus.

[jestbiteme 13]

I sometimes wonder how this works for KDKA, as an O&O. Do they still have to pay for live hits or special tagouts? Is there a point for them paying for it?

 

I would assume they do simply because it doesn't happen on a consistent basis. Sometimes KDKA will introduce the reporter, ask her a few questions, the package will play, and then it's back to the reporter. "Reporting live from Washington, Aleen Sirgany, KDKA-TV News." Then, sometime's it's just a package, and the reporter signs out on behalf of KDKA.

 

Even still, when Dan Rather was at the helm of the Evening News, a few times a week he'd end the prepackaged tease with ". . . tonight, The CBS Evening News, KDKA-TV." Poor part was that he didn't pronounce KDKA very naturally, he was too slow and deliberate. I wonder how that works?