The Monday Experience

I had the pleasure of guest starring on Team Monday this week because Nick and I switched shifts. Our lead story was about crazy gas prices and we all decided on it together. It was a clear choice, because prices are at a record high and it’s obviously something that affects everyone. The lead should be something that people really care about, so that it draws in the viewers’ attention early on in the newscast.

When I’m in the morning meeting thinking of story ideas, I always picture myself as a viewer sitting

in my living room waiting for the newscast to begin. With online news, everything is instant. Even though the lead story is important, chances are people already know about it. The challenge is making stories as current as they can possibly be. I know that when I watch the news, I want to learn something new that I haven’t already seen or heard.

An important lesson I learned this week is that I have to think about how viewers from different generations and backgrounds will respond to different stories. For example, we did a story about Invisible Children and their newest movie, which was released online Sunday night. The organization received wide spread scrutiny last year after their viral video “Kony 2012” overwhelmed social media around the world and founder Jason Kennedy had a public mental breakdown. Since the story was one that really stuck in my head, I assumed that everyone else would know about it. Luckily I was reminded that you can never assume things about viewers. It’s necessary to give background information so that people don’t feel lost watching your newscast.

Looking forward to re-joining my teammates next Wednesday!!