"Live. Local. Late Breaking."
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By Farrah Shuaib
Friday, November 8, 2013 | 5:55 p.m. PST
Every newscast is designed to report stories that journalists not only feel the public needs to hear, but also what the public wants to hear. The majority of viewers watch newscasts to hear 1) what is affecting them locally, 2) the latest updates on a story, and 3) they want to see it live!
Having live shots in a newscast is what sets apart broadcast news from other mediums. We have the opportunity to bring the viewer to the scene in true time. This places the viewer there so they can not only hear the news but see it as it unravels. Especially in times where there's an active shooter or a car chase, showing a live stream of what is going on in the area really captures the viewers attention and gets them invested in the story.
However, not all live shots are hot pursuits and acts of crime. On Thursday, we would've had an awesome chance to do a live shot from Chinatown, where Walmart employees were protesting the chainstore due to a report that many of the workers only make $25,000 a year. We sent a MJ over earlier, and from what we saw, protestors marching, chanting and carrying signs in unison. It would have been a very visually good story.
Annenberg TV News really strives to be a good local news source for those in and around the USC campus. We already do a good job with telling local and late breaking news. It is now time for producers to incorporate the "live" factor.
