See Dog…Say Dog
A professor once taught me a simple, yet important rule in broadcast journalism that has stuck with me ever since: see dog…say dog.
Though it seems an obvious concept, that whatever the reporter is talking about the viewer should see, it often goes overlooked. As a producer, I know what happened in every story in the newscast. After all, I was one of the teammates that either selected, wrote, edited or assigned the story. Therefore, while the story may make sense to me, it is important to remember that the story may possibly be entirely new news to the viewer. We cannot show one thing if the script discusses another, even if the video does have to do with the general story idea. If we see dog, and say dog, the story will make more sense, as well as be more compelling, literal, and descriptive in matching the words with the video.
I often find the most difficult times to match the script and video is in the teases. As the lead producer of the day, you are responsible for writing the two sets of teases throughout the show. However, you are often, if not always, not the individual that edits the video for the teases. Herein lies the problem. Yet I have found the solution to the issue is seamless communication. If I can communicate to the editor exactly the order to edit the video, and the editor can communicate with me what video has been edited, the problem minimizes itself.
This week, I chose to tease the Dodger’s heightened security, the resignation of the FAA air traffic chief, and a reporter stand-up regarding a lawsuit filed against Match.com. I had previously discussed the video our reporter had filmed for the dodger’s story; therefore, I knew I was writing to general footage of their parking lot, stadium, and the surrounding areas. With the air traffic control tease, however, I was not quite as careful. My script discussed the recent problems with controllers falling asleep on the job and planes landing unassisted; however, there was no actual footage of sleeping employees and landing planes. I did the best I could to tease the story with the generic airport and air traffic footage, but the tease was not the best example of writing to video.
In the second set of teases in the show, I chose to use video to preview the foreclosure protest and the match.com lawsuit once again. I spoke with the reporter that worked on the foreclosure protest earlier in the day; therefore, I was aware of the fact that she had footage of upset homeowners loudly chanting. I used this sound at the top of the tease, followed by the video of the protestors. The use of this natural sound not only provided variety in the teases, but was an obvious visual of the upset individuals.
Throughout the day at ATVN, multimedia journalists are coming in and out for a variety of shifts. It is often the case that one person shoots the video, another person writes the script, and a third person does the editing. I have learned that taking notes on each story’s progress and status, coupled with excessive communication is the key to ensure the writing matches the video.
