http://famousinyourfield.com/confessions-of-a- tv-news-producer-part-one/ April 18, 2013

Confessions of a TV News Producer (part one)

Welcome to Famous in Your Field! Here’s your f ree weekly t ip to boost your fame factor. (Be sureto sign up in the box on the right to get on the VIP list for f ree t ips and training, delivered straightto your inbox.)

Admit it. You’ve watched a news story

on a business or seen someone

offering advice as an expert and

thought to yourself ,

“how did she get to be featured on TV?

That should be me!”

Calm down, t iger. It can be you.

You’ve just need to know what kinds of stories makethe media pant with ant icipat ion and deliver them.

And I’ve got the scoop for you.

Through the magic of social media, I hooked up with a media expert and then convinced her to spillher secrets on what the media loves in a news story.

First, a little about our news insider, Roshanda.Roshanda Pratt is President andLead Consultant at R.E.P. Communications Network, LLC. R.E.P. is a mediarelations and consulting f irm based in the Southeast, consisting of a team ofprofessionals who creatively partner with businesses to build their REPutationin media, marketing, branding, professional development and training.

Here’s why you should tune in…

Roshanda spent 10 years as a television news

Roshanda Pratt, f ormer TVproducer

Roshanda spent 10 years as a television newsproducer in a top 20 market in the fast-paced worldof 24-hour news channels. This girl’s got thelowdown on what it takes to grab the media’sattention and get your message on the air.

In this post, I’m going to share Roshanda’s t ips on gett ing mediacoverage.

Q: We’re all familiar with the anchors who sit in the studio,announcing news stories to the camera. Then there are thereporters in the f ield, report ing on stories. Tell us aboutyour role – what does a producer do?

A: In the TV news world, the producer helps gather the newsand writes the news stories that the anchors read on air. It ’s anintense job – the producer spends eight hours a day to create a30-minute newscast.

The assignment editor is the hub of the newsroom. He or shef ields the incoming phone calls, evaluates story pitches, reviewspress releases, listens to police scanners and communicateswith personal sources.

Knowing the right person to contact about your story idea is the f irst step to being covered.Target the assignment editor, the producer and sometimes reporters.

Q. A daily show needs an endless supply of stories to feed the hungry news cycle. How didyou come up with story ideas? What were your usual “go to” sources?

A: Every news stat ion has a morning meet ing to brainstorm and evaluate potent ial stories. Hereare the most common sources:

Press releases – yep, press releases. (Unless they’re too long. Two pages or more? Forget it .Your news has just become some editor’s scratch pad.)

Newspapers – what stories are in the paper and how can they be adapted to television?

Sources – pitches called into the news room, police scanners, insiders with juicy informat ion.

Compet it ion – what are the other news stat ions covering? Can we improve on a story? Giveit a dif ferent angle?

Nat ional stories – what ’s happening in the nat ional news and how can we localize it?

Q. Here are Famous in Your Field, we want to share our life-changing ideas and informationwith the world. If a business professional thinks he or she has a great idea for a story, whatshould they do to get it on the news?

A. Think about the benef it . How would your story impact your community? First , remember thattelevision is a mass media. Your story has to have broad, not narrow appeal.

Second, television is a visual medium. What ’s the visual value of your story? Do you have aproduct that we can show on camera? A video? Great images? Can you do a demonstrat ion? Toattract the interest of an assignment editor or producer, think about how you can make your story

visual.

And f inally, if you can’t make your story visual, consider that television might not be where youbelong. Perhaps your place is in print !

Your fame boosting assignment:

This week, develop one story idea or pitch. Give it the TV news test : does it have broad appeal?Can you make it visual?

Now, get ready for your close-up, superstar.