What News Anchors Do During Commercials

The side of news you never see.



Bridgette Outten is a journalist and media consultant with The Write Vision Group, Inc.  Her background is in print journalism and she has written hundreds of articles for newspapers and online publications. At The Write Vision Group, Bridgette advises nonprofits and small businesses on how they can get media attention for their programs and efforts. Meanwhile, she blogs on all things journalism.

Pay Attention to the News When It Affects Your Business

The devastating outages that affected millions of BlackBerry customers prompted an apology from the manufacturer's president and CEO at a BlackBerry conference Wednesday. The three days of sporadic service and lack of access to email made headlines across the globe and even spawned a hilarious video.

So, with all of these news and hubbub surrounding these outages, why would a business send me an email -- the same day I saw the newscast about the outage -- about the great new app they have available for BlackBerry users? This is where I question whether the higher-ups at this company watch the news, read a newspaper or have access to to any media outlet at all.

You have a new version of an app, great. But someone should have said, "Hey, wait, the timing on this isn't the best. Let's wait until the BlackBerry actually works."

This is a public relations error on the part of that company because it does not present that company in the best light. It does not show that this company is aware of current situations surrounding its products. I don't have a BlackBerry but I wonder about the customers who do who received that email, promoting an app for a phone that doesn't even work. Considering the frustration of BB users, I'm guessing their reaction wasn't especially joyful.

The moral of the story: keep an eye on the news, especially if it affects your products or services -- and consequently, the way your customers view your public awareness.

Bridgette Outten is a journalist and media consultant with The Write Vision Group, Inc.  Her background is in print journalism and she has written hundreds of articles for newspapers and online publications. At The Write Vision Group, Bridgette advises nonprofits and small businesses on how they can get media attention for their programs and efforts. Meanwhile, she blogs on all things journalism.

Should You Tell Reporters What Questions to Ask?

The first time I ever received a list of suggested questions for me to ask during an interview for a story I was working on, I was completely floored.

I didn't want to be cocky, but...I'm a reporter. A bona fide journalist completely capable of forming my own questions and any suggestion to the contrary was quite frankly, a bit insulting. Especially because the questions weren't even that earth-shattering -- it was stuff like, "How did we get started?" Because I would have never thought to ask such a thing if left to my own devices.

I decided to play it cool, thanked the person and stuck the list of questions in the back of my notebook as I proceeded to ask my own questions. I'm sure that these questions -- which can range from about five to 10 inquiries on a neatly typed sheet of paper -- are not meant to raise the hackles of journalists. But I assure you, they do.

There may indeed be things about your story that you want to get across to a reporter, which is certainly well within your right. However, don't tell a reporter what to ask you. That's about the same as someone coming to your job, giving you a step-by-step list of things to do.

Instead, make your own notes about things you want to remind yourself to say. Typically, after an interview, a reporter will ask if there's anything else you want to add. If they don't, you can take control by simply saying, "Oh, and I wanted to be sure to mention..."

But you are not doing any reporter a favor by telling them how to interview you. In fact, by doing so, you may be starting off completely wrong.

Bridgette Outten is a journalist and media consultant with The Write Vision Group, Inc.  Her background is in print journalism and she has written hundreds of articles for newspapers and online publications. At The Write Vision Group, Bridgette advises nonprofits and small businesses on how they can get media attention for their programs and efforts. Meanwhile, she blogs on all things journalism.

In-Depth Journalism: A Thing of the Past?

Think back to the last time you read, saw or listened to a well-put together, thoroughly researched news report.

If you're scratching your head trying to come up with something, you're not alone.

Media experts speaking at a hearing held by the Federal Communications Commission at Arizona State University earlier this week said new media organizations are coming anywhere close to filling gaps created by traditional media outlets that have had to let go of journalists.

So what does that mean? 

"Real news has too often been replaced by fluff, and democracy is not well served by fluff," Commission member Michael Copps said.

A report on the matter said "daily newspapers have decreased their staffing levels by more than 25 percent since 2001 and that the shortage of local reporting means that scandals aren't exposed, public dangers aren't identified and local political candidates aren't vetted as they once were," according to the Associated Press.

It's not a new complaint as veteran reporters are replaced with less experienced reporters for lower pay and even the ones left behind have less time to work on an in-depth piece before it has to be cranked out to be posted on the Internet to keep up with other competitors.

Proposed solutions include more partnership among news competitors and nonprofit news organizations to fill in the gap. The report also suggested creating public affairs cable channels similar to C-SPAN at the state level, easing tax rules for nonprofit news organizations and directing more federal advertising spending to local news media, AP said.