Is This a Story?

Absolutely not.

I saw this on "Out of Bounds" -- the writer didn't know where the video originated because "there are a number of Fox 29 station in the US." 

There's only one that has a weathercaster named John Bolaris and that's WTXF in Philly.



Feh.  This is poor, even for a Fox station.  And I am sick to death of Craigslist as a source for stories.

Once More, With Feeling

I promise not to turn this blog into an emotionally silly and endless tribute to our dog.  We've been so grateful for the kindness of co-workers, friends and family who understand the connection we had with Dottie and why we miss her so.

John's cousin sent us a bit of prose that I hadn't seen before -- and it, combined with the cards, telephone calls and other messages, truly helped us both:

Hello Peggy ,Jon & fam, Colleen and I read your e-mail and were reduced to tears.We never got the pleasure of seeing Dottie just smiled through the years of stories told We could only imagine what a great companion and loyal friend of the family she was. Dogs are a gift to us in our lives, they give all for so little .The only comfort is we give them the love they depend on so much. I often wonder about the fate of finding a dog who found who ?.......... Michael . Colleen and Riley

The Rainbow Bridge

(inspired by a Norse legend)

By the edge of a woods, at the foot of a hill,

Is a lush, green meadow where time stands still.

Where the friends of man and woman do run,

When their time on earth is over and done.

For here, between this world and the next,

Is a place where each beloved creature finds rest.

On this golden land, they wait and they play,

Till the Rainbow Bridge they cross over one day.

No more do they suffer, in pain or in sadness,

For here they are whole, their lives filled with gladness.

Their limbs are restored, their health renewed,

Their bodies have healed, with strength imbued.

They romp through the grass, without even a care,

Until one day they start, and sniff at the air.

All ears prick forward, eyes dart front and back,

Then all of a sudden, one breaks from the pack.

For just at that instant, their eyes have met;

Together again, both person and pet.

So they run to each other, these friends from long past,

The time of their parting is over at last.

The sadness they felt while they were apart,

Has turned into joy once more in each heart.

They embrace with a love that will last forever,

And then, side-by-side, they cross over… together.

Walk a Mile in Their Shoes

Today, I left the office and accompanied Chris Hernandez on his day as a "one man band reporter."  Our story changed as the day progressed.  Later, we met up with Tim Hellhake and the two of them reported live during the 5pm and 6pm newscasts.

Actually, this video only shows what happened in the afternoon.  The morning included an interview with the new CEO of the fire department. 

I learned a great deal today about the MMJ workflow.

I need to go on more "ride-alongs."

Farewell, Good and Faithful Friend.

Dogs' lives are too short. Their only fault, really.

Agnes Sligh Turnbull

Dogs are the most amazing creatures;
they give unconditional love.

For me they are the role model for being alive.
Gilda Radner

No one appreciates the very special genius of your conversation as the dog does.

Christopher Morley

You can say any foolish thing to do to a dog, and the dog will give you a look that says,
"My God, you're right! I never would've thought of that!"
Dave Berry

If you have a dog, you will most likely outlive it;
to get a dog is to open yourself to profound joy and,
prospectively, to equally profound sadness.
Marjorie Garber

Profound sadness is an understatement. Overwhelming, nearly debiliatating grief is what we feel now that our dog is gone.  We miss our sweet Dottie.  Her pure love for our family was such an incredible gift.

Hating Kiffin

Although I no longer live in Tennessee, I still pay thousands of dollars in tuition to its state university so I've been watching Lane Kiffin's internet presence with a certain bemusement.

• He wrecked our Lexus.
• His sex life is "unnatural."
• He is the inspiraton behind a rap song:

• And my favorite--Somebody in Knoxville wants to name the sewer after him!

Hell hath no fury like a Vol football fan spurned...

Goodbye Kate McGarrigle. Travel easy.

As reported by the BBC, Kate McGarrigle died.  I loved her music in the 70s and Clyde was a big fan too.

Dear NBC: Seriously, Who is Making These Decisions?

The late-night unraveling continues between Leno and Conan and after last night's Ten at Ten between Leno and Kimmel, I am more confounded than ever. I'm not a giant Leno fan, I've always been more attuned to Letterman's humor but after his shenanigans with the young co-workers, I don't even watch Dave all that much.

This segment Thursday night, however, may be the worst smackdown I've ever seen:
http://www.tmz.com/2010/01/15/jay-leno-jimmy-kimmel-tonight-show-video/

Why, NBC, why would you allow the late night guy from a rival network to use a potato peeler to skin Jay Leno alive in front of...hundreds of Kansas City viewers? OK, maybe a couple thousand. The last quarter hour of Leno got a 3.9 rating, 5.6 share.

In other final-quarter-hour-before-the-late-news news, KMBC with Private Practice enjoyed a 19 share. The Mentalist on KCTV, a 17 share. And news on WDAF received an 8.4 share.

KCTV gets New News Director

Heads Up KCTV gets new news director; GM halts Hummer production - KansasCity.com

Welcome to Kansas City, Blaise!

(From photographer to news director isn't all that uncommon. I hefted a TK-76 and turned the manual white balance thumb screws on a Sony 1610 in the early 80's at KTVN in Reno.)

No More Tepid Lead-ins; Now I've Got to Improve Those Late News Numbers

Scott Jones of FTV (sorry  for the short-hand Scott, but my mom reads this blog) had the world exclusive on this one last week and today is like Christmas and my birthday with a little 4th of July thrown in for good measure.  Here's the email:

(Attention Affiliate Board, General Managers, Corporate Execs, News Directors, Program Directors and General Sales Managers)

NBC, in remarks made just minutes ago this morning by Jeff Gaspin, has announced that as of February 12, 2010, The Jay Leno Show will no longer air at 10pm ET/9pm CT.

We will send more information when it becomes available regarding prime time programming plans after the Olympics.

Below is a brief transcript of Jeff's remarks:

"I can confirm what many of you have been reporting -- starting February 12, we will no longer air The Tonight Show at 10:00. While it was performing at acceptable levels for the network, it did not meet the needs of our affiliates -- and we realized we had to make a change.

My goal is to keep Jay, Conan and Jimmy as part of our late night line-up. I've spoken to all three of them and proposed that "The Jay Leno Show" move to 11:35, "The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien" move to 12:05 and "Late night with Jimmy Fallon" at 1:05.

The talks are ongoing."

November 2009 was tough; we lost significant numbers of sellable demos due to poor performance on our late news.  No more excuses.  Now the real work begins.  Bring it!

"Hello, I'm a Reporter. Sorry For Your Loss. Can I Have a Picture of Your Loved One?"

The quote doesn't belong to me--some former KSHB journalist said it years ago and it came up while we talked about how aggressive reporters should be when covering murdered children.  (Thursday afternoon, this teenager was stabbed to death about 45 minutes south of Kansas City in a rural area that doesn't see much violence.)

After reading the Plog's admonition to KC reporters regarding postings on the 14-year-old girl's Facebook memorial, I thought about two reporters I worked with in other markets.  One in Miami and one in Memphis -- each had their own tactics for dealing with the relatives of the recently murdered.

The WSVN reporter's actions were the worst and a manager brought her scheme quickly to an end.  Background:  Miami in the early 90s was easily one of the most violent cities in the country.  At WSVN where I worked on the assignment desk, we ignored many, many homicides.  But some, based on unspoken criteria, broke through.  Tourists, the famous, children, the wealthy, anything tainted with Santeria; those killings were covered zealously for 24-48 hours.  After that, even the murdered children mostly were forgotten.

I recall the WSVN reporter's remarkable ability to get a grieving family to talk on camera about a recently slain loved one and even to provide photos.  Finally, I asked her about it.  She was very proud of her discovery--if she promised the family the TV station would promote a memorial bank account (shilling for donations), they would almost always agree to an interview.  And then, she'd tell them that it would really only work if her interview remained "exclusive."

I don't think she is still working as a journalist anymore, thank God.

The Memphis reporter has moved to a larger market and his methods aren't nearly as despicable.  He would, when a family member agreed to talk, start the interview and then, if the person he was talking to began to weep, he would say "Where are those tears coming from?"  Which would often mean even more tears and wailing as the person interviewed recalled happier days and times.

After more than thirty years in local news, covering murdered children should be rote by now but it's not.  Each murder is different.  None of the decisions about coverage are easy.

"What do I know?  What do I need to know?"  Those two questions always come to my mind (thanks Al Tompkins) when I'm dealing with ethical decision-making...like covering the murder of a beloved daughter, sister, student, friend.  Here's the list Bob Steele put together for high school journalism students.  It's the same one we "pros" should use.

By the way.  Russ Ptacek handled his request for information exactly the right way.  Honestly.  Above-board.  Without pandering.  That's the way it should be done. 

Back to the list.  Did you need to know that before she was killed, Katie Rios, an honor student, was in the band?  Did you need to know her friends called her "Smiley?"  Did you need to know her principal remembers her as a mentor when she was class president?

You did.

Otherwise, you cannot properly mourn our world's loss of Katie Rios.

Why Elizabeth is a Remarkable Co-Worker

Remembering a Remarkable Viewer who Became a Friend

I really love this story.  I think customer service is so important and the hardest thing is to turn an angry viewer into a loyal customer.  Plus Elizabeth gained a friend.

Buh-bye Leno Lead-in?

The NYTimes reports that Leno will soon be moved to after the late news -- a story that is the best yet of 2010!

Kansas City's Fifth Winter Storm

I generally enjoy the musings of John Landsberg and he did not disappoint in his analysis of Kansas City TV stations' weather coverage.

Some context and facts about our Wednesday coverage and decisions:

• NBC Action News did cover news other than the snow on Wednesday.  In fact, we were the only TV station to have a reporter (Cynthia Newsome) assigned to the strange investigation at New Covenant Church in Independence when a second raid took place.  (The Star had a reporter there, also).  Also, Chris Hernandez conducted a great interview with KC's interim city manager.
• Gary Lezak does weather reports twice a day, every weekday on the big sports-talk radio station in Kansas City.  He also blogs regularly.  Neither are unusual for him.
• We were on the air at 4am Wednesday morning, just like the other "TV folks."
• Our brand is "Breaking News Leader" not "the weather station."
• If there had been something of significance to report at 4pm, we would have been on the air, too.

And finally about the term "snowgasm..."

Never mind.

Reno 911

I spent the final week of 2009 in Reno, Nevada--nearly a week in the Biggest Little City that is both bigger and smaller than I remembered from when we left in 1990. 

You may know that I moved there in 1978 to seek fame and fortune.  I met and married two husbands.  Carly's dad and I divorced before she was a year old.  A couple of years later, I met John.  Two years after that we got married. 

Both Carly and Charlie were born at St. Mary's Hospital and although I didn't expect to darken those doors ever again, I found myself there last Tuesday afternoon.

John and the kids went skiing Tuesday morning.  By the time they got to Northstar (Tahoe), John was feeling poorly.  Combine the flu with altitude sickness and you get delirious and shortness of breath.  And some other stuff too but we won't go there.

John ended up in the St. Mary's ER where they administered some miracle drugs via IV and by the next day, he was almost as good as new.

I am not good with hospitals...or sick loved ones because I am not good at feeling powerless.  I know this is hard to believe but I prefer to be in control at all times.  Thank goodness it was not serious.

We did do some gambling and even though I know that slots are folly, I do love the nickle machines!  It's fun to win a little, which we did.

One night, our friends Mark and Debi Best cooked us a delicious dinner and we enjoyed getting to know their now-adult daughter Amber who was the first girl Charlie kissed (when he was two).  They hadn't seen each other since 1989 but are now Facebook friends...

We also enjoyed a meal with my cousins Doug, Kemble and Trenton Yates who were visiting from Washington, Oregon and Alaska, respectively.  If you get to Reno, we recommend Silver Peak Brewery!

I watched some local news and saw Bill Brown, Mike Alger, Terri Russell and Erin Breen, all of whom were either co-workers or competitors when I was haunting the Truckee Meadows, back in the day.  Better yet was the lunch organized by my pal Denise Clodjeaux that included Carly, Sharon Spangler and her daughter Audrey.  Audrey is a civil engineering student at the University of Nevada/Reno.  Go Wolfpack! 

The last time I saw Audrey, she was smearing smashed banana on the window that separated the assignment desk from the studio at KTVN while her mom anchored the morning cut-ins on the desk just a few feet away.  Good times!    These are some powerful women, y'all.

A big thrill for me was visiting the Sparks Marina.  When I was a much younger, thinner, cuter person I reported news from the "Sparks Bureau" for KTVN.  On air!  (Seriously!)  One of the on-going issues was the dispensation of a gigantic hole in the ground just east of the city center, alongside I-80.  The Helms Pit, as it was called then was more than a hundred feet deep.  A yawning maw in the earth.  Contaminated by run-off from a nearby tank farm.  Ugly.  Useless.  Or so it seemed.

From a city website: "Originally, consultants for the City of Sparks Public Works Department estimated it could take up to three years to fill the quarry and turn it into a lake. The New Year's Day Flood of 1997 made the lake a reality in a matter of hours. One billion gallons of water from the Truckee River and its tributaries filled the quarry as a result of the highest recorded flood event in Truckee Meadows history."

Now, it's rimmed with condos, a ubiquitous Legends shopping complex and even a beach.  Who da thunk it! 

I remain amazed.


Oh and Happy New Year, y'all.

Hope YOU got to kiss somebody...

Rummage

I guess it depends on where you grew up.  When I was a kid, we went to "rummage" sales (not garage sales or tag sales, as John calls them).  This entry will be a rummage--a jumble of topics I've been meaning to address over the past few days.  There won't be one central theme and...you might not find anything you like here. 

First...my folks.  They celebrated their 54th wedding anniversary on December 18.  The next day, my mom mis-judged some stair steps and fell forward, bumping her head, spraining her wrist but most unfortunately, breaking her hip.

Charlie and I drove to Sioux Falls  last Sunday morningwhere she had emergency surgery.  We were there when she was wheeled out of recovery and into her room.  Seeing her reach over the bed rail to grasp my dad's hand was sweet and priceless.  She will spend some time in the rehab wing at the Good Samaritan Center in Wagner and then be back on the farm.  My mom is tough!  She also is a good patient.  If she's told to do certain exercises, she'll do 'em.  I am confident she'll dance again with dad at the weddings of my nieces Emily and Cheray coming up in 2010.

Also of note.  Blizzard 2009.  On Wednesday, I reinstated previously preempted newscasts for Christmas Day.  At 3:25am Friday, Beth Benson, the sole producer on the two-hour show called to say that the director, anchor, second meteorologist and EP were stuck.  My best advice was to have someone pick them up.  At that point, I still thought I could get in but was not able to get our wimpy Expedition up the hill in our Olathe neighborhood. 

Imagine what a popular news director I am, after people who had had the day off, now had to work.  But me?  Not so much.  I felt terrible Christmas morning.

And finally, we are flying out to Reno tomorrow.  My husband is somewhat freaked out by the purported terror attempt in Detroit and the impact on our travel.  Our flight leaves from KCI at 4pm.  We will leave for the airport at 1pm.  Sunday night, a belated Christmas with Carly and her friend Denis followed by a week in the Biggest Little City.  I hope to reconnect with some friends, do some shopping, a little gambling and get my daughter's car running again.

I'm looking forward to 2010.  Happy New Year, y'all!

Another From the Wayback Machine

I'm not sure how I feel now about this grumpy blog post, originally written on December 23, 2003:

I have a question, Virginia. How does Santa belong on the news? Last week, one of the local stations set up their web reporter next to a man dressed as Santa and invited children to email their questions to the "jolly old elf."
I've seen teases on local TV newscasts in Memphis (all of them, mine included) that refer to postal workers, Fedex and UPS deliverers as "Santa's elves." And the two networks that WMC pays for news material are currently offering live shots from the North Pole and opportunities to "track Santa" via high tech radar from the Air Force.

I know, I know, don't fight the day.

Don't get me wrong, this didn't start out to be the blog of a Scroogy news director. I love Christmas! I love the shopping in crowded malls, I love the food, I love the parties, I love seeing the faces of my friends and family when they open a thoughtful gift. Christmas, Kwanzaa, Hannukah... are celebrations with religious or cultural roots, deserving of news coverage.

Our job is to provide timely and urgent information, investigative reports and tell our viewers what's happening now. It just seems wierd to me as I read and hear so much about the Orange Terror Alerts, with soldiers and civilians dying in Iraq, the flu, the economy, etc etc etc that a serious TV news department might confuse its customers.
A faux "Santa Tracker" via radar just seems sorta frivolous to me, right now.

OK, my bah humbug moment is over.

Happy Holidays y'all.

----------------
Back to 2009.  Isn't it amazing that the top issues of 2003 are still valid six years later?

Ten Years in Seven Minutes (Thanks Newsweek)

A Love Letter

December 17, 1955

Dear Paul Wiechmann and Pearl Yates,

Tomorrow, you will be married.  You are in your mid-twenties.  You are both probably nervous, wondering what the future will bring.  Is he the One?  Is she the One?  These questions are normal, for all young couples on the eve of such an important day.

Paul, you've been a mechanic in the Air Force.  You're stationed in Spokane, Washington, far away from your native South Dakota. 

Pearl, you've got a job in Spokane, a family nearby that you love and plenty of friends.  You both come from large families that love you.  Tomorrow you will embark on a journey that will span at least five decades.

It won't always be easy.  In fact, there will be many lean times.  You will return to South Dakota so Paul can work with his brother on the family farm.  Pearl will be homesick.  Paul will work hard, very hard.  Pearl, you will stay home with the kids for awhile but you will eventually "work outside the home" and you will become a comfort for many.

After a short stint of living in Wagner, South Dakota (population 1600) you will move to the farm six miles north and that's where you will stay.

There will be children.  Seven of them.  Six will come in a bunch.  In fact, two will be born in 1957.  Peggy and Pam.  Those two girls will be followed by another daughter, Paula and your first son, Pat.  By the end of 1964, two more daughters will be part of the clan, Penny and Piper.

The farm house is big but will always seem a bit crowded.

The children will grow throughout the 60's and mid-70s and just before the oldest is ready to leave home, you will be surprised (and the rest of your family amazed) by the birth of a seventh child, Perry.

Your children will resemble you (and each other) on the outside but they will be seven very different personalities, with strengths and weaknesses.  Sometimes they will frustrate you.  Many times, actually.  No family is perfect but your children will amaze you and you will love each of them, unconditionally.

Most of your children will go to college and all of them who graduate will do so from South Dakota State University.  Two of your daughters will marry SDSU alums, planting a fever for the Jackrabbits that is difficult to match in any family.

In the 80's grandchildren will be born.  One, then another, then another and another.  Some of your children will leave the family farm and even the state of South Dakota but four will remain relatively close nearby and the others will visit the home base as often as possible.

The reunions will be joyful gatherings, filled with laughter, telling stories and remembering.  In the 90's, you will begin remodeling the house, a project that will seem like it never ends.  That's the way it is with houses that were built in the early 1900s.

The turn of the century will bring graduations of the older grandchildren and then they, too will begin to marry.  Great-grandchildren will be born.

You will travel.  You will go on cruises and drive to the far corners of the United States including Alaska.

In 2005 you will celebrate FIFTY years of marriage with a wonderful party.  Your children will celebrate your love and commitment to each other.  Each of them will view the event with a pride and admiration.

In 2009, you will still be well and happy and strong.  You will still live in the house where Paul grew to be a man.  It's not the same house, but it is definitely a Home.

Your family, the one born 54 years ago on December 18, 1955, will remain solid.  This is just a little piece:

Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad!  I love you and want everyone to know!

/p

Spinning Plates

My friend Jill Geisler writes a column for Poynter that I never miss.  It always begins with "What Great Bosses Know..." and her latest advice included two hi-and-larious videos to illustrate how today's news managers often feel.  If you fancy yourself a manager and you aren't geting Jill's columns, sign up today!

I'm a Boomer and I've experienced that plate-spinning feeling many times but ever since the economy went south and NBC slipped to last place I feel more like a mole-wacker.  Thanks, Jay Leno.

It's not that I've crossed generations.  It just seems like managing a newsroom today is so much more reactive.  The plate-spinners had a little bit of a plan.  They knew which plates might need a little attention.  The moles are completely unpredictable and you never know when or where one will pop up.

In the past few weeks, I've accepted three resignations.  Only one resignation was not a surprise.  A weekend meteorologist, a morning anchor and a weekend morning anchor/MMJ.  The ones departed/departing are taking challenging jobs that will be better for their respective families and maybe improve the financial situation.  Money does talk.  In each case, I understand completely and support the decision made by my former co-workers.

I'm still relatively new to this job...going on my eighth month here in Kansas City.  I talked to a comrade last night who made some negative references to my frequent address/job changes over the past four years.  Fair enough.

Tomorrow I'll be back in the office, ready to whack or spin whatever comes my way.

My Favorite MMJ Story From Last Week

I'm not sure Al Miller loves the idea of one-man-band reporting but he did a great job on this story Thursday.

Al keeps inviting me to ride along with him on a shift.  I hope he means it because it's going to happen soon!

MMJ Serendipity and a Little From the Wayback Machine

Newsblues posted this today, so a tip of the hat to Mike James.  And a tip of the hat to Lori Jane Gliha.  I don't know her but I'm proud she is a Scripps co-worker.  Lori Jane sang this song at a station gathering recently:



Her song struck a chord.  I blogged about our new reality six years ago when I was a news director in another market:

==============================================
Wednesday, December 10, 2003
Tonight something happened that got me thinking. Let me set the stage. Our service technician (consultant) has been in for the past three days. That's Always stressful even if you like the person (and I think I do). So tonight, I left work early (6:25pm) and was settled into my couch about thirty minutes later. I learned from another station's cut-in that a robbery and shooting had occured at a grocery store. MY grocery store. Less than two miles from my house.

I immediately started putting my shoes back on and told John he should drive me there. Good plan until I realized the camcorder was dead. No battery. Dead freaking camera. Somehow it got left on when we were shooting video of our fantastic holiday light display.

A big story happening in my neighborhood and No battery.

For a moment, I was apoplectic. Seriously irritated.

But then I remembered that I work with professionals and although they could not get to the scene as quickly as I could, they would get there and do a good job.  And they did. I watched the late news and save for an audio buzz in the lead live shot, our coverage was fine. More than fine. I'm proud of my team. (Thanks y'all)

But dammit, I really wanted to be involved...shoot some video. Twice in my tenure here, I've shot stories that made it onto the NBC regional feed.  I gotta tell ya, that's serious thrill.

Probably the photojournalists who work at Action News 5 have a "no-big-deal" attitude about shooting stories that are good enough to be sent via satellite to the rest of the world because they do it all the time but I haven't had a camera on my shoulder for a living since the 70's. Nixon was president, for godsakes!

Where I'm going here is that Forward Thinkers say that at some point, all local TV news employees will carry cameras and all will report stories.

I can't wait./pp
============================================
Here's the deal.  The Newsroom of the Future is HERE.  On NBC Action News Thursday evening, we presented our viewers with four stories that were shot, written, edited and presented by MMJ's.  It is the new way.  And we will do it every day.

Since that night in December, 2003, I've never been without a video camera (complete with fully charged battery).  These days I carry a Flip with me and I hope to upgrade to a Flip HD.

I intend to make the network feed again.  Hopefully soon.

Snow Day!

I don't agree with Ben-the-Producer but I understand his frustration.  Winter weather hype is not just a problem in Chicago.

However, vigilance is an expectation with today's television audience.

I grew up in South Dakota and learned early that snow can disrupt life.  If it blows around at 30-plus MPH when it's zero degrees, it can kill.  I respect snow.

I also spent one delightful winter in Syracuse.  Imagine living in a snow globe and God shakes it about every other day or so.  125-inches of snow per year.  My friends at WSTM would snort at the storm that's got us all so crazy right now.

What's the old song?  It's not the meat, it's the motion.  With snow, it's not how much falls, it's what happens after it does.  Will it melt?  Re-freeze, causing treacherous roads?  Blow around?  Do nothing?  We don't know so we have to plan for the worst case scenario.  The trick is not tranferring that plan to the newscast in a "sky is falling" presentation.  It's a delicate dance.

So as I watch the Ravens and Packers try to set a record for pass-interference calls, there's a little voice in my head telling me to go to bed because at 4:30am, the alarm will blare so I can get to work at 6am.

The challenge is to tell a weather story that hasn't been told a thousand times already.

We can do this.

Weeth Reekings Avorian Tar

I finally added the local constant-Christmas-music station to my car radio.  Mostly I listen to sports-talk and KC has a couple of great choices although I'm partial to The Border Patrol.  Steven St. John and Nate Bukaty make me laugh on my drive to work more often than not.

Friday morning I was flipping around and heard the word "Memphis" so I stopped flipping and listened.  Turns out, a "Memphis suburban mayor" posted a controversial comment on his Facebook wall, blaming President Obama's Tuesday speech about the troop surge for disrupting his family's annual Charlie Brown Christmas viewing.  Russell Wiseman is the mayor of Arlington, a community east of Memphis along I-40.

The city of Memphis is an oasis of Democrats surrounded by conservative Republicans so I'm no longer surprised by outrageous political stories and comments.  The conflict makes Memphis one of the greatest news markets in the country. 

But seriously?  President Obama planned his speech on purpose to preempt Charlie Brown?  Seriously.

When I was a little kid, my limited vocabulary made me the Queen of Misheard Lyrics.  I remember being so excited when (and I think it was during the summer between second and third grade) I found the Christmas-themed songs in the United Methodist Hymnal.  No more listening to the sermon, each Sunday I instead read and re-read the words to songs I'd heard all my short life, finally learning the truth about what was being sung.

King forever, seasoned leather...

So Russell Wiseman, ye with the name that is a holiday classic, it's time for you to admit you were wrong.  Our president is not a Muslim.  Facebook is a public forum.  You messed up.  Apologize and move on.

KCTV Makes a Change

Flitting around the KC blogosphere is a story that the somewhat-notorious Tracy Brogden-Miller (read the story I found via Google or watch the video from 2008) is out as ND at KCTV.



I can't help but be struck by the parallels to my death spiral in Memphis:

• She welcomed a new General Manager at the end of the summer.  Lee Meredith joined WMC in September 2006.
• KCTV had been contending for ratings but slipped by 20% in some news time periods in July.  WMC slipped to second place in the late news in February 2006.
• Despite strong lead-ins, KCTV slipped again in November.  WMC lost the late news race by 2/10 of a point in November 2006.
• After three months of working for the new GM, she's out.  I was sacked at the end of the November book in 2006.

I wish her the best.  Getting fired sucks.  Not cool.

Advice to the Famous Having Sex With Women Who Are Not Their Wife

RTDNA - Radio Television Digital News Association Communicator Chairman's Blog: A Memo to Tiger Woods

Truly a Class Act. Godspeed MB

I've worked with lots of anchors over the years in bigger markets than Baltimore and smaller ones too. Mary Beth is truly among the best ever.   Watch the video and you will see why she's so beloved.  Genuine, warm, engaged and just a little self-deprecating.  I really miss Mary Beth.

Mary Beth Marsden Says Goodbye - Baltimore News, Weather, Breaking News | WMAR-TV

Help Wanted...but Jeez, be Smart About Applying!

After more than three decades in the news business I am still AMAZED how how sloppy some wannabes are about job seeking.

Eric Maze is the Deuce at KSHB.  For the past few weeks, we've spent some hilarious moments watching resume reels (DVDs) and reading clever (and some, not so much) cover letters. 

History moment.  My first resume tape was on three-quarter...(sigh)

Right now, we've got five positions open:  Weekend Meteorologist, Weekend Anchor, Morning Anchor, Multi-media Journalist, Photographer.  Interested?  Apply online (click on "careers").

But before you do, a few words of advice.  All of our jobs require the ability to shoot, write and edit.  If you can't do those things, don't bother.  You have to understand and be competent with the difference between broadcast writing and online writing.  If you send a resume and cover letter, spell my damn name right.  (It's not Rick Ilar.  The former ND's last name is spelled Iler.  Seriously I opened one addressed that way today.  And it came from an agent!)

Here are some other tips that I penned for another blog, some time ago:

Cover letters: Note to cover-letter-senders. Write this down. Have somebody look over your letter before you send it so you don't make hideous mistakes like using "of" instead of "have." As in..."I was happy to of seen the posting for a postion at your station." Spellcheck won't catch that but a friend might. Also, don't start your letter with "I'm the next (fill in the blank) at (fill in the blank). If you want to get my attention and that's VERY HARD TO DO, tell me something about yourself that you know will mean something to me. You have to do some research to find out what that is...Be curious, not pushy and you can get the info you need.
Experience: If the posting says two years experience required and you HAVE NONE, go ahead and send me a tape. I look at every one (eventually) but first I read the cover letter and resume and if you don't have ANY experience, that does affect my attitude about you. If you have between one and two years, definitely send a tape. I'll look closer at it than those who don't have any time other than internships in a newsroom. If you have more than ten years under your belt, I'll look at your tape FIRST and wonder how I got so lucky. And...If you have more than ten years experience in two-year increments in triple digit markets....maybe you're in the wrong business.
Phone calls: Call me once if you want, I answer my own phone and maybe you'll get lucky. Be ready for me to be busy because many meetings take place in my office. If you catch me, I might talk to you. I'll tell you about the hours and what I'm looking for as far as live shot experience, etc. Most of the time, I counsel the recently-graduated to look at the smaller markets around Kansas City--Springfield, Columbia, St. Joseph, Topeka. If you don't catch me, leave a message. I check voice mail regularly and if I have something to say, I'll call you back. Most of the time I won't, because I don't have anything to say. You can call more than once but know that there's a thin line between tenacity and stalking. Be careful not to push, especially if you don't have the goods.

It's all about the reseach.  Look at our website, view some of the videos.  Do you like what you see?  Are we doing the kind of news you aspire to do?  How is our writing?  Are we creative?  If you're not impressed, we might not be the shop for you.  Life's too short folks.  Find the right gig and you'll be happy a long time!  Good luck on your search.

The Wayback Machine--November, 2004

Every once in awhile, I'm going to reach deep into the archives of my old blog and pull out a post from before.  This particular piece was written just before the November sweeps period ended in 2004.  There might be slight edits to protect the innocent...

"Sweeps Burnout."

A full week has passed since I last blogged.

And I am  t i r e d o u t.
Not so much that I can't function, mind you. I'm just feeling the "sweeps burnout." For instance, I watched an WREG "dramatization" super tonight that was so small (extreme lower right) that it got buried in the video. Usually I would laugh at the...attempt. Tonight I just smiled.

But you know what? This is how I always feel at the conclusion of Nielsen hell.
When will we/they ever learn? We should be in "ratings" all the time. Every day, every hour, every minute. Why should we save our best behavior for three or four months of the year. I was always a "what, in the book????!" manager when it came to requests for time off in February, May or November. July, I could handle. But I've been conditioned by sales and marketing and Nielsen to avoid allowing people to take time off during those three sacred months. And I'm really starting to wonder how wise that is. Why can't I expect people to jump high in January, April or October? And if they do, and if they need some time off in a "sweeps month"...why shouldn't I let them have it?
I'm just saying, is all.
Changing topics...let's all relax!  In the interest of amusement and relaxation, here's a joke recently sent to me:


INTERVIEW SKILLS, PLEASE. A reporter is dispatched to interview the chairwoman of the quilting society. A gentile lady, she greets him at her door with a warning: "My pit bulldog looks vicious but he's quite well behaved. But you mustn't say anything to the parrot!"


Agreeing to her terms, the reporter enters the grand dame's living room and commences the interview. And as she promised, the dog looks vicious but is calm, lying on the carpet and watching the reporter, his tongue lolling out between sharklike teeth.


But the parrot is a horror, screeching profanity and bloodcurdling curses at the top of his lungs with a voice that could curdle ice cubes. The reporter tries to persevere, but finally the bird gets to him and he mutters, "Oh, shut up, you!"


Whereupon the parrot, a wry grin on his beak, says, "Sic 'im, Spike!"
...
Another topic.Action News 5 has had a good run with the Mid-South Emmys. We've won enough over the past five years to make any GM or ND proud. Last night, the 2003 nominations came out and we didn't get many. I will admit to some initial disappointment but here are the facts: WMC is number one is this market. Has been for...years. We are UP in both rating and share in the key newscasts. We are VERYCLOSE to winning all news time periods, sign on to sign off. We don't do it with a sat truck or more crews on the street or fancy graphics or a fancy slogan. We do it in the trenches. We do it with journalism. We do it with our people. We do it with Mike Puccinelli, Carrie McClure, Ron Childers, Joe Birch, Donna Davis, Kym Clark, Dave Brown, Bill Lunn and Jarvis Greer on the front lines every day. Every single one of those people listed has at least three years in the market. Six of them have more than ten years. Four have more than fifteen years. Three have 25 years or more. That's what makes us what we are.
OK, so Carrie's on maternity leave but she'll be back. And until then, Renee Malone is doing a fine job of filling in.
My challenge to the other NDs....I'll put Janice Broach, Joyce Peterson, Anna Marie Hartman, Darrell Phillips or George Brown on our lead story any day. And we're ably backed up by other solid reporters and photographers, producers, editors and production folks who give 110-percent because they care about the product...
I'm thankful. Happy Thanksgiving to you...


/pp

The Road to Sedition (we're on it)

My pal Bonnie sent this to me today. 

If you consider yourself a journalist, please read it.  And ask yourself, when was the last time you practiced your craft?  When was the last time you were proud of what you produced?  When was the last time you aggressively pursued the truth?

We must put ourselves and our precious reputations at risk.

We must ask tough questions.

We must not be afraid.

We must expose.

We must.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Dark humor but it always makes me laugh:

When I'm wrong.

This past week has had some great leadership lessons for those of us who made decisions every day.

Bill Belichick gambled and lost last Sundays's game against the Colts.  Les Miles (LSU) couldn't get his field goal team on the grass quickly enough Saturday and blew a chance to win against Ole Miss.  Notre Dame's Charlie Weis is probably facing the end after his team lost AT HOME in double overtime to Connecticut (who? what?!).  Mark Mangino, a man who had the Kansas Jayhawks at the Orange Bowl a couple of years ago will be fired as soon as those in charge can figure out an exit stategy.

All of these men have been at the top of their game.  And they've made incredibly bad decisions.  How they handle their mistakes is up to them.

How I handle mine has changed since I first became a news manager.

I've always been pretty decisive.  But I'm not always right.  In fact...if TV news was baseball and I was a batter, I'd be in the Hall of Fame for making correct decisions five out of ten times.  Nobody bats .500 forever.

There are no flawless bosses. Even the great ones have their quirks. But the best bosses I've had have also been self-deprecating sometimes.  Admitting faults.  Admitting wrong decisions.

Local news is not baseball.  Running a newsroom is much harder than baseball. 

I am demanding.  I have high standards and I don't like my team to make avoidable mistakes.  But we do.  Every newsroom does.

So when I make a mistake, I try to be very overt about it.  I say I screwed up.



I wish I'd learned this lesson earlier in my career.

System Restore

Last Sunday the NY Times did not appear on the front lawn.  That's the second time it's happened since we moved to Olathe, KS.  So, Sunday afternoon, I logged onto the customer service website (which will NOT be linked here) so that I could complain and get a credit for my loss.
Because John was making arrangements to fly to CT for his cousin's funeral, I probably paid less attention to the computer workings than I usually do.

I am not a neophyte.  I understand about viruses and I know better than to click on random links but Monday night, I had a virus message.  I ran my virus software (Trend Micro) and it told me there was a Trojan that couldn't be quarantined or cleaned.  Apparently I'm not the only one.  Was I a latent victim?

I tried to delete the offending file.  Nope.  So I shut the machine off and went to bed at midnight.

Tuesday night, I ran the virus scan again.  In Safe Mode.  It appeared to be deleting bad stuff but when I finally was prompted to restart, the virus message  YOU ARE INFECTED still appeared.  I shut the machine off and went to bed after the late news.

Wednesday night, I tried everything I could think of.  My virus scanning software no longer worked.  The freaking whatever-it-is virus had completely taken over (even CTRL_ALT_DEL) did not work.  (I was urged to contact my adminstrator.  I'm the administrator, dammit!)

Tonight, I came home with a determination to wipe the damn thing clean and start over.  I created the eight System Restore discs back in the fall of 2004.  John's dad had just died.  John was still in Connecticut, caring for his family.  We lived in Germantown, TN.  Carly was in college, Charlie in high school.  Dottie still ran around, crazy, when we put dog food in her bowl.  I worked at one of the most dominate NBC affiliates in the country.

Five years later, as I put the discs into the CD drive, I thought back.  Rewind.  Fast forward.  The death of Clyde.  The death of Bernice.  The death of my job at WMC in Memphis.  Move to Syracuse.  Move to Baltimore.  Move to Kansas City.  Friends lost, friends found.  Eight discs took just over 53 minutes to load and copy. 

Good times. 

I'm in a good place now. 

Can't wait to see what the future holds!

Eddie Vizzo

We have a routine on Saturdays during the football season. No matter where we live, John finds a casino that has a free NFL football contest. Reno, Memphis and Syracuse were not a problem -- casinos were readily available. Other places, not so much but we managed.  The rules are simple. You pick who you think will win the game, slide a "players card" through a slot and then leave.

Yeah right.

While we don't gamble as freely as we did five years ago, we still like to give money away, for some reason. Probably because both of us have tasted small victories. A hundred here, a couple of hundred there...sometimes more. When Carly and I went to Reno to scatter Clyde's ashes, I won $800! (Thanks Clyde)

But now we always stick to our budget of losing. Once fifty bucks is gone so are we.

Saturday was no different. We went out for breakfast and then took the dog for a walk.

Dottie is now a very old doggie.  (We got her as a pup in Tulsa in 1994.)  She doesn't enjoy life as much as she once did.  But she does like these walks (we think) and we also believe that the mile or so does her good. 

When we get home, she's exhausted.  She can't climb the three steps up to the front door so either John or I carry her up and then she sleeps for most of the rest of the day.

Saturday started pretty much the same way it always does.  Breakfast, dog walk, grocery shopping, casino.

John's cellphone rang just as we were entering the Harrah's parking gargage.  It was his brother Billy.  Bill is forty-seven years old but we always refer to him in the diminutive.  He's the youngest of two.

"I have bad news," he told John.  I was watching John's face and I saw it screw up in sadness and confusion immediately.  I knew somebody died.

John's parents are both gone.  We miss them all the time.  He has two aunts, one of which is in her eighties.

He turned to me and I waited for the bad news.

"Eddie Vizzo died."

Edward Vizzo was John's cousin's husband.  It might seem like a distant leaf on the family tree but in John's small group, it's a big loss.  Ed and his wife Rainy had two children.  Jessica and Jennifer are only a few years older than our two.  When Rainy's mom and dad got too old to care for themselves and Connie, their developmentally challenged daughter (who is older than John), he built a home where all could stay.  He was a big hunk of the glue that held them altogether and we always said he was "a good guy."  He'd give you his last nickel, if he thought you needed it.  He was always kind and welcoming to me when John and I were first married.  And then, when Carly and Charlie were youngsters, he looked for ways to entertain and include them.

Google him and you'll find...not much. Edward Vizzo Electric didn't have a rating with the Better Business Bureau.  That's not surprising to me.  Ed Vizzo was a journeyman electrician who did business with people who appreciated his one-on-one approach.  He had plenty of loyal customers and others waiting in line.  In fact, he died while working for a client.  Felled by a heart attack in the kitchen.  That person called 9-1-1 right away and administered CPR but he was gone.

I don't know his medical history but he had a stress test recently.  His doctor told him that a surgery might be necessary in a couple of weeks, another stent perhaps.

If I were a young, thin, non-smoker who never drank alcohol, I might move on without much thought beyond the grief I feel for Elaine, Rainy, Jennifer and Jessica.

But that's not the case.

And so I'm studying this.

Thank you Eddie Vizzo.

Taking flight

Tuesday evening we got a news release from the Lafayette County Sheriff.  Five men, a father and his four sons had been arrested for "sex crimes."  We learned some of the horrifying details from the charging documents Wednesday.  Among the allegations:

• a victim was forced to have intercourse with her grandfather
• that she was forcibly sodomized
• a dog was part of at least one of the abuse incidents
• the victim and her siblings were forced to participate in mock weddings after which they were abused by their uncles

The victims are now adults.  Some of the accused men were "lay preachers" at a church in Independence, MO.  A church spokeswoman says they are no longer part of "the priesthood."

Police spent the day digging for clues. The victim says she and her siblings buried glass jars with notes detailing the abuse at the suggestion of their abusers.

The cops also think there may be a body or bodies buried on the farm formerly owned by the patriarch, Burrell Mohler.

This is the type of story that is fraught with pitfalls for any news department and we've already stumbled a few times. We have to be so careful!

There is a court hearing scheduled for Thursday.  I'm sure we'll be covering this story for many years.

I want to love the Chiefs

I love KC, I really do. I could easily create a list of a hundred things I love about Kansas City but it's hard, hard, hard to love the football team. John and I went to one game (when they were anniliated by the Giants) and the most entertaining thing was how KC football fans finish off our national anthem:



Y'all know I'm sports crazy. High school, college, pro. Basketball, football, soccer, boxing (sometimes), softball, NASCAR (sorta) and especially BASEBALL. Go Twins.

I realize I'm pretty mainstream (don't like the fights in a cage, for instance). That's how I roll.

Last year at this time, the Ravens, with a new head coach and a rookie QB, were capturing the hearts and minds of Baltimore. Gosh it was fun.

If you didn't wear purple clothes to work on the Friday before a game, you were a turd. Here, I wore a red blouse on Monday and was taunted (in fun) as being a homer.

In Baltimore, if you needed to go to Wegmans, go during the Ravens game. The place would be a ghost town. Here, the mall and grocery store parking lots do not seem to be impacted by Chiefs football.

Chiefs fans say they are the best fans in the world. I don't doubt it. There just aren't very many of them right now.

And then there's Larry Johnson. A real stellar guy who calls out his coach on Twitter and says he didn't know that the word "faggot" is offensive.

It's not very pretty. However, I'd still love to see a win over Jacksonville today!

Go Chiefs!

In the category of "Why?"

From Reuters:
"Multiple shooting incidents are not uncommon in the United States, where there are relatively lax gun controls.
Fort Hood personnel have accounted for more suicides than any other Army post since the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003, with 75 tallied through July of this year.
Fort Hood isn't Iraq or Afghanistan. It was a protected US military base, home to more than 40,000 soldiers.

Or...this from the BBC:
"...this wasn't Iraq or Afghanistan. It was a protected US military base, home to more than 40,000 soldiers.
A place that was meant to be out of harm's way."


Damn.

Lone wolf?

Twelve Thirteen dead, dozens more injured. Early reports were that the shooter was dead. Hours later we learned that despite being shot numerous times, he's alive and in stable condition.

I find myself glued to the cable stations. All of them.

A former co-worker, Matt Mulcahy, detailed in his blog how Twitter and other digital platforms covered the story.

Here in Kansas City, we rejoice that one of our own was injured, but survived the shooting.  Through her family, we learned that she was in the classroom when the shooting started.  She and her fellow soldiers dropped to the floor and covered each other.

But why?  What drove him to turn on his comrades?  A doctor is not supposed to kill.  Some are calling the rampage the work of a "lone wolf."

Watch out for black women?

Here's an email I received during the 5pm news Tuesday night, followed by my response and his back to me. (Spelling and punctuation has not been changed.)

From: john (redacted)
Sent: Tuesday, November 03, 2009 5:14 PM
To: Phillip, Peggy
Subject: Beating At store Parking Lot
I am so sick of your liberal biased news. I never watch you anymore unless the channel happens to be on.You are so liberal and bias you do not report the news, your try and report your agenda. I know this because NEVER do you identify a suspect if he is black or Hispanic if it can be avoided. Case in point when you reproted about the elderly man being beaten I knew the suspect was a black female becasue you never mentioned a description of suspect. I changed to channel 9 and sure enoguh a complete description.No wonder you are rated last. Quick your liberal BS and be a news station . Report the facts even if they do not fit your policrics
SHAME ON YOU


My response was copied to the newsroom:

Mr. (redacted),
Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts. We report suspect descriptions when they can reasonably assist the police in finding persons responsible for crime. In this case, the description from police was vague--black woman, 150 pounds, 5-foot-six inches tall.

"Black" is the color of the words you are now reading but has also been used to describe people whose skin tones cover just about every racial and ethnic group in the world, including tanned white people. The media is often accused of withholding ethnicity and race from criminal suspect descriptions as some sort of cowardly act of political correctness. What may appear to be political correctness is our best effort to professionally and ethically report the truth.

Nonetheless, your opinion is important and I am sharing this with the appropriate news personnel.

Sincerely,Peggy Phillip
News Director

From: john (redacted)
Sent: Tuesday, November 03, 2009 6:49 PM
To: Phillip, Peggy
Subject: Thank you / Beating At store Parking Lot

I appreciate you responding. Does show consdieration. Most lberals do not answer as they are too self righteous and important for conservatives like me.Does not change the fact your news broadcasts have been neglect for some time.; You DO show a bias and you DO NOT report when a crime has been committed by a person of color. Yes you show after the fact with photos and desrciptions when some one has been arrested but no never ahead of their arrest. Yes I have to turn to other stations as Channel 9 that reported a description of woman and car. Some one watching your news cast would not have had that information. So you do get creds for answering me., Thak you. But you still fail, the "We are liberal and we will report the news as we see it not how it really is test"
Thanks
John

What do you think? Did I handle it properly? It's a rhetorical question but the topic of suspect descriptions should be addressed regularly in every newsroom.

I think I understand John's frustration. He's angry and I don't blame him. In this horrifying case, an 81-year-old man was beaten outside a grocery store while he waited for his wife to finish shopping. This happened in a part of Greater Kansas City (Prairie Village, KS) that used to be safe. Now, not so much.

We are in the information business. It's our job to report as fully and accurately as we know how. But what is "black?" What do you think when you hear that word as a descriptor?

Crimes against the innocent make us feel helpless and we want/need security and solutions. I get that. But demonizing every darker-skinned female of medium height and weight in the greater Kansas City area isn't the answer.