Spelling

"Speed dating" our adult children...

The Game of Life?  Here's a square that doesn't exist...Empty Nest.  I can't decide if that's one that should send a player forward or backwards.  I do know that nothing really prepared me for my newborn babies or the sense of loss when they moved away from home.

When our kids were small, John and I used to treasure the handful of solitary hours on a weekend.  A softball game, a sleep over (somewhere else).  Bliss!

TV news was no less the task master when I wasn't a news director.  Most days were 10-12 hours plus the commute (I've always been salaried, somehow).  Sometimes we stole family time from our kids by playing video games (Dr. Mario) on their time and I wish we had those hours back.

Carly is now in Reno with her partner Denis.  She has a great job at Whole Foods.  Chaz is a senior at the University of Tennessee.  Both are adults who rarely need help from Mom and Dad. 

This weekend, we'll all be together for about 52 hours.  Sorta.  Carly and Denis fly to Omaha at 12:50pm Friday and Charlie arrives there ten minutes later.  All three depart Omaha Sunday evening at around 5:30pm.  In between is the happy wedding of my niece Cheray to Tyler in Brookings, SD (Home of Endless Possibilities), which is about three hours north of Omaha.  Subtract six hours in the car and sixteen hours for sleeping and it's about thirty hours of Together Time with our kids.  Assuming that they won't spend every waking moment with us, it's like spurts of opportunity to make those important parental points that we might have neglected when they were growing up:

•  You can't write Thank You notes soon enough
• The Boy Scout Rules are pretty right on
• Balancing the checkbook is really, really important

We're already old and rather uncool so we have to do this without seeming obvious.  It's not easy.  Especially since I've written it all in a blog that my kids might/could see.

Hey...over-communication isn't a bad thing!

What local news needs to succeed.

It's not about when (4:30am, 9pm, etc)

It's about WHAT.

It's content.  Important stories.  Avoiding the easy news releases.  Looking for the tough angle.  Asking the hard questions.  Never settle.



 Never settle.

Building a brand

Sunday, the Chiefs will attempt what hasn't happened in a hefty handful of years.  Going 2-0 to start the season.

They surprised many with their win over San Diego Monday night in the rain.

I hope these new Chiefs are for real.  I'm fascinated by the young draft class and especially Eric Berry because he went to UT where my son is in his final year (fingers crossed).

EB's website proves he is interested in building a professional brand.  That's great. 

I tried and failed once at using the internet as a way to build a professional brand.  (I'll save you the trouble of google-ing it)

I failed because I didn't remain professional enough.

It's a slippery slope but here I am, back again.  If at first you don't succeed, try, try again!

Wednesday Eve

It's only Tuesday and already my hair is on fire. 

That's not a bad thing.  It's just a thing.  This is the time of year when news directors who work on a calendar-year-budget try to predict the future and guess how much it will cost to run a newsroom for the next year.  I did not budget correctly in 2010 for two big events (Scott Roeder trial, Chiefs camp in St. Joe).  Both were predictable and I'm challenging myself to do better for 2011.

I'm also challenging myself as a leader to learn (and help my team to learn) how we can improve our response to distributing news and information on "the set, net and cell."  Not as easy as it sounds!

And then there's the personal stuff.  Somehow, I didn't pay close attention to how our company health insurance works.  Son Charlie is a full-time college student (in his fifth year; will graduate next May).  His birthday falls at the wrong time of the year and he got too old (age 23) for the Scripps coverage.  We were faced with a COBRA payment of $550 per month (not in the personal budget) through the end of the year.  I, for one, am happy that the health care reform bill will allow me to cover his medical expenses as of January 1, 2011.  And I'm thankful that the University of Tennessee has a health insurance alternative that costs just $350 for the fall semester that will take care of the minor emergencies.  It's not the best but hopefully Charlie can avoid a catastrophic health crisis for the next four months.

New topic.

So what about those Chiefs!?  I watched last night's game from beginning to end (and what the H happened with the KMBC signal for the first eight minutes?)  I looked for an explanation on their website and Facebook page.  Maybe I missed it?  The station got thrashed in the Twitter universe when the "technical difficulties" slide came up instead of the game.  I watched on ESPN2...and made a mental note that I'd always have a plan B and C if I had such a huge game to broadcast.  (Please, NFL and NBC, please?)

Life lessons.  Gotta love 'em!

On this day of remembrance; let's practice tolerance (which is not weakness)

All that and a bag of wackos

The minister of a small church in central Florida hijacked the nation's common sense this week.  Late Thursday afternoon, after days of coverage of Terry Jones' rants, he now claims that he's canceled his plans to burn the Quran on the anniversary of this country's darkest day.

This morning, the folks at Poynter issued some guidelines for coverage of what they called "a lone voice with a tiny following."

Among their suggestions:

 * Cover the reaction, not the fanatic. There are some creative responses to Jones' lunacy. Mother Jones wrote about a group that is rallying people to send a Quran to Afghanistan for every text Jones burns. Local churches and other organizations have planned dozens of events  to draw people away from the Quran burning. Already the response is greater than the event itself. Your coverage should reflect that.

* Talk about how you will react to confrontations ahead of time. A little pushing and shoving can look like a big kerfuffle depending on how you describe it or crop the image. Have a plan to ensure the events are accurately portrayed, so that production work, like creating a video tease or sending out a tweet, doesn't mislead your audience or undermine your journalistic purpose.

* Help your audience understand why this is hate speech, not a simple protest. Hate speech targets an entire group for a particular characteristic. In this case it's belief in the Quran as a holy scripture. A protest denounces a certain action or set of circumstances, not an entire group of people. Jones has justified his plan by claiming the Quran is "evil" and "Islam is of the Devil." He and his followers will burn the Quran with guns holstered at their sides. He admits the act is likely to incite violence.

Fox News announced their intention NOT to cover the burning of Islam's sacred book.  The Associated Press also distributed guidelines but didn't go so far as to say they would not cover the event.  The Columbia Journalism Review says the AP standards were too little, too late.  Perhaps Poynter was a little late to the party, as well.  Joel Mears of the CJR entreats us to "push back against a PR stunt and run in the other direction of a media pack all too ready to pounce on a flame."

I agree, Joel.  By the way, we were among the local Kansas City TV station news departments, who, along with the KC Star, covered the Ringling Brothers circus elephants eating lunch at the Sprint Center this week.

I know this comparison is a stretch but when will we stop being lemmings?

Hail, South Dakota!

John and I spent the holiday weekend with my parents and most of my siblings in Wagner, South Dakota.

I left work relatively early on Friday and we traveled north but because we stopped too many times (darn historical markers, etc!) we spent the night in Omaha and then finished our seven-hour journey Saturday morning.

Just north of Sioux City, Iowa is this sign, welcoming me home.  I always feel such a sense of calm when we cross over. 

There's something very special about the sky in South Dakota...it's so huge and blue on the flat prairie.  Calming and wonderful!

Especially incredible is the night sky.  The nearest "city" is Sioux Falls, two hours away, so there is not much light pollution.  The sky is just amazing.  You can easily see satellites, moving quickly through the dark canvas.

We wondered if they photographed us, sitting around our campfire Sunday night as Dad recalled his days in the Air Force, working on the B-36 Peacemaker during the Korean War.

Dad's stories were interrupted every so often by coyotes howling in the cornfields.  It was thrilling (and chilling) to hear them so nearby.  Coyotes are not dangerous to humans but once we realized how close they were, Lucy and Sidney, Pam and Perry's dogs, got kenneled, just in case...

Dad's brother, my Uncle Noel Wiechmann, was quite a photographer and Dad was able to secure his cameras and a tripod recently so, using Uncle Noel's tripod, I tried to capture the brilliant stars with my digital camera.  The shutter was set at 16 seconds and the aperture at 2.8.  Not the greatest because reality was so much better.  I was disappointed but when I go back in three weeks, I'm going to try again (after consulting with Brett Akagi).

I may need to use my uncle's 1970s-era Olympus.  I wonder what batteries it needs?

I saw many friends and relatives during the time we were in Wagner.  Here is the incomplete short list with their former names--Paula Faughender, Ina Miller, Don Doty, John Chrisman, Bruce Chrisman, Jeff Uecker, Julie and JoAnn Winckler, Sherrie and John Wiechmann, Jane Wipf, Pearl Weber, Patty Sip, Rod Cozad, Mark Gau, Chris Andersh and Karen Kocer.  Forgive if I didn't mention you!

Monday, we went to the Wagner Labor Day parade.  In this photo you can see my sister Pam talking to her grandson Hudson, John, Paula's husband Randy, my mom and dad and Cheray Gibson and her soon-to-be-husband Tyler Christiansen.  This was just before it started raining...

Thankfully, the rain was short-lived.  The procession, however, was not.  We were thankful when, after an hour and a half of grass-roots politicking, old tractors, some floats, one marching band and a lot of antique cars, we finally saw the horses.  Horses mean the end of the parade!  We hustled across the street to have lunch with the United Methodists.


In doing so, I apparently missed the big story of the day.  This wagon went into the crowd later down the route when something spooked the horses.  We were near the beginning of the procession but I got a shot of the horse-drawn buggy (seen here in much calmer times) when I was trying to capture the hilarious image of a motorized cooler.

Thankfully, the injuries were minor. 

Another great Labor Day in Wagner, South Dakota!

Early morning news

Some say we're lemmings but at WMC in Memphis, the 4:30am news has been SOP for nearly a decade.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/01/business/media/01morning.html

Get used to it folks, the day starts sooner and ends earlier.

4:30am

 I'm pretty sure they WERE planning an earlier start.  And our announcement forced them to announce the earlier start earlier than they planned.  :)

http://www.bottomlinecom.com/kcnews/kmbcnowstarting430.html

The Great Midwest Aug 13-15, 2010

We had such a fabulous weekend! 
This video doesn't do it justice but I continue to try...
Love the lightning show Friday night in Olathe, seeing A-Rod hit THREE home runs Saturday night and then, best of all, the Missouri State Fair Sunday.

Life is good, indeed.

I'm mad as Hell and I'm not going to take this anymore

Steven Slater's story really struck a chord with me. And with stressed out workers everywhere, apparently. Who hasn't considered grabbing two beers, screaming a few obscenities and pulling the ripcord on their career?

"Screw it! I'm outta here!"

Sunday night I met up with my former co-worker Tony Kovaleski and his wife Laurie.  They overnighted in Kansas City while taking their daughter to Mizzou.  Tony and I worked together 25 years ago at KTVN in Reno.  During our dinner at Abuelos in Zona Rosa and for two plus subsequent hours we remembered and laughed about our early careers in television.  I was a green reporter when Tony arrived and even though he'd already earned his stripes at a TV station in Eureka, California, our boss ordered me to "show him the ropes."

I had worked my way into the newsroom from traffic and receptionist.  I'd paid my dues so I was fully prepared to hate Tony.  In fact, I already did hate him.

Tony's immediate and obvious competence forced me to spend most of my time sulking in the news car while he and a photojournalist gathered information and sound on a story about residential mailbox vandalism.  He didn't need me to show him the ropes.  I realized pretty quickly that I would soon be learning from him.

But he couldn't know that.  I had to keep it a secret.  So I resorted to my first, best defense.

I made fun of him.  To his face.

Tony and Chip Baker (the photographer, RIP) were prepping for his stand-up and I rolled down the window of the news car so I could exercise some intimidation, in case he was nervous.

"Three-two-one-mark," he said and then launched into his stand-up.

I started laughing.

"Who the hell is Mark?" I teased him.  He tried to explain that doing a countdown helped the editor find the starting place but I would have none of it.  I just mocked him unmercifully, all the way back to the station, changing the word "mark" to his first name.

"Three-two-one-Tony" has been a trademark of our friendship for more than two decades.  He is now a National Murrow Award winning investigative journalist at KMGH in Denver.  His career took him from Reno to Los Angeles to Phoenix to Houston to Denver.  I have a few more cities in my resume...

Though the years, when I've had career bummers or questions, Tony has been there for me.  A sounding board.  A constant friend.  A counselor.  Despite our rocky beginning.

Work relationships can save you from the overwhelming stress so prevalent today.

If you feel overwhelmed, you might lose confidence and become irritable or withdrawn, become less productive and effective.  You'll definitely think your work is less rewarding. If the warning signs of work stress go unattended, it can lead to bigger problems.

Don't be a Steven.  Hang in there.  Find your Tony. 

Leadership lessons from football

Correction alert. This post contained a misspelled name. Thanks DeAnn Smith, for helping me!


Saturday night, I watched the NFL Hall of Fame induction ceremonies on ESPN.  John was still in Connecticut, spending time with his brother so I was home alone, trying to amuse myself for a few hours.

I found the speeches to be profoundly moving.  At one point, I called Charlie during Jerry Rice's acceptance and demanded that he watch it.  I'm sure he thought I was crazy (or drunk).  I was neither.  Rice is not a great speaker, frankly.  But his words were powerful.

"My fear of failure drives me," Jerry Rice said.

Fear can be a powerful master.  It can paralyze you...or make you better.

Learning how to prevail in the face of fear is the single most important step one can take toward becoming a successful risk-taker and maximizing success.

Linebacker Rickey Jackson talked about the importance of his hometown.  He wants his name to be part of the "Welcome to Pahokee" sign where he grew up. 

I get that.  (Wagner, South Dakota, if I get famous????)

Floyd Little's son gave an incredible introduction and Floyd's message was simple--Don't focus on your weakness.  This is easier said than done.  Many of us our most critical of ourselves than we are of others.  Self-reflexion is important but keep it in perspective!

Emmitt Smith, however, took the night.  He did two things incredibly right.  First, he recognized his teammates, most notably Darrell Darryl "Moose" Johnston.  He said Johnston took care of him like a little brother and he began to tear up.  So did I.

Second, Emmitt Smith said that to win, you have to show up every day.

That takes effort.  It's hard.  The road to success is paved with obstacles, most of which are unseen.  I read "Fast Company" for manager tips and here's what one expert says about bringing your best, every day:

It's not an issue of results. It's an issue of momentum. When you believe you can have a positive impact, others believe it too. Everyone's inspired to action. And you build momentum. When you vacillate in that belief, others vacillate too. Action starts and stops. Momentum never comes. And you get resignation and exhaustion instead. In this way, delivering your best is not something you can turn off and on depending on circumstances. It must be a daily habit. It must be a manner of traveling.

There is no wait-and-see.  There is only now.

Summer songs--when did you get old?

A little old and some new...as I  try to renew my relationship with this blog after a very trying month. 

Losing Nick Dutcher  hit our news team harder than any of us could have imagined.  We all still miss his shout of "breaking news" from the assignment desk, his everlasting smile--and of course, his constant demand that you smile back.
I don't think anyone was truly surprised by the turnout for his home-going service (that's what they call it in the south, I prefer it to "funeral.") 

And if you didn't catch Nathan Shain's excellent story about the memorial...click here.

Nick's untimely death has us all thinking about our own mortality.  And the longer I live, the more I realize that I'm getting old faster than I ever thought possible.

Six years ago...on August 19, 2004, to be exact, I posted on my former blog, a when-did-you-reach-middle-age test that was the subject of a Chicago Tribune columnist post:

The claim: This test pinpoints exactly when middle age kicks in by identifying the first song on the list for which you don't know the melody.

The list:

August 1974: "(You're) Having My Baby" -- Paul Anka with Odia Coates

August 1975: "Jive Talkin'" -- the Bee Gees

August 1976: "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" -- Elton John & Kiki Dee


August 1977: "I Just Want to Be Your Everything" -- Andy Gibb


August 1978: "Miss You" -- Rolling Stones


August 1979: "My Sharona" -- the Knack


August 1980: "Magic" -- Olivia Newton-John


August 1981: "Jessie's Girl" -- Rick Springfield


August 1982: "Eye Of The Tiger" -- Survivor


August 1983: "Every Breath You Take" -- the Police


August 1984: "Ghostbusters" -- Ray Parker Jr.


August 1985: "The Power of Love" -- Huey Lewis & the News


August 1986: "Papa Don't Preach" -- Madonna


August 1987: "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" -- U2


August 1988: "Roll With It" -- Steve Winwood


August 1989: "Right Here Waiting" -- Richard Marx


August 1990: "Vision of Love" -- Mariah Carey


August 1991: "(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" --Bryan Adams


August 1992: "Baby Got Back" -- Sir Mix-A-Lot


August 1993: "(I Can't Help) Falling in Love With You --UB40


August 1994: "Stay (I Missed You)" -- Lisa Loeb & Nine Stories


August 1995: "Waterfalls" -- TLC


August 1996: "Macarena" -- Los Del Rio


August 1997: "I'll Be Missing You" -- Puff Daddy & Faith Evans


August 1998: "The Boy Is Mine" -- Brandy & Monica


August 1999: "Genie in a Bottle" -- Christina Aguilera


August 2000: "It's Gonna Be Me" -- 'N Sync


August 2001: "Bootylicious" -- Destiny's Child


August 2002: "Hot In Herre" -- Nelly


August 2003: "Crazy In Love -- Beyonce featuring Jay-Z


August 2004: "Confessions Part II" -- Usher


For me, 1988. The year Charlie turned one. The year after I got back into TV news after a short detour into publicity and public relations. (yuck) The year Carly started kindergarten. I guess I was just too busy to listen to the radio and it killed my youth. Damn!

Eric Zorn updated his column last year and added some more tunes. 

If you're wondering about 2009, my simple research says that 2009's summer song is Jay Sean with Lil Wayne.  A tune entitled "Down."    Guess what?!  I know this one!

Unfortunately, this year could be a Bieber tune and I just can't go there.

Thou shall not kill. No exceptions.

I have been doing this TV news thing for a long time and still have plenty to learn but not much prepared me for the past five days.

On Tuesday afternoon, around 2:30p, Steve Kaut asked me if I had heard from Nick Dutcher.  Nick worked on our assignment desk and by now, most people who read this blog know that he was found dead in his home by the police we sent there for a "welfare check."

We found out at 4:30pm that Nick was dead and just before the 5pm news, I gathered as many of the news team as were available and told them.  Four hours later, we were dealing with the shocking news that Nick had been murdered.

Wednesday and Thursday are a blur as my team tried to deal with the shock of losing a sweet, gentle co-worker who was loved by many and the ethical decision-making involved with covering the story. 

I told them I didn't have all the answers about what we should do and that I wanted us all to talk out our next steps.

Marissa Cleaver, Sloane Heller and Najahe Sherman were the faces of our initial stories but many more were involved behind the scenes.  I am grateful for the guidance and advice of my co-workers.

Somewhat surprising has been the offers of help from our competitors.  I am grateful for that support.

These are challenging times for NBC Action News.  We are up to it.  But we're very sad, too.

I've moved on from the initial sorrow and now I'm mad as hell at whoever is responsible.

I love emotion-marketing. Gets me every time.

Since you been gone

I've been out of town so...blogging...not so much.  But I'm soo excited for this holiday weekend. 

I'm the MOC (manager on call, koo koo ka choo) so we aren't leaving town.  However, the challenge will be to convince John that we MUST attend KC Riverfest so I can see Head East Saturday night.

From the news release:

Head East has Missouri roots and has appeared in more than 5,000 concerts over the past 25 years. From St. Louis to Seattle and Dallas to Detroit, Head East has performed in every major city and market in North America. Led by founding member, keyboardist and producer Roger Boyd, Head East is one of the hottest, most exciting live shows touring today.

The "Flat as a Pancake" album was a staple in my college dorm room, my early matrimonial home(s) and I've rocked out to these songs like Dottie used to drink from her water dish.  Sloppy and with enthusiasm!

It's good to be back in KC and I hope you have a wonderful Independence Day.  America is grand!

Gooooaaaaallll!

The Swinging Bridges of Brumley, Missouri

John and I traveled to the Lake of the Ozarks this weekend.  We stayed in a fine hotel and at a fine lobster dinner and we also enjoyed some of the local sights.  For hilarity, nothing beats driving across a rickety bridge!

We wuz robbed!

I took the day off so I could watch the match with people.   

I was, by far, the oldest female in the room.  Gary Lezak was there early, to give his daily weather report.  And what fun it was, especially after the Yanks tied the game!  Yes, the referee made a huge mistake.  There was no foul and this game was stolen from USA.  Frank Boal and John Holt were there, btw.  John looks good and says he's feeling stronger every day.

Thanks, Border Patrol, for hosting this event!