For many journalists, covering crime is their least favorite part of being on general assignment. The late shift at many stations is a steady diet of crime scenes and victims. Lots of newsrooms send their greenest reporters out on crime stories, perhaps figuring they're easy …
If you've been feeling despondent about the current state of local TV news, just take a look at the latest issue of Quill, the SPJ magazine. Here's all you need to know about the section that cheered me up: Despite the cutbacks in TV newsrooms, …
I often describe NewsLab as a resource for journalists. The tips, research and background on this site are free for anyone to use. I lead training programs for journalists for a reasonable fee, which goes toward keeping the site (and me) going. But another way …
Congratulations to KCTV in Kansas City and chief investigative reporter Dana Wright, who just won a 2011 Casey Medal for distinguished coverage of children and families, particularly the disadvantaged. The winning entry was a five-part series, "Big problem, low priority," that looked at the plight …
A fascinating piece by Scott Jensen in the latest NPPA News Photographer magazine traces the path each of the 2011 stations of the year followed to get where they are today. What struck me was what Seattle's KING-TV, KCCI in Des Moines, and WAVY in …
Hold the obituary. Finally, there's some good news for network TV news. Ratings are up this year, both evening and morning, and not just a little. But hold the celebration, too, because it could just be a blip. At first glance, the numbers are nothing to …
After a couple of bumpy years, the local TV news business is growing again, according to new research from Hofstra's Bob Papper and RTDNA. The average network affiliate now airs more than five and a half hours of local news a day, and there's every …
Anyone with a smart phone knows that it's difficult to read a standard website on the screen. Sure, you can zoom in, but then you have to scroll around to see the rest of the page. I've known for some time that we should offer …
The recent FCC report on the future of the news media pinned some of the blame for the lack of depth in TV news on the decline of beat reporting at local stations. On average, local news has become thinner, not deeper. The amount of coverage dedicated …
There's only so much you can do to prepare for the unexpected. When the G20 met in Toronto last summer, news organizations knew there would be protests and planned their coverage accordingly. But they couldn't anticipate that riot-equipped police would quickly be overwhelmed when they …
ABC's This Week featured an unusual graphic during one of the program's round-table discussions last Sunday. When host Christiane Amanpour described Ben Franklin as "perspicacious," up popped the definition, pronunciation guide helpfully included. Entertainment Tonight writer Ken Tucker found that insulting and appalling. "It’s also a depressing, …
When NPR's David Folkenflik called me for an interview last week, I wasn't sure I could oblige. The usual routine involves my going to their DC studios for taping and my schedule that day just wouldn't allow it. Turns out I didn't need to, as …
