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If you follow industry trends, you likely read about discussions at the NAB Show around hiring content creators. Research shows that consumers are increasingly relying on news influencers more than on traditional news outlets, and this trend is continuing to grow. This has local stations in a quandary, especially those that have had research cut from their budgets.
I have seen a good amount of research on both local and national levels. The results are consistent: Consumers are tired of the old SOT-track-SOT formula, especially Gen X and younger. The big concern is that the traditional package formula signals forced conclusions. Another way to put it is that audiences think package formats mean the journalists twist facts to fit the formula.
Journalists can argue that this is not true and that ethical policies prevent manipulating “facts” to fit any formula. A growing portion of the potential audience simply does not believe that. They crave one of the prevalent buzzwords in creator-speak: “authenticity.” Again, the traditional track-SOT-track or SOT-track-SOT outline does not feel authentic to them.
This means when looking at daily stories to cover in the newsroom, newsrooms need to really challenge whether the story warrants a traditional package template. If the story requires explanation and has multiple sources, it may still benefit from that format. If the piece can be told by showing a scene from the event and letting the people involved tell the story, do that instead (i.e., a natural sound piece).
You could also show the scene and have a