I am on old radio guy..

[ricksegers]

and I hope some of you TV pros can answer a question for me. A story happens earlier in the day. they have a reporter live in a dark parking lot of a building loosely related to the story. The anchor goes to the reporter live who spends about 20-30 seconds introducing a package that was done earlier in the day. At the end, the live reporter says and that's all we know right now more later and then they throw it back to the studio. Are they just trying to justify the money spent on the live gear? I have seen it in other markets but Channel 2 seems to do it several times a newscast.
Also during bad weather or major stories why do we have five minutes of information repeated 12 times an hour? I guess this question is aimed more at the networks and cable channels.

Thanks and no offense intended...

 

[jjjohnson]

Rick;

At one time, TV stations were showing off new technology with live shots from everywhere, even the station's parking lot! Now I believe it is just a way to justify the expense of all the gear. I've seen some really absurd live shots over the years. One of my favorites was a reporter standing alongside an Interstate in metro Atlanta to report on an accident which had occured a day earlier 300 miles north of his location in the Carolinas! I cannot imagine why viewers would care if Sally Smith is standing just outside the darkened schoolhouse that closed 9 hours earlier. She could tell viewers the same story from the studio, with video shot earlier in the day.


> A story happens earlier in the day. they have a reporter
> live in a dark parking lot of a building loosely related to
> the story. The anchor goes to the reporter live who spends
> about 20-30 seconds introducing a package that was done
> earlier in the day.

 

[tlyle]

> Rick;
>
> At one time, TV stations were showing off new technology
> with live shots from everywhere, even the station's parking
> lot! Now I believe it is just a way to justify the expense
> of all the gear. I've seen some really absurd live shots
> over the years. One of my favorites was a reporter standing
> alongside an Interstate in metro Atlanta to report on an
> accident which had occured a day earlier 300 miles north of
> his location in the Carolinas! I cannot imagine why viewers
> would care if Sally Smith is standing just outside the
> darkened schoolhouse that closed 9 hours earlier. She could
> tell viewers the same story from the studio, with video shot
> earlier in the day.
>
>
> > A story happens earlier in the day. they have a reporter
> > live in a dark parking lot of a building loosely related
> to
> > the story. The anchor goes to the reporter live who spends
>
> > about 20-30 seconds introducing a package that was done
> > earlier in the day.
>
What is funny to me is when they go to a site in town that is a bad area of town and shoot the live shot hours later or the next day. You probably would not catch them in that area any other time in the first place. This shot is quick also in order for them to get out of dodge.

 

[jaydavenport]

Live Shots done to justify the expense of the equipment or just to do a live shot are simply called dog licks.

as in the question "why does a dog lick itself? cause it can!"<P ID="signature">______________
<a target="_blank" href=http://www.jaydavenport.net>Jay Davenport</a>
"http://www.radiodaddy.com"><img

</P><P ID="edit"><FONT class="small">Edited by jaydavenport on 07/21/05 12:51 AM.</FONT></P>