PALEY CENTER FOR MEDIA, THE: PALEY AND THE KNIGHT FOUNDATION: PALEYIMPACT: THE STATE OF LOCAL TV NEWS: INNOVATION AND INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISM {LONG VERSION}
Summary
One in a series of events and special screenings presented as part of The Paley Center for Media's Paley Impact events. This afternoon, presented in association with the Knight Foundation, examines the current state and future of local news programs within a changing media landscape.
After a series of clips from the Paley Archives relating to news production, including "Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In," "That Was the Week That Was," "Saturday Night Live," "Murphy Brown," and "The Mary Tyler Moore Show," host Diane Lewis (executive vice-president of programming, The Paley Center for Media) offers opening remarks and introduces Karen Rundlet (director, The Knight Foundation). Rundlet provides background on the Knight Foundation and highlights the alarming rates at which local newspapers are disappearing, creating "news deserts."
Next, Bob Papper (professor emeritus, The Lawrence Herbert School of Communication, Hofstra University) offers a presentation on the Knight Foundation's extensive data research project regarding local news trends, touching upon such topics as: the intersection of audience and revenue; the value of retransmission; statistics on local television and newspaper employment, the former of which has recently surpassed the latter owing to the closing of many papers; how market size directly affects the platform by which most users obtain their news; how television makes use of social media; why there is currently no viable business model for "online-only media"; the growing relevance of YouTube and non-live social videos; why local TV news audiences are shrinking and aging; the surprising explanation of how only eight markets have made up 88 percent of the nationwide audience decline; the "increasing urbanization" of TV viewers; the importance of the 18-54 demographic; and the importance of listening to audience feedback and creating greater honesty and transparency with consumers.
Next, Simon introduces a "lightning talk" segment: first, Errol Louis (host, NY1) discusses the former profitability of print media and why corporate owners, not creators, now control the profits; why NY1 chose to eliminate advertisement breaks during extremely important stories, such as the 9/11 attacks and Hurricane Sandy coverage; the importance of explaining to and educating one's audiences with "why it matters"; collaborating with other reporters to create important stories, including a recent successful town hall-style conversation; avoiding "brand killers"; and advice from Lou Dobbs about forming a bond with one's audience.
Amy Wood (interactive news anchor, WSPA, Spartanburg, South Carolina) comments on creating "two-way news" and live conversations with viewers via social media; the evolution of Internet streaming platforms, eventually leading to the creation of Facebook Live; and creating a "trust factor," as seen with Instagram "influencers" who promote certain brands.
Yusuf Omar (co-founder, Hashtag Our Stories) appears via "virtual reality experience" and discusses engaging with one's audience by "teleporting" viewers to different spaces; virtual reality versus augmented reality; and how technology is creating a "true democratization of media" in which anyone can create content, though hopefully with the assistance of experienced editors and curators.
Anzio Williams (vice-president of news, NBC 10, Telemundo62) takes the stage to discuss working with a collaborative parent company; his work on the "solution journalism" project "Broke in Philly," which analyzed poverty in Philadelphia; working at the new Comcast Technology Center in Philadelphia; his interest in improving the viewers' experience; and how his company "invests in people" by funding employees' secondary education, including his own.
Next, Simon introduces Andrew Heyward (senior researcher, Knight-Cronkite News Lab at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication, Arizona State University; visiting scholar, MIT Media Lab), who moderates the following panelists: Esteban Creste (vice-president of news, Univision 41 Nueva York), Byron Harmon (vice-president and news director, WNYW, FOX 5), Ellen Crooke (vice-president of news, Tegna), and Lee Zurik (chief investigative reporter, WVUE-TV, New Orleans, Louisiana).
The panelists touch on such topics as: Creste's "glass half-full" view of investigative journalism; Harmon's involvement with an "Innovation and Creativity Unit," which seeks out important news stories for thorough investigation; Crooke's description of the "three tiers" of investigative journalism, including the importance of "digital-first" reporting; investing with "non-traditional partners"; making use of podcasts, social media and other forms of information distribution; the rise of citizen journalism and why traditional reporters are no longer the sole "gatekeepers" of information; the importance of strong leadership and employee training; embracing community outreach to keep an "ear on the ground" for relevant stories; Tegna's "Innovation Summit," in which employees are temporarily granted leadership positions and given funding for their unique ideas; and achieving concrete results, such as the legal prosecution of criminals, thanks to passionate and determined reporting.
Questions from the audience then lead to a discussion of the following topics, among others: why longer news stories do not, in fact, alienate viewers, as assumed; the importance of risk-taking and patience with temporary financial losses in order to create long-term changes; determining success via visible community changes as well as digital metrics; how the "clutter" of advertising time affects "content-per-minute" statistics; why news organizations must be willing to retrain staff to "break the mold" of traditional storytelling and lose older viewers in order to reach a broader audience via unique stories; maintaining a strong "firewall" between advertisements and content; and why "content is king" regardless of medium and style.
Finally, Simon introduces a "fireside chat" with Michelle Charlesworth (weekend morning anchor, WABC-TV) and Wendy McMahon (president, ABC Owned Television Stations Group). The conversation touches on such topics as: why linear TV is changing, not "dying"; engaging with smartphones and mobile news; ABC's plans to hire more embedded community journalists; how social platforms can serve as real-time focus groups; why culture is a "top-down" structure and needs strong leadership; the importance of taking risks and learning from "good failure," rather than fearing change to established formats; ABC's creation of "Localish" and "More in Common," two programs designed to show "the good in our communities" via human interest stories; finding non-traditional revenue in digital-first content; why technology should be an "enabler" of human innovation; how technology can augment the challenge of creating "hyper-local coverage"; creating specific content for streaming and OTT (over-the-top, meaning platforms other than traditional broadcast television) devices; creating trust by "meeting the audience where they are"; balancing personalized experiences with important stories the audience "should" know about; and McMahon's strong sense that "the future is local."
Questions from the audience then lead to a discussion of the following topics, among others: the "linear runaway" and declining ratings of tentpole live TV events like the Super Bowl and the Academy Awards; why McMahon is "invigorated by," rather than worried about, Disney's forthcoming streaming service, Disney+; how streaming services can negatively affect local affiliates; engaging with a younger generation accustomed to on-demand streaming services rather than live TV; and why customer needs should always outweigh business demands, and how the financials will "figure themselves out" if the service is made sufficiently "necessary" to consumers. Lewis then offers closing remarks.
Details
- NETWORK: N/A
- DATE: November 30, 1999 2:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 2:36:21
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: 134329
- GENRE: Seminars
- SUBJECT HEADING: N/A
- SERIES RUN: N/A
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Diane Lewis … Host
- Ron Simon … Host
- Andrew Heyward … Moderator
- Michelle Charlesworth … Moderator
- Karen Rundlet … Guest
- Bob Papper … Guest
- Errol Louis … Guest
- Anzio Williams … Guest
- Amy Wood … Guest
- Esteban Creste … Guest
- Byron Harmon … Guest
- Ellen Crooke … Guest
- Lee Zurik … Guest
- Wendy McMahon … Guest
- Yusuf Omar … Speaker
- Lou Dobbs