A Little Song, A Little Dance and a Goodbye

By Kevin Eck 

After thousands of posts, three ownership changes, three apartments, millions of rides on the E, the F the 6 and the 1 to the shuttle to Grand Central to the 6, I’m signing off from TVSpy and New York to spend more time with my family. I’m kidding. I’m taking a job at a high tech company back home in the Bay Area.

I am grateful to everyone who has read this blog and I hope I have done a decent job of showing the daily snapshot of what’s happening in local news so those doing bad would stop and those doing something good would continue.

There are several people I’d like to thank publicly. Chris Ariens, the man who has put up with me for nearly five years and always had advice that was sound and, most importantly, sane. I’d like to thank former mediabistro video producer Weston Almond who made my first years in New York fun, weird and filled with Manhattan history and MacGyver references. How can I forget Scott Jones from FTVLive who made me laugh cry and live the spectrum of emotions with his bold, misspelled and always passionate take on TV news? I’ll miss the occasional phone calls where we talked about whatever, but always laughed about it. I also owe Stephanie Tsoflias Siegel for inspiring me to join her in launching TVSpy This Week and find a new and better way to tell stories. Honorable mentions for memorable moments go to The Young Turks reporter Jordan Chariton, Fox TV Station’s PR women extraordinaire Claudia Russo and Victoria Gurrieri, former ABC stations PR person Susan Sewell, CBS’ Mike Nelson, former TVSpy’er Merrill Knox, current Adweekers Aneya Fernando, Robert Klara, Eric Wander and Kristina Monllos, John Tejada and former mediabistro owner Alan Meckler. Melissa Crawford for bringing me here in the first place. I’m sure there are others, but I’m old and forgetful. Wait, what was I saying?

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In my time here at mediabistro, which begat Mediabistro Holdings, which begat Adweek I’ve had the privilege of telling the stories of local news directors, reporters and anchors about what they do and why they do it. I hope I’ve been fair and at least accurate.

I’ve also been lucky enough to shoot video of and/or interview people like Larry King, Katie Couric, Shepard Smith, Keith Olbermann and Ken Burns. I got to wander around the Bon Appetit test kitchens at One World Trade Center, shoot an interview with ABC News anchor David Muir in his office, shoot various interviews in history filled 30 Rock, the building with one of the most majestic and beautiful lobbies ever, tromp around New York Magazine with camera in hand and take a few trips to CBS on West 57th street where there was that time I finally got my dad to understand what I do for a living when I interviewed his hero, Bob Schieffer, about how he got his first big break.

While I’m sure egos exist in large helpings in those I interviewed, every media star I interviewed was interested and engaged, humble and helpful. Something I appreciate and remember. My favorite video memory was when Jerry Springer showed up for his interview at our old HQ at 475 Park Avenue South early and alone, looking like any other regular New Yorker holding a Starbucks he bought after getting off the subway on a lovely spring day in Manhattan.

I say all this not for a ‘look at me’ moment, but because this job taught me through the countless interviews and multitude of stories that we’re all just doing the best we know how with what we have to offer.

So, instead of dropping a dollop of Olde English 800 from your daily 40-ouncer onto the studio floor, just throw down a script and do your best regardless of what company you work for or where you stand in the ratings because what you do matters. And always remember what Chuckles the Clown used to say, “A little song, a little dance, a little seltzer down your pants.” Now get out of here before I start crying.

[FTVLive]

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