I was going to write an article entitled: The Top Ten Things About Local News That Drive Me Crazy. But then I decided to email a few people in the television news business and ask them for a few of their pet peeves. It didn’t take long to get people ranting!
- Here are some of the pet peeves I received along with a few of mine thrown in.
- Crime. Crime. More crime.
- Telling viewers what they already know.
- Cute clever writing that confuses the viewer.
- Teasing for 10 o’clock stories you covered and covered and covered at 5 and 6.
- Soundbites that add nothing.
- Lack of natsound.
- Wallpaper video.
- File tape that makes no sense.
- Lame teases: “Will he live or will he die? We’ll tell you.” So tell me already.
- Stories that begin with “as we first told you…”
- Using “good news” or “bad news” as the lead to a story.
- Weather tosses that steal the forecast.
- Copy about national stories without recognizing the local tie.
- Using the term press conference.
- Photos that aren’t boxed or specific….like a three person photo where the viewer has to guess which one is being referenced.
- Calling your area something like “Bible Belt” “Tar Heel State.” “Commonwealth” “former state capital” “Arklatex” where the viewers don’t care or don’t use it.
- Boring in-studio guests/newsmakers.
- Traffic reports on the 1’s, 3’s, 5’s, 7’s, 10’s, etc., especially when there is no traffic.
- Ditto with weather reports every 5-10 minutes., especially when there’s no change in the weather.
- Morning newscasts with vo after vo after vo of yesterday’s news.
- “Breaking News” graphics and sound effects, especially when the news is of little consequence.
So, what are your pet peeves? Email me at ddrew@602communications.com I’ll keep your name out of it, so if there are things that drive you nuts, let me know about them!
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Doug Drew is a morning news specialist with 602 Communications.