Television News

Time on a TV news program is even more precious then a talk show. If you get more than four minutes exclusively, you're lucky. Two minutes is a coup.

For TV news you need visuals and you need something else, the ability to speak in "20 second bites." Your ideas, arguments and reasons must be compressed into quick phrases that instantly transmit ideas.

For instance, if you're asked why lower mortgage costs are beneficial, don't launch into a detailed discussion of compound interest or loan amortization schedules. No one cares. Respond in terms viewers can understand. Sometimes the question is best answered like this:

Did you ever wonder why lenders have the biggest buildings in town? It's because borrowers pay too much interest. Instead of paying tens of thousands of dollars in excess interest payments, here's what you can do....

TV assignment editors and assistant producers are always looking for people who communicate ideas quickly and with flourish. You can't use jargon or define 26 exceptions on the nightly news, there isn't enough time and even if there was, you wouldn't get booked.

There's a temptation to think that because TV news appearances are short, they're visual bumper stickers devoid of content. This viewpoint is grossly in error. Precisely because news appearances are brief, it's enormously difficult to encapsulate ideas that are factually correct, easy to understand and interesting to viewers.

Try this test: Get today's newspaper or a weekly magazine, pick a story, and reduce it to 30 or 40 spoken words.

For promoters to obtain TV news coverage you need to show a viable news angle and a strong visual component. The news angle can be expressed in a letter, news release and background materials, but developing a visual component often is more complex. Sure you can suggest scenes from the factory or an office lobby, but in developing a story proposal remember that programs have few camera crews and their time is extremely limited.

Location and background shots that are close to the station (less travel time) and require little advanced preparation are thus preferred over productions that would awe Hollywood. One business network, for instance, routinely has guests on a nationwide talk show and then interviews them later for news broadcasts. Rather than filming at a distant location, the network finds an empty office in it's own building and shoots the interview right there. On TV, the setting looks appropriately professional.

Peter G. Miller is an image, marketing, and public relations consultant whose clients include selected national corporations, associations, and web sites. Mr. Miller can be reached at peter@boardroomarts.com