Let's be honest. The average person watching television news is focusing on the person reporting the news, the words coming out of their mouth, and the video on the screen. I don't want to assume, but most people who aren't directly involved with broadcast journalism aren't thinking about the people behind the scenes: the producers.
As someone who's worked as a news reporter at a CBS affiliate TV station for two summers, and who's also been producer for one year at the University of South Dakota's weekly newscast, I know that being a producer is a thankless job. It's also one of the most important and integral roles of any successful newscast.
As a producer, it's your job to effectively and efficiently organize a newscast. There is a lot to think about. You have to make sure the newscast flows in terms of content and types of story, you have to keep track of your reporters and the stories they're covering, you have to constantly be searching for breaking news, you need to keep an ear on the police scanner, you have to build graphics and supers, you have to edit scripts, make time for weather, and most importantly, you have to execute all of this in a live setting.
Here's an accurate and professional representation of life as a TV producer, including starting salary, responsibilities, and certain qualities needed for the job.
Bottom line: a newscast is only as good as the person producing it.
So here are some tips to produce a top-notch newscast.
1. Stay Calm
Being a producer is a stressful job. More times than not, stories don't come in on time, they fall through and you have to come up with a new plan, news breaks 5 minutes before you go live, your anchor doesn't get to the studio until two minutes before the bump... basically, if something can go wrong, it will. Live television is unpredictable, and as a producer, you need to be able to keep your head on straight when everything is going wrong. You have to be quick on your feet, good with improvisation, and possess excellent problem-solving skills. Additionally, you have to be confident in your decision. If your newscast is running way over on time, and you have to cut your planned live shot, you need to make your decision quickly and confidently: no wishy-washy behavior allowed.
2. Have a Good Ear for News
You might not be directly reporting on stories, but as a producer, you're the one who decides what's most important for your viewers to see. You have to decide what should go at the top of the newscast: the story about an ISIS attack in Germany, or the legalization of marijuana in South Dakota. You also have to figure out how to make the newscast flow from one story to the next. This can be done with a transition phrase, or some sort of connection between the stories.
3. Always Have a Back-Up
Like I said earlier, anything can happen when it comes to TV newscasts, especially if you're incorporating live reports into the show. Always make sure you have a back-up plan for when a live interview doesn't show up, or a camera stops working.
4. Be in Constant Communication With Your Reporters
This responsibility also falls on the shoulders of your reporters, but you both need to be in constant communication with each other. If a story falls through, they need to know that it is imperative that they call you ASAP. Conversely, if you need your reporter to ditch their original story to cover breaking news, you need to call them ASAP. The sooner you're both able to get a hold of each other, the better. That being said, it's also important for you to maintain a good working relationship with all of your reporters. You need to be able to give them constructive criticism, and they need to be able to take it in a productive, non-offensive way.
5. Have a Critical Eye
This might sound strange, but after producing for awhile, your newscast becomes your baby. That being said, it's your job to catch things that others won't even think about: spelling errors, outdated information, repetitive sentences, etc. It may seem like you're being harsh, but having a critical eye is better than regretting a preventable mistake that makes its way into the newscast.
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