Quick Props to Local Media (and the Behind the Scenes Team)

I've spent a lot of time and internet space being critical of local media at times, but when its time for props, I have no problem giving it.

You all know the familiar faces in front of the camera, but having been around a newsroom, there is a lot that happens that you don't see. There is a lot of work that goes in to a couple of inches of print in the El Paso Times or news packages on TV.

I've been fortunate enough to spend time playing with the varsity team on stories. By varsity team, I mean real journalists.

Reporters, even the pretty faces in front of a camera, along with photogs, spend a lot of time sitting around waiting for something to happen. A lot of time is spent in the elements. Hot, cold, wet, dry, etc, reports and photogs can never take a day off the elements. Those big cameras get heavy after you have to lug them around along with a tripod.

Then you hope you don't run out of batteries because then you have to run back to the unit for another and hope you don't miss your big moment while you are gone.

There are also the News Directors, Assignment Editors, Multimedia Journalists, Web Producers, etc that all fill a role for stuff you see on TV or read in the paper.

Maybe one of the local media stations will let me do a behind the scenes piece to give you a glimpse of how a story is goes from an idea to a broadcast.

The reason I'm writing this is because we have all been glued to local media for coverage on the Gandara story and we've had some great coverage lately. On the English side, KVIA and the Times have been kicking some major butt.

On the Spanish side, Noticias 26 has been doing a great job as well.

When there is a story like the Gandara one, there are a lot of stages too it and it really does take team coverage. You need good photogs who will jump in to traffic to get you the shot you want to see on TV or in print. People who will run down the street with their heavy cameras trying to keep it steady at the same time following a car. People who know exits, alternate exits, secret routes, and all the other info that makes it possible to get you the story. People who know where to be and when to be there.

Sometimes you have to wait around for hours for something that happens in a matter of moments.

There's a fraternity among the media. They all know one another and all joke around with one another to pass the time. Reporters will often hold mics for other stations if its a crowded space. And when its showtime, they all spring in to action and do their job. They are all business, and yes, competitive.

Someone works in a crowded little booth to edit video and do voice-overs for a story, sometimes having to translate in order make sure that the people in the field that gathered the footage didn't do it in vain.

I thought about this because the other day when the Gandara story broke, I made my way downtown to get some video. My teenage daughter had to tag along and she was amazed to see a story unfold in front of her and then watched the finished product on the news later.

So next time you see them in action, remember that there is a lot of work that goes in to what they do.