Local independent TV
Via journalism.co.uk, we come across a local TV anchor and photog who chuck
the fame and fortune, the exposure and paycheck of jobs on the local TV news to create their own local online shows for Madison, WI, at StoryBridge.tv. They want to do stories that “validate” — their word — people doing good things locally.
Based on their beta stories, I wish they also chuck more of their local-TV ways and make shows that are a little rougher, less polished, more authentic. I also hope they put their videos up on YouTube et al and make them embeddable so they can be part of the local conversation. And I hope they’ll also do stories that are useful, not just TV-heartwarming.
Now having given those caveats, I’m enthusiastic about what they’re doing. They will surely avoid the fires and press releases and weather mania that inhabit most local TV nows — because they can’t afford it. And so they will go out and do real stories, showing their old newsroom what’s possible. There’s no reason any individual or team in any town couldn’t do this; the tools and distribution are all there.
They’re also doing innovative things, starting, for example, a nonprofit arm that will allow locals to support series that may not have commercial appeal.
Tags: Exploding_TV, newsinnovation
June 21st, 2007 at 10:20 am
Great production & presentation. Engaging personalities and storylines. Undoubtedly a valuable addition to many newsrooms.
Is there a place for this style of video other than the tail end of a news show?
June 21st, 2007 at 11:31 am
This is more or less “Public Access 2.0,” right?
I interviewed for a job recently with my local public access station, and it was amazing how much the internet had passed them by. People were still dropping off Beta tapes every week to air!
I thought, being a podcast producer, I could graft some new media know-how into their production system. It would have been an uphill battle, but they were YouTube before there was YouTube!
That said, local public access stations are an amazing resource for would-be Rocketbooms around the country. They’ve got a ton of broadcast-quality equipment, green screens, light grids, etc. And you can often use it for little or no money.
June 21st, 2007 at 12:57 pm
>> I wish they also chuck more of their local-TV ways and make shows that are a little rougher, less polished, more authentic.
June 23rd, 2007 at 12:38 am
StoryBridge is just one incarnation of the traditionalists who are “experimenting” with this new media space. Jim Long (www.vergenewmedia.com), and yours truly, are also professionals who are dabbling online… And you can’t forget fomer CNN Anchor Daryn Kagen (hope I spelled her name right). I’ve chosen to take a more freestyle approach to my storytelling, and blogs and sites like StoryBridge are just the begning.