WTTG Wants Anchors to Run Prompters
WTTG Washington plans to reassign the folks running its Teleprompters and have anchors operate them with their hands and feet, reports the Washington Post.
In a bid to save money, the station is planning to reassign the technicians who operate the electronic prompters that feed scripted news copy to the anchors while they’re on the air. Instead, the station wants its anchors to do the job themselves.
WTTG, known as Fox5, intends to train its newscasters to operate prompters using a series of hand levers and foot pedals, all while they’re reading the news as it scrolls by.
Phil Metlin, news chief at the Fox O&O, said in a memo that it was a “corporate directive” and that training would start in the coming weeks.
If the image of an anchor operating his or her own prompter while delivering the late news makes you think of one-man bands–as in, the guys literally playing multiple instruments at once for spare change, not the metaphorical digital reporter that’s increasingly popular in local TV–you’re not the only one. Says one unidentified WTTG’er:
“Instead of orchestrating coverage, fact-checking, handling breaking news, paying attention to the [newscast], engaging reporters, questioning authorities, covering bad writing and technical mistakes, anchors will now spend most of their time” running the prompter, said one newsroom employee. “It’s kind of like a literal one-man band — singing, banging a drum, crashing cymbals, playing a trumpet and strumming a guitar . . . except we’re not playing show tunes here.”
Reporter Paul Farhi notes that the lively nature of a Fox newscast might make the task at hand even more difficult for anchors.
Fox5 has an usually dynamic newscast, with anchors and reporters frequently moving around the set. One reporter at the station wondered how an anchor could move around and still manage to run his or her own prompter. “It could be comic, and it could be awful,” he said.
Hey–if the pop star Pink can belt out a tune while hanging upside down from one knee on a trapeze, an anchor should be able to roll the prompter and talk at the same time.
[image: NY Times]
SmallMarket TV commented:
I work for a small market and we one-man band it each and everyday. And yes, we run our own prompters. I even do sports sometimes and not only do I have to watch the monitor to make sure my hilights match up with my play calling, I have to run the prompter and change my scripts. We shoot, edit, write, and post our own stories to the web. You divas and divos in big markets need to GET OVER YOURSELF!!
Mindy commented:
BV - when and where were your "years in TV"? Unless you've been in the control room or on the anchor desk in a large market in the last 2 years, you're not speaking from experience.
BV commented:
Really? My anchors were too busy complaining about not having enough reads, did their suits match, etc....Sorry from my years in TV Mindy--you're giving them way too much credit....They can run prompter....NOT a big deal.
TVGUY commented:
My goodness. I've worked in broadcast television for 25 years. An anchor running their own prompter is not an amazing feat. In smaller markets it is done all the time. One man band you say? Try being on the technical side with all the new "automated" gear they have us doing. I am a director and now I not only direct, but I run audio, character generator, technical direct, run the cameras, floor direct all at the same time. Trust me, an anchor running their own prompter is nothing.
Mindy commented:
What Fox is asking its anchors to do is the equivalent of Pink not only belting out a tune while hanging upside down from one knee on a trapeeze, but also, at the same time, writing the song, listening to cues from the control board, changing the set list, and scheduling the next night's venue without missing a beat. A writer who has experience in broadcasting would know this.