In Greek mythology, a common favorite is the story of Icarus. A son of the great inventor Daedalus, Icarus was given to throws of passion when it came to his work. For those of you who may not know the story I will first take a moment to lament our ever-deteriorating public education system; and give you a brief synopsis. Icarus invented wings sealed with wax and, although warned by his father to not fly too close to the sun, became intoxicated with the freedom of flight. Before long he lost track of where he was and, sure enough, his wings were undone by the heat of the sun which sent him plummeting back to earth to meet his tragic fate.
With this metaphor clearly in mind, I want to take a moment to say that this Newscast was, in my opinion, still an improvement on the one before. We seemed to make the best of the packages and ultimately we did not fall to earth in a ball of fire and molten wax – so to speak.
I will say that it certainly felt like that’s where we were headed at times.
The crux for many came after the first round of independent filming and editing. Once writing conferences had come and gone we worried that certain trends had not only emerged but sunk in amongst reporters. For some this was merely another newscast, another show made, another notch in the belt. For others I hope this may count as a Daedalusian word of caution, the time to step up commitment and results is now. All of the people I’m intending to scare straight with this diatribe were on the cusp of finding that higher level. It was only a few weeks ago that I raved over the progress made, and now we face but one more show before the highly competitive special edition – the job-maker, the crowning achievement. Make no mistake the time to bring your best has arrived. However, as I’ve said to so many lately, no one expects to climb without slipping.
After the above haranguing I wouldn’t dare bore you with my opinions of the dreary, early processes of Newscast 4. To do so would be cheap fair and unworthy of my news team. This round of critiques was the ultimate weathervane for individuals and the dust had barely settled before it was time to begin putting the show together and building the script. Happily, in regard to the former, Leanne and I had the benefit of Professor Dahlia being on site at Studio B. The only hitch being the highly visible spike in Leanne’s anxiety when Professor Dahlia approached the camera and began framing with me. A feeling that I might guess went away quickly when we achieved one of our earliest wraps yet.
I hate to bemoan my fate with every blog, but I will at least mention that writing the script again presented its own series of unique challenges. In between managerial responsibilities at the sports bar where I’m employed on the weekends I could be found at my computer…glaring. Amongst the din of clinking glasses, fans shouting at televisions and barstools clattering to the floor I was a picture of complete and total naiveté. Hopelessly lost in research, camera angles and verbal transitions. I admit there was something of a Hemingway vibe from the not-so-academic atmosphere, one I’m not ashamed to say I kind of enjoyed.
Rehearsal for Newscast 4 was also a challenge in its own right. Due to some needed schedule resolution, rehearsals had to be held in the evening rather than Tuesday morning and, what’s more, in a cramped edit lab rather than a brightly lit and hyper-modern meeting room. Fatigue and reluctance were the dominant impressions, but we powered through regardless. Although it went well over all I admit I was concerned that this was another omen in the rather bleak story of the coming of Newscast 4, as it were.
Come Wednesday morning the optimists among us came to the Waterfront Studio in expected fashion and the rest of us faked it as best we could. One of the things this class has taught me is that doubt and negative feelings can spread like cancer throughout a news team and make the process all the more difficult. Bearing this in mind we braced ourselves, straightened our ties, made last minute notes, steeled our nerves for our moment in the sun…and bombed magnificently in the first take.
In the name of resilience, we licked our wounds and attempted to rise from the ashes like the phoenix…only to fail worse than before. The thought that we may be witnessing the first failed newscast in the history of WVU News raced across my mind but rather than share the sentiment I did what I do best – I pretended everything was fine. I walked into the studio before the third take and told the talent to also do what they do best. I told Megan Guerra to unleash the smile we’ve been trying to discourage all semester. I suggested to Isaac Ferebee that he express himself somehow between shots to bring out his personality (which turned out for him was some manner of dancing from his seat behind the anchor desk). I told Kyleigh and Kendall to not look sad between readings because it was making me want to cry. I like to believe that something of my personal brand of talent management took hold for what followed.
The third take came around 10:00 a.m. and, to my happy surprise, was our most seamless attempt so far. Technical cues, personalities, and packages came together in a near-perfect symphony. The ultimate feedback came in the form of Professor Dahlia, who dashed to the anchor desk a mere 10 seconds after the fade to black and announced her happiness with the final take. Her gestures, praise and, at times, jumping – left little uncertainty about the results.
In keeping with the ever-escalating expectations in this class I think it best we consider Professor Dahlia’s reaction as a mark to be outdone with Newscast 5.