Newscast #4- Meg Weissend - Fall 2018
And just like that, we are finished with our special edition show! With only one more show to go, it’s hard to believe that the semester is coming to an end. This past newscast was my favorite to produce, and I am so proud of the show we filmed. I found myself taking charge this week, and working directly with Professor Dahlia to make sure that this special edition would be great! I’m so happy I am part of such a hardworking team.
Monday, October 22nd, the team came to our news meeting with a bunch of election-related pitches prepared. We wanted our special edition show, “Election 2018: A Nation Divided,” to focus on the upcoming midterms, and how the current politics will affect voting. It was a strong idea for a newscast, and one I was extremely excited about. The assistant producers helped me out with the conference time sheet and recording story ideas, too.
Wednesday was a little different this week. We had conferences in the morning, but packages were due for critiques before midnight, so our schedules didn’t interfere with WVU’s home football game on Thursday night. This meant crunch time. Most reporters had already been communicating with Professor Dahlia and I on their stories, so there wasn’t much work to be done after conferences. I stayed at the Reed College of Media almost all day, and then went home to finish critiques later that night. By Thursday, we knew who made show.
After tweeting out and emailing about who made show, I got started with the script almost immediately on Thursday. Professor Dahlia helped structure the show by giving me a completed rundown, so it was easier to navigate through timing. I finished the script early on Friday, and send everyone’s individual critiques over the weekend, too. Maybe it’s because I’m getting the hang of it, but I felt a lot more organized this newscast.
On Monday, everyone who made show and BOR came to the edit lab to fix any critiques we gave them for their packages. The table read went well, and the anchors have seemed to develop that “on and off air relationship” that makes the newscast look and sound more natural. I walked out of the rehearsal that day with confidence! I had a good feeling about filming.
Wednesday, October 31st, we filmed our special edition show at the Waterfront Studio. Like always, I was shaking like a leaf. I was full of adrenaline, and knew that this show would be something to enter in contests. There’s a lot of pressure when your name is under “executive producer” at the end of the newscast. I thought I did a good job boothing this week. I am starting to pick up on small things, and even yelling out camera directions when the director is busy worrying about CG’s or cues. After a few takes, we got a good one. Being the perfectionist I am, I convinced the team to film another take. Professor Dahlia told me we wouldn’t get a better one, and I should have listened! She was right. She’s pretty much always right!
Overall, I learned something really interesting about myself during this special edition show. I enjoy doing newscasts on politics. I thought all of the research and the stories were interesting, and I wouldn’t mind if all of our shows wrapped around a political theme! I never thought I would think that. So proud of my team, and proud of how far we have come. Let’s make the last show the best one!
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