The Producer
ALL NEW: The News at Four
WXIA: Atlanta, GA
Donald Trump Surrenders
On Aug. 24, 2023, the nation once again focused its interest on Atlanta, as former president Donald Trump surrendered to Fulton County authorities - after being indicted for allegedly trying to overturn the 2020 election results here in Georgia.
The rotation happened to see me producing our 5 p.m. newscast, which served as the kickoff to roughly 6-1/2 hours of wall-to-wall coverage of the former president's arrival, processing, and departure.
My hope for the 5 p.m. newscast was to give a robust start to what would prove to be a wild ride. With a full team helping out, I think we managed to accomplish that mission.
Here's the A-block, which came together rather nicely! I couldn't be more proud to have served as a part of our coverage of this historic story.
To watch the full show, click here.
Jimmy Carter Enters Hospice
On Feb. 18, 2023, we learned that former President Jimmy Carter was entering hospice care, remaining in his home in Plains, Ga.
The news broke on my watch and our newsroom sprang into action.
By the time of our 11 p.m. newscast, we had our veteran reporter live in Plains, another reporter with sound from Atlanta mayor Andre Dickens and those who knew the former president, and a third reporter with a collection of the initial tributes posted on social media.
I was glad to see our anchor (Jeff Hullinger) and veteran reporter (Jon Shirek) showcase their knowledge of Mr. Carter. It is that kind of insight which viewers can - and should - gravitate to for a major developing story.
Here’s our entire 12-minute A-block at 11, solely devoted to former President Carter. THIS is how to go big right out of the gate!
Downtown Unrest
Another major story on my watch … and, a win in the ratings.
On Jan. 21, 2023, we were prepared for a demonstration in downtown Atlanta. What we didn’t expect was violence to break out, which included several buildings to be damaged and a police squad car to be torched and destroyed.
This was the first time in my 1-1/2 years of producing the weekend evening shows where we had to bring on-call staff … and, we needed the extra hands on deck.
Everyone who contributed was phenomenal this night. Our coverage of the event was done in a professional manner by our crews in the field and team back in the office. Above all, we were safe and remained safe. Tell the story, but don’t put yourself in a position where you’d get hurt.
Our coverage Saturday night at 11 p.m. was also No. 1 in the Atlanta DMA and it showed viewers wanting to listen to our reporting of this important breaking news event.
Here’s the A-block from that show.
To watch the full show, click here.
Severe Weather:
Team Coverage
I’ll never forget what my old news director back at KUSA in Denver once said: “Weather wins!” … and, she’s absolutely right!
When severe weather hits, that’s the ultimate time for any local newsroom to spring into action.
On March 26, 2023, severe weather was the headline, and we were able to bring a complete show to our viewers. That Sunday morning, strong storms brought at least one tornado to our area. That put our entire team into overdrive to tell the story.
It was a pleasure to produce our Sunday 11 p.m. newscast that night and help put together a rundown that allowed for as much flexibility as possible.
To watch the full show, click here.
The Time Is Now
The weekend before Christmas was a dangerous one for Atlanta’s children.
Several more were gunned down in a shootout - five were shot and two of them were killed.
The 6 p.m. newscast on Dec. 18, 2022 brought our weekend evening team together for team coverage - not just to say what happened, but to try and explain why this has become a crisis. This is something I implore constantly. Some said this “wasn’t the right time” for this kind of approach. My view is not only was it the right time, but it was almost too late for the children who have already been shot to death.
Take a look at how we dissected this story in this 6-minute block to open the newscast.
Two Big Stories
On Dec. 11, 2022, we had a vigil to honor the victim of a grizzly murder, while the search continued for a “person of interest” in the case.
We also had a chance for a 1-on-1 interview with CDC director Rochelle Walensky, based here in Atlanta.
Two big stories for a local newscast made for one big block of news for me to produce coming out of football Sunday night.
Once again, our team knocked it out of the park!
It’s All News
News is news. Weather is news. Sports is news.
On Dec. 3, 2022, all three came together in our 11 p.m. A-block.
The Georgia football team had just won the SEC Championship Game down at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Meanwhile, this was three days out from the state’s huge U.S. Senate runoff. There was also a breaking news story we were the only ones to have in this much detail. Added on top of that, the weather was gloomy and was leading to a good amount of fog when we went on the air.
Trying to maintain a balance on the overall product is not easy to do.
On The Scene
After several days of vacation, my first night back at work on Nov. 26, 2022 came with a strong dose of breaking news - a fatal mass shooting in a popular Atlanta shopping location, leaving two kids dead and the search for the suspects..
This A-block serves to show how our weekend crew can come together to give our viewers the very latest news they can use. This lead story dominated the city’s headlines for close to two weeks afterwards - bringing community leaders, the police chief, and mayor out to voice their hope to end youth gun violence.
The Prime Team
The phrase goes “It takes a village.” Well, that’s truly the case with the local newscast you watch.
This was the first block of the 6 p.m. show on On Nov. 9, 2022 - all 13-1/2 minutes of it!
While I was listed as the show producer, many others had a hand in putting this broadcast to air.
We had breaking news, exclusive content … oh, and that U.S. Senate runoff the rest of the nation was talking about. It was also a nice chance for me to produce for one of our weeknight shows with the prime team on the desk and on-the-air.
It was a wild ride! Hang on!
A Typical Night
As the weekend evening producer, I’m also a de facto EP, de facto assignment manager … and about four other de facto roles which can be plopped on my head at any moment.
Still, your main task is the on-air product. So, when you have one breaking news story, another with new info 20 minutes to air, and monitoring of other storylines developing, it can lead to a full A-block of content - all within an 8-minute hole to fill.
This was the 11 p.m. A-block from Nov. 5, 2022 and I think our team did alright. It was actually fun to put this together and be in the booth for this quick-hit newscast.
All in a night’s work.
WEAU: Eau Claire, WI
In the World of COVID-19
This newscast was fairly recent (March 18, 2021), but it gives a sense of the day-to-day feel of my evening newscasts. Tempo is key when I produce a show, and this A-block gives a good sense of the speed I like a newscast to follow - fast.
This show also shows some of the choreography we have to sketch out now in a newscast, as our meteorologist this night was giving his forecasts from his apartment, rather than the studio.
Under Indictment
It may be now hard to think of the newscasts we all had before the COVID-19 pandemic took over our lives.
Weeks before that happened, our lead was the federal indictment of an area school superintendent was arrested and charged with production of child pornography and sex trafficking of a minor.
Change
Of Plans
One of a producer’s roles is to adapt to a shifting news landscape. We were set to lead our 6 p.m. show (April 8, 2021) with the state’s second COVID-19 mass vaccination site opening here in Eau Claire.
Then, we hear reports of a shooting on the city’s south side.
This one addition to a show can alter the flow of an entire newscast. Toss in a criminal case on sex trafficking charges and you have a full 10-minute A-block.
Next Steps
Wisconsin’s governor put a “safer at home” order in place at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March of 2020. However, two months later, the state supreme court tossed it out. That left local governments scrambling to figure out how to move forward.
Once again, we had team coverage on the ruling, including live reports from Lake Hallie and La Crosse on different approaches to the growing health concern.
Insurrection
The events of Jan. 6, 2021 are burned into the memory of every journalist working that day. For me, it was a shock to see the events unfold in real-time.
Network coverage knocked out almost all of our newscasts. So, I poured everything into producing that night’s 10 p.m. show. Right from the cold open I edited, I wanted to make sure viewers knew the impact of the day’s events. We also worked to have as many angles - from our bureau in D.C. to the local reaction in the Chippewa Valley.
On this night, our nightside crew was at its best.