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TV news newsgathering

1. TV NEWS NEWSGATHERING

NEWSGATHERING
THE NEWS AGENDA
THE NEWS PROCESS
NEWS VALUES & GATEKEEPING

2. NEWSGATHERING: SOURCES

News Agencies
Own Reporters plus stringer
Press releases / VNRs
Press Conferences
Public Relations (PR) Companies
Institutions: university, L3, chamber of commerce, etc.
Organizations (CAB, Lions Club, Red Hat Society)
Local government
Anniversary Stories
Court cases or Trials
Other Media News. Newspapers, Twitter etc. (legal)

3. NEWS AGENCIES.

These organizations sell their stories to news
producers
Worldwide (AP is a co-op). Each agency has their own
reporters, photographers and broadcast crews. The
Associated Press transmits thousands of stories and
hundreds of pictures every day. They have both
footage and edited packages ready for transmission.
Associated Press (International organization)
Reuters (International organization)
United Press International (International
organization)
CNN – different relationship
Network relationship—CBS, ABC, NBC

4. WORLDWIDE TV NEWS AGENCIES

The following are specialist TV news agencies
that developed from traditional press based
agencies. These are dominated by western
based companies whose values are rooted in
British and American ideologies. So is
international news guilty of media imperialism?
Reuters TV
BBC News
APTN Associated Press Television News
CNN

6. THE NEWS PROCESS 1

Producing a news program means defining and
predicting the news. Editors (editorial staff not video
editors) will be overseeing the planning and
preparation of the news all day long with their team.
What follows is an example of a typical day. BUT
remember a late breaking important story can mean all
the planning goes out of the window and everything
has to change to roll with the news story OR new
developments.

7. THE NEWS PROCESS 2

Editorial meeting & rough running order
Editorial conference about news agenda (9am)
News stories assigned researcher & reporters
briefed
Crews sent out to start news gathering
Graphics and studio work organized
Video editors & producers prepare short items
Producer oversees rundown and assignment
development
Assistant Producers write up stories
Library researchers get back up footage for stories

8. THE NEWS PROCESS 3

Anchors prepare and rehearse scripts
Assistant producers write final scripts
Program is rehearsed & final story selection made
Prompter script is finalized
VTR inserts / video files are cued up / set up
Producer & studio director can change rundown
Anchors have to be able to change running order
Director oversees process in control room
Crew: TD, server, Audio, prompter, graphics

9. NEWS VALUES 1: Galtung & Ruge 1973

NEWS VALUES 1: Galtung & Ruge 1973
Immediacy: Has it happened recently?
Familiarity: Is it culturally close to us?
Amplitude: Is it a big event that affects large numbers?
Frequency: Does the event happen often?
Unambiguity: Is it clear and definite?
Predictability: Did we expect it to happen?
Surprise: Is it rare or unexpected event?
Continuity: Has it previously been defined as news?
Prominent Nations/People: Big countries or celebrities?
Personalization: Is it a human interest story?
Negativity: Is it bad news?
Balance: ”and finally” fun story to balance bad news…

10. NEWS VALUES 2: Jeremy Tunstall 1971

Galtung & Ruge’s news values primarily deal with news
stories in newspapers but can be applied to TV news also.
Tunstall took a step further and argued that the following
factors also greatly shaped TV News.
Importance of the visual. If good footage is available the
story may become more important in TV news agenda.
News stories with “own reporters” conducting IV’s or
commentating are preferred.
TV News covers far fewer stories than newspapers. The
stories are also shorter and generally in less depth.
Hard news or sound bite is preferred.

11. NEWS VALUES 3: Dennis McShane 1979

Dennis McShane identifieds the following 5
criteria as being used by journalists in their
selection of news stories.
Conflict.
Hardship & Danger to the Community.
The Unusual.
Scandal.
Individualism.

12. NEWS VALUES: Time, Economics & Ratings

NEWS VALUES:
Time, Economics & Ratings
Time: Only a certain number of stories can be
covered in a 30 minute news program. So
decisions have to be made which are not only
due to news values but economics and ratings.
News is rarely allowed to overrun.
Economics: It is impossible to have a news
crew at every story across the world. TV News
is expensive to make so resources have to be
allocated carefully.
Ratings: Are important to broadcasters and it
is essential that the news can hold or even
attract an audience. ‘sweeps’

13. NEWS VALUES: GATEKEEPING 1

Gatekeeping was a term coined by Galtung & Ruge
to refer to the decisions made by news producers
when selecting or rejecting potential news stories.
A select few people are shaping the news stories
that are reported daily to millions of audience
members and they are shaping and determining
what is news.
Consider why some events, issues of groups are
presented in particular ways such as illegal
immigrants. Also why some message and
ideological views are rarely seen or heard on the

14. NEWS VALUES: GATEKEEPING 2

Everyone involved in the creation of TV news acts
as a gatekeeper in some way as creating
representations while they re-present the news.
This includes producers, camera-people and also
video editors etc. Their decisions depend upon the
following.
The news values of the institution
The news values and priority of them to the show
The expectations of their audience
Their own ideological values

15. NEWS VALUES: GATEKEEPING 3

News agendas vary in different TV news shows.
CNN and most American mainstream ‘news’ has a
liberal slant.
Stuart Hood (1972) argues that the majority of
media gatekeepers practice “middle-class
consensus politics” that affects their news agenda
decisions.
Noam Chomsky argued for what he called the
Propaganda Model of news – news agencies follow
a particular pattern that reinforces the views of the
‘elite’ and provides ‘emotionally potent
simplification’ to the mass audience that does not

16. NEWS VALUES: Writing

Tomorrow – meet in PAC 117.
We’ll do some practice writing both
based on developing broadcast style
skills but also trying to understand
‘slant’ and ‘propaganda’ better.
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