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On Good Day we thrive to have a more relaxed, conversational newscast style. This excerpt from our newscast on the opening day of the State Fair of Texas illustrates how I am able to execute that mission in headlines, live shots and throughout my show, while also including the important, harder news stories of the day.
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Following the deadly winter storm of 2021, many of our viewers were understandably anxious about another round of icy weather, Fortunately, my two years in Missouri adequately prepared me for covering inclement weather. This newscast gave me the opportunity to demonstrate those talents by using team coverage, drive cameras and other resources to give our viewers the information they needed to stay safe.
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I have had the opportunity to produce several hours during my time on Good Day. The 9 a.m. show is unique because we are the only local newscast airing in our market during that time, and it typically contains the most live segments. This excerpt from my newscast includes multiple breakouts about school closures due to the coronavirus pandemic to give viewers details on a story that directly impacts them. It also showcases my tease writing skills, as well as my ability to integrate different tease formats to captivate the viewers’ attention.
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Mengqi Ji was reported missing in October of 2019. She was a very predominant member of the Columbia community and was a story KOMU followed very closely. When police announced on March 25 that a hiker had found human remains in Rock Bridge State Park they could belong to Ji, I was impressed to see how our team dropped what they were doing to work together and produce the most extensive coverage of the case in our market. When creating this show, I kept in mind her children might watch this one day, and I would want them to see a newscast that did her story justice. While there were a few technical issues, I believe our team worked together to put an outstanding newscast on air.
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As a producer, winning the lede is a goal of mine every day. I enjoy trying new ways to start a show to grab and keep our audience's attention. Attached are a few examples of how I used headlines and a cold open package to start a show.
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I filled in as the evening executive producer the Sunday before the largest school district in our viewing area would meet to decide if students would return to class. As an EP I had the opportunity to see the broader picture of what our newscast was trying to convey that sometimes is difficult to see as a newscast producer, more focused on the details that elevate a show. I coordinated with the newscast producer, our reporters and the graphics team to build out these elements and construct a lede story that would provide our audience the information they needed. I am proud of the writing and break-out elements we used to explain the impact of COVID-19 on schools. I also believe we did a marvelous job putting the numbers in context and providing background information about what was happening within Columbia Public Schools during a complicated time.
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Throughout 2020, I produced shows for several major historical events, including the first case of COVID-19 in Missouri, Election Day, protests for racial justice in Mid-Missouri, and most recently, Inauguration Day. I am proud of this newscast because it showcases my abilities to localize a national event. Additionally, this show includes one of our latest A Brighter Tomorrow segments, a mental health initiative I lead as the special assignments producer. I also enjoyed the opportunity to end the show differently by leaving our viewers with Poet Laureate Amanda Gorman's powerful words.
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On Election Day 2020, KOMU was #1 in our market between 7 p.m. and 11 p.m. During that time, I helped lead our 90-minute, commercial-free, fully online newscast, a first for KOMU. The show was broadcasted from the Reynolds Journalism Institute as our studio was being used for our more traditional newscasts, additionally, because our reporters were using all of our backpacks to feedback content, we had the opportunity to get creative. Instead, we used Skype to have our reporters provide live coverage to the viewers. The show had a more relaxed tone consisting of interviews analyzing the election results as they came in, providing viewers a “behind the scenes look” at the news process. I have included some of those clips.
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