solo video journalist

PODCAST #86: Greg Bledsoe, solo video journalist, on the Family Geography Project

Podcasts, The Solo Video Journalist, , , , , ,

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

When I started this podcast nine years ago, I assumed at some point I would interview Greg Bledsoe.

At the time he was the reigning two-time NPPA national Solo Video Journalist of the Year. He was one of the most talented photojournalists in the country AND one of the most talented writers in the country. His work gleamed with empathy.

I eventually reached out to Bledsoe for an interview for my book, The Solo Video Journalist. I met him in his home city of San Diego and asked him all about his gear: what he used, how he stored it, and how he found time to manage and maintain it amidst his many responsibilities. Bledsoe was generous with both his time and his tremendous knowledge.

The book’s second edition came out in the fall of 2020, shortly before he took the biggest leap of his career.

Bledsoe had worked at KNSD in San Diego for roughly two decades. He had risen up the ranks to morning show anchor and enterprise reporter. But last year he decided to embark on a long-held dream: to travel the country for a full year and visit all 50 states with his wife and two children.

He’s ten months into the journey now. It’s called the Family Geography Project, and it includes dozens of stories Bledsoe has produced through the trip.

Bledsoe is my guest on Episode 86 of the Telling the Story podcast.

The Family Geography Project – and the sharp career break it has required – is fascinating. But  just as compelling is Bledsoe’s advice on storytelling, managing gear, and simply taking chances. As always, it’s a worthy listen.

(more…)

Finding the power of the big picture in the pandemic grind

Commentary, , , , , , , , , ,

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

There’s a line I sometimes recite when I feel I’ve reached a professional roadblock.

It’s a punchline from an eighth-season episode of Seinfeld, where George Costanza is trying to spin his meager life triumphs amid countless failures into a grand success story.

“You know,” he says, “if you take everything I’ve accomplished in my entire life and condense it down into one day … it looks decent!”

When I watched two decades ago, I laughed with everyone else. We’re supposed to laugh at George. The line is meant to mock him.

But these days, it’s become somewhat of a mantra, a reminder of the power of the big picture. When I feel stagnant in my career, I reflect on what I’ve accomplished and discover a lengthier list than I realized. When I’m shooting a story and don’t feel like I’m capturing what I need, I aim to stay focused and remember I might feel differently by day’s end. In the moment, I often dwell on mistakes and failures. In the aggregate, I see a career that, condensed into a few paragraphs, looks decent.

And in 2020, when limitations and frustrations loomed over every day, I leaned on George’s line – or, at least, the optimism within it – to push through.

(more…)

PODCAST EPISODE #79: Tiffany Liou, solo video journalist, WFAA-TV

Podcasts, The Solo Video Journalist, , , , ,

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

The “origin story” is a superhero movie staple: how one everyday individual discovered extraordinary powers and realized her or his destiny of defending the city, country, world, or galaxy.

In the journalism world, Tiffany Liou has one of the most inspiring origin stories you’ll hear.

She didn’t go in J-school. She took a job in marketing. But she felt a pull towards news. She picked up an internship at a local affiliate but never quit her day job. She did both, overnighting as an assignment editor on the other side of the Bay Area. Eventually, she left the West Coast for a producer/MMJ position in West Monroe, Louisiana.

That’s how she started. Now she’s an accomplished storyteller at one of the top storytelling stations in the country, WFAA-TV in Dallas.

Liou is my guest on Episode 79 of the Telling the Story podcast.

In this episode, we discuss Liou’s origins in the field, but we mostly dive into her life today: as a solo video journalist during a global pandemic. It’s changed and challenged all of us. Liou’s perspective is one many will understand.

She is also one of 16 interviews for The Solo Video Journalist, 2nd Edition, my updated how-to book for MMJs that was just published and is available for purchase. I finished the book just before COVID-19 took over our lives, but its core techniques and lessons remain relevant and even critical in our current world. Being a solo video journalist means living in a continual state of adaptation, and this is no different.

(more…)

PODCAST EPISODE #78: Neima Abdulahi, culture reporter, WXIA-TV & more

Podcasts, The Solo Video Journalist, , , , , , ,

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

The first time I met Neima Abdulahi, it was her first week at our station, WXIA-TV in Atlanta, and I was asked if she could shadow me for a day.

But I quickly learned: Abdulahi is nobody’s shadow.

She grew up in Atlanta and returned professionally three years out of school. As a one-woman crew, she turned daily stories like everyone else, but she kept her eye on a grander goal: becoming a voice for the city she loved, the music she embraced, and the many cultures she represented. She produced a half-hour special about the Atlanta hip-hop scene. She did a longform story about Migos. She looked back with relentless reports on the infamous Atlanta child murders of 1979-81. This summer, she provided some of the most thoughtful and textured coverage of the death of civil rights icon John Lewis.

Abdulahi is an example on how to develop and amplify your voice. But she hasn’t just done so on-air. She has used that momentum to build up an online following, specifically on Instagram, that has allowed her to go part-time at WXIA while freelancing at places like VIBE Magazine. She approaches social media with a marketer’s mentality and a willingness to experiment and adapt to the demands of her audience.

She is my guest on Episode 78 of the Telling the Story podcast.

I’ve been a huge fan of Abdulahi for a long time, and I appreciated her taking the time to share her story. I’m also excited that she’s among the MMJs I interviewed for my new book, The Solo Video Journalist, 2nd Edition, which is now available for purchase. Both the podcast and the book are worth your time.

(more…)

Introducing The Solo Video Journalist, 2nd Edition, an updated how-to guide for aspiring MMJs

Commentary, The Solo Video Journalist, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

I used to be an anomaly.

When I arrived in the 10th-largest market in the country, I was one of the few who worked as a solo video journalist – or a reporter who shoots and edits my own stories. There were maybe a handful of us, and the newsroom wasn’t geared towards our interests.

More than a decade later, the state of my newsroom – and most others – has been upended.

According to the latest RTDNA survey, more than 90% of local TV newsrooms use solo video journalists – or multimedia journalists, or MMJs. More than half of newsrooms in market 51 or lower use “mostly” MMJs, and four out of five newsrooms in Top 25 markets use them in some way. Soloists are no longer a position of the future; we are present across the board in local news, and we’re finding opportunities beyond broadcast as well.

But for a long time, no book existed that offered a comprehensive overview of the position and gave instructions and advice specifically designed for it.

That’s why I wrote one.

Four years ago, I announced the release of The Solo Video Journalist, which featured interviews with nearly a dozen MMJs and broke down every step of the solo storytelling process, from shooting to interviewing to writing to editing.

Today I’m thrilled to announce The Solo Video Journalist, 2nd Edition, with more interviews, significant updates, and advice tailored to the updated landscape of video journalism.

(more…)

The subject of solo video journalist safety begs examination – by every journalist

Commentary, , , ,

Before November 8th, 2019, Paige Pauroso had begun to carve a modest reputation as a solo video journalist with little concern for limits.

At her first job in Lubbock she drove eight hours solo to cover an execution. Three months into her second job, at WBTV in Charlotte, she stood among 70-mile-per-hour winds on Myrtle Beach during Hurricane Dorian. Weeks before the November book, when a post in the Storytellers Facebook group asked for suggestions on strong hard news reporters, one commenter replied, “Paige at WBTV is amazing!”

“I used to joke at my old station that I didn’t sense fear,” Pauroso told me. “It didn’t cross my mind easily.”

Since November 8th?

“I think every local journalist in the country now knows me as the journalist who got whacked in the head.”

(more…)

Storytellers: want new-decade inspiration? Watch these stand-up collections

Commentary, , , , , , , , , , , ,

I began my new year like many inspiration-seeking storytellers: by watching Joe Little’s annual montage of stand-ups.

Since 2008, the San Diego soloist has compiled his most creative stand-ups from the previous year into one giant reel. The original edition barely cleared four minutes; his 2019 collection neared nine. But that wasn’t the only change.

This year, Little’s montage wasn’t the only one.

A few days after Little posted his video onto the TV News Storytellers group, a reporter named Kendria LaFleur did the same. She’s been in the business for five years, more than a decade less than Little. She works in Lafayette, La., a market 1,600 miles east and 92 sizes smaller than San Diego. And her collection of stand-ups lasted 81 seconds. But they all worked. She used sound effects. She put a camera in a trick-or-treat bag. She made herself disappear. Her techniques looked smooth, sophisticated, and – above all – not cheesy.

A few posts down in the Storytellers newsfeed came a story from Will Pitts. He’s a solo video journalist at KPNX in Phoenix. He posted a package that included a flashy, camera-in-a-mailbox stand-up and also slick effects work where he highlighted the words of a handwritten letter.

It was all so impressive. A few years ago, the standard “creative” stand-up or story too often seemed forced. The graphics looked amateurish, the effects cartoonish. Exceptions like Little could squeeze slickness out of limited equipment, but few of us had access to technology that would make creativity seem too much like, well, local news.

That has changed. Today many of us use After Effects and edit on software that offers a myriad of potent effects. Many news departments supply MMJs with GoPros in addition to their traditional cameras. The equipment and technology has caught up to our ambition.

And we’re taking advantage.

I should pause here and say I’m not a huge shooter of stand-ups. I typically produce long-form stories where the characters are so rich that my appearance seems intrusive. My station also prefers we introduce and tag our stories, making a stand-up superfluous without a compelling reason. But that doesn’t mean I’m averse. I have experimented with effects, multi-camera shoots, and green-screen backgrounds to sizzle my stand-ups when necessary. I applaud innovation and don’t put down others’ efforts to shake up their storytelling.

(In the interest of full disclosure, here’s one recent example …)

So when I see a collection like Little’s or LaFleur’s – or I watch a story like Pitts’ – my first instinct isn’t to emulate. It’s to appreciate.

I appreciate the hustle. Any solo video journalist can tell you of the job’s extraordinary demands; you’re doing two traditional jobs as one person. But the workload doesn’t suppress most MMJs’ desires to produce meaningful work – and to take advantage of advanced tools to do so.

I appreciate the defiance. Even nearly two decades into the widespread use of soloists in local news, so many traditional journalists still decry the concept. To be sure, the MMJ life has its issues – and it’s absolutely not for everyone – but it also creates advantages for those journalists (and their managers) who recognize them. Creative autonomy – used in stand-ups like these – is one such benefit.

Mostly, I appreciate the opportunity. When I graduated college in 2003 – in the earliest months in Facebook and before social media existed as we know it – I couldn’t go online and watch a bunch of local TV news stories. Few stations posted videos to their web sites, and few forums existed to showcase people’s work. Today, LaFleur can post her montage and write in the comments how she used Little’s for inspiration, and someone soon will no doubt say the same of hers.

The current media environment possesses so many flaws and issues, all of them worth discussing and examining. But it also enables storytellers to do so much despite limited resources. As the new year and decade begin, I salute all of us who use those resources – and our platforms, energy, and talents – to produce meaningful work.

Cheers. And let’s keep moving forward.

svj-cover-2

The Solo Video Journalist is available for purchase. You can find it on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and the publisher’s web site.

Matt Pearl is the author of the Telling the Story blog and podcast. Feel free to comment below or e-mail Matt at matt@tellingthestoryblog.com. You can also follow Matt on Facebook and Twitter.

PODCAST EPISODE #71: Forrest Sanders, solo video journalist, WSMV-TV

Podcasts, , , , , , ,

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

If only Sam Raimi were on social media.

Then perhaps the acclaimed director of The Evil Dead, A Simple Plan, and the Tobey Maguire Spider-Man series would learn of how one of his earliest movies influenced one of today’s most talented journalists.

Forrest Sanders watched The Evil Dead as a student and became enamored with Raimi’s shot composition and pacing. He developed a passion for shooting and editing that evolved into a career as a solo video journalist. Today Sanders has his own honors: numerous Emmys, two new regional Edward R. Murrow awards won last week, and a variety of accolades from the NPPA. This past year he was named its National Solo Video Journalist of the Year.

Sanders is my guest on Episode #71 of the Telling the Story podcast.

I loved this conversation. Sanders has quickly become a leader in the storytelling community, and he speaks with both introspection and clarity of purpose. We chatted about the power of early influences, the need to fuel your passions, and the way to carve your own path in a newsroom where that might seem difficult. And yes, we discussed Mr. Raimi (and Brian DePalma too!) for several enlightening minutes.

Here’s an example of one of his finest stories, “The Funeral Man.” In the episode, Sanders talks about the journey to make it happen.

(more…)

I just produced a documentary on income inequality. Here’s what I learned.

Commentary, , , , , , , ,

As a journalist, my biggest adversary is perhaps my own cynicism.

It’s easy to lose that battle. I see the continual triumph of style over substance. I see the burnout suffered by many of my younger colleagues. I see a shrinking number of pieces that truly have an impact.

More than that, I see a far-too-frequent unwillingness to take on the mountainous issues of our time, mainly because of their mountainous-ness. How does one cover a subject, for example, like income inequality, which has been on the rise for decades but seems too widespread and abstract to truly digest?

My answer? Like this.

In my role at WXIA-TV in Atlanta, I receive the chance every few months to produce a documentary, and I often get to choose the subject. I must run it up the ladder of management, of course, and it must fit within the confines and content of our evening newscasts, but I receive much more freedom in story selection than most.

So when I returned from paternity leave earlier this year, ready to embark on a new project, I chose the topic that affects Atlanta more than any city in America.

But I didn’t know how I’d broach the subject. I reached out to several experts in the region, often over the phone but occasionally in person, and I sought potential vehicles that would allow for the necessary depth, detail, and humanity. I emerged with three concepts, wrote proposals for each, and pitched them to my bosses for their preference.

We all agreed: IN CONSTRUCTION was the one.

I had heard about a program that provides a free 20-day crash course in construction for low-income Atlantans, regardless of their background in either construction or life. Many students have a criminal record. Most rely on public transportation. Some are – or recently were – homeless. But when they graduate, they leave with entry-level construction credentials and, 95% of the time, a job with a major Atlanta construction company.

Suddenly my project wasn’t only about income inequality. It was about the challenges and pathways for those in poverty who look to rise up. And it offered a chance to view the issue through the people who live it.

I essentially embedded with a class, from Day 1 to Day 20, and selected several students who agreed to tell me their stories, warts included. Three had served prison sentences. Two were parents looking to do right by their families. All had a purpose difficult to condense or categorize.

This week, four months after I began working on the documentary, I released the finished product online. It airs three times this weekend on WXIA, and it has already received hundreds of views on YouTube and positive reaction on social media. That’s without much promotion aside from my own.

I think often about our platform as journalists and how we choose to use it. Regardless of our status in the newsroom, we all make editorial decisions from the micro (e.g. how we choose to light an interview) to the macro (e.g. how we choose to present controversial issues). I am heartened by the number of web sites and outlets that have found a winning formula for producing relevant content and finding a wide audience. We often struggle to replicate this in local TV news, but I see examples all the time that push back my cynicism and strengthen my resolve.

Sometimes that’s the biggest hill to climb. I’m proud whenever I reach the summit.

svj-cover-2

The Solo Video Journalist is available for purchase. You can find it on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and the publisher’s web site.

Matt Pearl is the author of the Telling the Story blog and podcast. Feel free to comment below or e-mail Matt at matt@tellingthestoryblog.com. You can also follow Matt on Facebook and Twitter.

Don’t be (just) your business card

Commentary, , , , , , ,

This year I began writing regular columns for the NPPA’s News Photographer magazine. Here is my first piece, discussing how my journalistic efforts have never been restricted to my work in the newsroom.

My business card says I’m a reporter. So does my voice when I call a potential interview subject. I want to introduce myself with the simplest, most authoritative description of what I do for employment. “Reporter” meets that threshold.

But it doesn’t feel complete. Like most of my colleagues in journalism, I stopped doing one job long ago.

Yes, I am a reporter. For nearly nine years, I have produced packages, presented live shots, and covered everything from the city council to the Super Bowl for WXIA-TV in Atlanta.

But I am also a photographer. I shoot my own stories and have done so since entering the business as a one-person sports department in Sioux City, Iowa.

I am an editor. I have swung from tape-to-tape to Avid Newscutter to Edius 8.0. I can prepare a 90-second report in 20 minutes, but I’d rather spend hours – and sometimes days – poring over a four-minute masterpiece.

I am a graphic artist. For years, Photoshop intimidated me. This past year I pushed myself to learn the basics. Same with After Effects. I produce animations and creative presentations that slide into various stories.

I am a social media user and digital advocate. I need to be. Facebook didn’t exist when I entered the business. Today it delivers more than 90% of my station’s page views, so I must include it in my workflow. And it pays off.

The roles continue outside of the newsroom. I am a blogger, writing weekly entries about the journalism world for my Telling the Story blog since 2013. I am a podcaster, clearing 60 episodes of long-form interviews with luminaries in the field. I am a student, working towards an MFA in narrative nonfiction at the University of Georgia’s journalism school. I am a speaker, giving presentations at multiple conferences and workshops every year. (I also co-directed one – the NPPA Southeast Storytelling workshop – in 2016.) I am even an author. I spent two years writing, editing, and finding a publisher for The Solo Video Journalist, a how-to guide for one-person crews that has become required reading for broadcast classes at various colleges.

With this piece, I add another title: magazine columnist. I did not envision it, but I welcome the privilege and opportunity to reach and spotlight my peers and fellow NPPA members.

(more…)