Every week, I will shine the spotlight on some of the best storytelling in the business and offer my comments. “3 Great Stories of the Week” will post every Monday at 8 AM.
Three stories.
Three extremely different examples of storytelling.
One story takes two minutes to watch; the second, roughly ten minutes to read; the third, nearly an hour to hear.
One story is light and heartwarming; the second, informative and mind-expanding; the third, serious and soul-shaking.
One story succeeds through its sweet visuals; the second, through sheer research; the third, through a mix of thorough reporting, detailed interviewing, and personal storytelling.
Each story works, and works well. You may find yourself talking about all of them this week.
Blind Lab Has His Own Guide Dog (3/25/13, NBC’s Today Show): Here’s the thing: I actually did not like a lot of the storytelling in this piece.
Mainly, I could not stand the music, and the story did not need it.
But every time I thought about turning this story off, I was pulled back in by (A) the cuteness of the dogs, or (B) the unfolding of the story. NBC’s Annabel Roberts brings this joyful piece from Wales, U.K., and with the exception of the music, she wisely lets the dogs do the, um, talking.