Let's Do Lunch in ND Speaks means you're going to starve

Bob "Let's do Lunch" Longo

Back in my days as News Director, I always tried to return phone calls and keep my promises to do so.

There is nothing more frustrating when you try and get a News Director on a phone. You might have sent your resume to the ND and you try like hell to get them on the phone. You leave messages and get no callback. Anyone that has worked in TV news knows this frustration.

So, I always made a pledge that if and when I became a News Director, I would return calls and would not leave job applicants hanging. I would try to be honest and tell them upfront whether I was interested or not. It's never fun to be strung along by an ND and be left wondering what the next step in your life will be?

I was brought back to those days recently by new WTEV News Director Bob Longo.

Bob and I have known each other for years and when he landed the job in Jacksonville, I called him up to congratulate him.

Longo was moving up from Orlando and told me "give me a week to get settled in and I will call you so we can grab some lunch."

That was about a month ago.

You see News Directors have totally different clocks than the rest of us.

So, in an effort to help each one of you, I'm going to tell you how the ND's clock works and what they are really saying when they talk to you.

First off, a few minutes = a few days.

A few days = a week or so.

And next week = never. 

When a News Director says, "I got your resume on my desk and I will look at it later Today" what he/she is really saying is "I have no clue who you are or where your resume is and I will forget about you the second I hang up this phone."

When a News Director says, "I'm just getting ready to duck into a meeting, let me call you back in a bit." You will grow very old waiting for that callback, because it is never coming. 

When the ND says, "I looked at your resume and give me a call next week." Translation: I will never be talking to you again. 

Lastly, when a News Director says, "Give me a week a week Scott and I'll call you so we can have lunch." Translation: Scott you better go to McDonalds because you going to starve to death if you keep waiting for that call. 

Maybe I should add a "Bob Longo takes us to Lunch" clock to FTVLive.

Thoughts?