Fighting For the Lead

A couple of weeks ago in FTVLive’s newsletter “Live from the Bunker” I wrote a story about something that really seems to be missing from today’s TV newsrooms.

I am still getting emails from Journalists that say how they agree with what I wrote. Two News Directors, an Anchor, and 2 Investigative Reporters at top 10 stations suggested that I share what I wrote here on FTVLive.com.

So, I thought I would do that.

Here is the excerpt from our newsletter:

Are you a Reporter or an MMJ?

Do you want your station to pay you more money?

Would you like to be respected as the top Reporter in your newsroom?

Do you want people to recognize you more often In the community?

If you answered “yes” to at least 3 on these questions, we are here to help.

I have worked in a lot of newsrooms during my TV career, but a couple stand out as great newsrooms.

The great newsrooms were the ones when Reporters and Photographers fought each and every day to be the lead story on the newscast. When I was a News Director, I would often use the phrase, “Win the lead, win the show.”

In other words, if your lead story was better than the other stations in town, you won that newscast.

Nowadays, MMJ’s and Reporters don’t have the drive to be the lead story each and every day. They are happy doing a story about a new ice cream shop that is opening, or people lined up to get Taylor Swift tickets.

But, the lead story is the story of record in the newscast.

Look at the ratings and you’ll see that viewers tune out of the newscast throughout the show. If you’re leading the newscast, you are getting seen by the biggest audience.

If you lead the newscast every night, you become a “name” and you are worth more to your station.

The best newsroom are when you are not competing with the stations across the street, but your competing within your own newsroom. Reporters fighting to have the lead story, make the newscast better and the newsroom better.

Micheal Jordan was the best basketball player in history, because he outworked everyone and he wasn’t afraid to call out his teammates that we slacking.

Talk to a player from the Chicago Bulls that played with Jordan and they will tell you the toughest games they ever played weren’t against other teams. The hardest games they played were in the bulls practice.

Jordan pushed his teammates to be better.

As a Reporter, you can lead by example by getting the lead story almost every night. Fight for the lead and you will become a better Journalist. You will make those around you better, and when your contract comes up, your boss will forced to pay you better, or lose you.

I think Journalist has to be very competitive. You should want to crush your competition and beat everyone in your newsroom.

Imagine if your newsroom was filled with ultra-competitive Journalists, how good to you think the on-air product would be?

Having a staff in which everyone wants to be the lead story, will lead powerhouse station.

As a News Director, I always asked potential employees if they considered themselves competitive. If they said “No, not really…” I never hired them.

We live in a world where everyone plays, we don’t keep score, and everyone gets trophy.

That world is killing the competitive drive in people and that leads to bad Journalism.

Find that drive and you will move to the top of this industry.

Then you’ll make enough money that you can buy your own ice cream and you don’t have to ask for a freebie while covering the ice cream shop opening.