BREAKING NEWS: What Your On Air Talent Might Not Be Telling You

I’m a fan of honesty. Blunt, direct, helpful, inspiring, eye-opening honesty as someone who lives a life dedicated to the search of truth.

“I think you added the brutal,” Jerry Maguire said to his then-fiancé Avery Bishop when she had said to him “What was our deal when we first got together? Brutal truth, remember?” in the 1996 movie.

I’ll tell you when your butt looks big in those pants, I’ll tell you that guy isn’t right for you, I’ll tell you when you aren’t working up to expectations, I’ll certainly tell you that I don’t like your new hairstyle and I’m going to defend journalistic integrity to my death. (I'm also going to celebrate your victories with an embarrassing amount of excitement.)

I grew up in a home where truth was the way of survival. We didn’t have uncomfortable dinners with elephants in the room. We feasted on the elephants and had room for dessert.

After a lifetime of being told work harder, that-skirt-is-too-shot (“But I have long legs!” I’d argue back to my Lutheran conservative mother), even a “don’t come home to see me, you are needed at work” from a mother who didn’t survive the next three days, I was always torn between feelings and truth.

My article writing adventure started with wanting to shine lights in dark corners of the broadcast news business, to stop stereotypes about producing being a lesser species in the newsroom, and defending the importance and benefits of overnight shifts.

It took on a life of its own. When I asked people to “ask me anything”, I was flooded. I realized the hunger for feedback and truth and guidance was a real commodity.

It was this that lead me to realize on-air talent had a lot of confusing information about what makes a good reel. So I wrote an article about it. I had taken a survey of several anonymous News Directors to get the feel for what the collective group wanted. Some of it was helpful and some even more confusing.

I felt accomplished having taken this step to getting other feedback than my own specific brand of “likes” and “dislikes”.

But something was missing. It wasn’t a balanced story. That’s when I decided to turn the tables. Do a survey of on-air talent and let them retort, fire back, unload and vent their frustrations with hiring, working, pandemic, bosses, and workplace victories.

It’s information I think every News Director and hiring manager needs to see. This article is going to challenge me as a journalist, because I AM a News Director, hearing some not-so-pleasant things about News Directors, and I want to give perspective to some of the comments and not get defensive or seem like I’m not on your side, on-air journalists. I am. I am on the side of “Can we just all give each other a break and be honest and make the workplace better for all?”

Now the disclosures and quantitative parts. One survey, three days, 16 questions, and 39 responses.

Let’s friggin’ go.

The majority were either up to three months away from moving on, or not sure when.

BIGGEST JOB SEARCH FRUSTRATIONS FOR ON-AIR TALENT

27 people of the 39 wrote about being “ghosted” by the hiring manager. Most of them weren’t “I applied and didn’t hear back” but actual contact that had been made and the candidate never heard anything after.

Let’s go to some of the comments.

“There is hardly any communication. Most jobs don't respond- likely because of a surplus of applicants- but many have simply ghosted me after screening or interviewing me. It feels as if my time is not respected.”

“Not hearing back at all. If you’re uninterested from the beginning then just say that! If during any part of the hiring process where I am no longer considered for the position, just tell me that! “Ghosting” someone who is already frustrated with the job search is very unprofessional.”

“Feels like I am constantly sending out applications and content and getting no response. Even a no thank you would be appreciated. Also, more details on the hiring process once we are talking. Is your week of silence because you are talking with other applicants first? Or are you coordinating with administration? It's fine whatever it is, just keeping me updated would feel like way less of a cold shoulder.”

“Not hearing back or hearing back weeks or even months later. Or being strung along (interviewing with countless people) while led to believe you have the job only for them to ghost.”

“The most frustrating thing is when you have what you think is a tremendous interview and then never hear from someone again.”

I saw this trend early on in the survey process, and I wanted to get ahead of it to help alleviate some frustration. So I asked in several places where News Directors gather to attempt to solve the problems of our world.

Guess what? Many of them ghosted ME! See? It’s not just you.

But I did get some feedback anonymously and I’ve got some great intelligence on this matter as some of you would describe your experience with me as “ghosting”. Never said I was perfect, but none of us are malicious. You need to remember that one thing. You aren’t also in an exclusive class. News Directors on the job hunt get ghosted by GMs sometimes too.

Let’s start with some of the more outrageous reasons.

One News Director told me “Their social media made my jaw drop.” Yes, we are investigative journalists. We search you as you search us.

“They didn’t fill out the application.” I know that doing a resume and THEN filling out an extensive form is annoying. It’s annoying for us too when we are applying, but there are so many hiring rules and expectations and systems and HR protocols, things you don’t learn until you are a hiring manager.

One time, I was in the middle of a company switchover. Previous system was excellent, organized, and useful. We got an email late on a Saturday night that the system was going away – AT 9 AM THE NEXT MORNING! SUNDAY MORNING. I even check my emails around the clock and even I couldn’t save the trove of candidates in there and there was no way to access elsewhere. We had no choice but to re-post all those jobs.

Let me also tell you there is a world of paperwork when it comes to hiring from the first interview to the final acceptance. You are frustrated you don’t get a photog enough and the work has been dumped on you? Long gone are the days where the business manager or newsroom assistant types of the ongoing paperwork necessary to hire someone, and so we are left to do it many times with boilerplates that need legal approval before being sent, EEO forms that require a lot of information (like where you heard about the job), gathering up all the resumes, making sure the job is posted to the right places to be fair for all candidates, expense forms for the jobs we posted in certain sites, etc. So much paperwork I feel like I need to put in the Hopper at Congress and not just send to HR.

THE MORE YOU KNOW: Many times, when in a transition period between two companies, hiring can be slowed down and some positions put on hold until the new company takes over. There are intricacies between someone who works for the first company but wants to transfer to the new company before the new company actually takes over.

How you presented yourself on the brief interview or email action is a reflection on how we’ll respond moving forward.

One News Director said, “I only did a brief interview and they didn’t seem interested.”

Another comment, “They applied for the job but in the interview tell me they are using it to get another job.”

And another,”(One candidate) I actually had every intention of hiring, but then corporate stopped me from hiring anyone. Once it opened up, I needed to turn my attention to positions that were a bit more urgent to fill. I really truly always want to give candidates the time they deserve, especially after they spent their time and energy looking into our station, sometimes the daily demands of news wind up being what needs my attention.”

That’s another thing to know, sometimes we are motoring along with candidates, feeling like we are making so much progress, and the word comes down from corporate to wait until the next quarter to fill that or to hold off. Sometimes it’s waiting to fill the position until finances are better, so you have more wiggle room to pay the candidate better. Sometimes we are re-working the staffing plan to better accommodate the needs of the newsroom (podcasts, linear channels, long-form videos, adding newscasts, revamping outdated workflows, etc.). Sometimes it’s knowing a high-paid person who has been there for 20 years is going to leave or retire, and we want to re-allocate that money, but need to wait until the time comes. There are a variety of reasons the job search can take longer than anyone would like.

One News Director wrote “For a while positions were on hold. At first, it was weeks and it just kept getting extended. I tell people to check in with me but it ended up being almost a year.”

These are all things we generally can’t talk about. In a world of social media, shared screenshots of private texts, frustrations vented through a TikTok dance, and the whispers in the breakroom, we as News Directors are still bound to being a company steward and can’t explain everything we do to a waiting public.

Cue Andrea Sachs talking to Nigel in “Devil Wears Prada”.

“Yes, she explained every detail of her decision making and then we braided each other’s hair and gabbed about American Idol.”

“Point taken”, Nigel sighs.

Sometimes we just can’t tell you. Sometimes our bosses nix a candidate we really like, or corporate does, and we can’t change that. We defend the candidates we like, but we aren’t going to storm out of a job and scream to the world “If I don’t have full hiring decisions, then I’m quitting and paying bills with Monopoly money!” We all answer to someone.

What I gathered from these responses is – you still want to be told “no” in some way, regardless of all of that.

“Not hearing back.. even if you don’t get the job.. a brief email saying we are moving on is still nice.”

“If a qualified candidate has taken the time to send work and an introduction and interest in the job, could you just respond back? Even if it’s a no or you’re not the right fit, we can move on with our search.”

“If you can tell someone they got the job you can also tell them they didn’t.”

“I understand news directors are busy and have a lot going on and they don’t owe an applicant a single thing. But if you’re not interested in me just tell me so that I can move on and don’t have to bombard you every week with emails asking for an update. Sure, it’s probably terrible to have to tell someone they don’t have the job but it’s a job you signed up for as news director.”

Let me be clear, we don’t think it terrible to tell anyone anything, it IS what we signed up for as a News Director and we have practice and training and discussions with others about how to handle the more challenging ones. I’ve terminated my dog several times, talked to him about poor work performance and action plans, and let him know I’m moving some people around and he’s being demoted. For me, it works to say the words out loud first. It makes it less formal and helps me avoid verbal pitfalls. (For the record, he is still employed with me and happily chewing a bone as I write this on a dreary Saturday morning.)

I had a candidates I had to send the “we are going in a different direction” email, and for the next few weeks I was emailed passive-aggressive unsolicited responses to things they questioned about our product and how they could do better. Big no-no. Write out that email to feel better, but don’t send it. Big business, long memories, and close connections are too much of a risk factor to hit SEND.

The challenge lies in this. All of the things extra you are being asked to do that are really wearing on you? (more on that in a bit) We are in the same boat.

BUT WE CAN DO BETTER, AND THANK YOU FOR HOLDING US ACCOUNTABLE

In a world of shared experiences with individual reactions, I don’t really give much thought to what is called “ghosting”. If I apply for a job and don’t hear back? Well look at what they are missing out on (as I furiously review each and every application and resume and cover letter looking for errors that might have destroyed my chance.)

He’s Just Not That Into You is a really good mindset to be in, because I promise you if we like you and want to hire you, even if it’s going to be delayed, WE. WILL. CALL. YOU.

One on-air person seems to get this as they said “If someone is talented and fits the mold, they’ll get the call.”

It makes me think more about getting ahead of this problem than falling behind it, however. Do I really owe a candidate I had a 10-minute awkward conversation with a “no thank you” email? What if I have 10 of those? What if I have 10 of those PER JOB I am hiring (which is generally around 3-5 at any given time)?

This survey gave me a real jolt as to the impact it is having on candidates, and I vow to do better. I ask other News Directors to do the same.

Here’s how we can ALL do better:

·       Bosses, make it clear what your hiring process is going to be from the beginning, “I’m going to do initial conversations with 10 people, after reviewing 50 candidates for this job. I’ll whittle that down to the top 3, and then hire from those. If those don’t work out, I’ll follow up with candidates.”

·       If a News Director doesn’t make it clear, ask it during the “Do you have any additional questions for me?” moment. “What is your timeline for this hiring process? What priority is this position? Can I ask that if I am not a good candidate you let me know now or by the end of the week?”

INTERVIEW HACK: Always, always, always, have questions for the interviewing manager(s). You are a journalist, and you were born with questions (Why was it so dark? Who are these strangers? Why is it so cold? What are you doing to my belly button?” Also, watch your wording. When the first question is “how soon will I be able to take time off?”, we might pause and think that’s your main focus. Instead “Can you tell me about the PTO policy? I work really hard and enjoy my time off by traveling, and I want to make sure I can be a good employee who also has a solid life balance.”

·       Flag emails from candidates you’ve interviewed. Flags save my life in Outlook. I check my flags and when I am doing the onslaught of new hire paperwork, I make that part of my checklist and try to reach out to people. Sometimes I miss this step. I apologize sincerely to anyone I’ve ghosted. I can’t say it enough, it’s never malicious or personal.

·       When a News Director does take the time to say “No”, don’t follow up with a list of questions about “Why not? What can I do better? Who did get the job? Can you talk real quick to discuss this?” Just take it at face value. We can't rely to everyone, even when we want to. Bonus if you say “I appreciate you letting me know. I am sorry this didn’t work out, but I’d really like to be considered for future openings.” I know I have a running list of people I’ve talked to that I didn’t hire at the time, but might hire again somewhere down the line, or might refer to another News Director who is in hiring dire straits.

Sorry, I know this is getting long. I don’t have good news on that front. We’ve got a lot to get to, but it’s GOOD stuff.

WHAT’S THE WORST INTERVIEW EXPERIENCE YOU’VE HAD?

I’m going to let the comments speak for themselves before providing color commentary.

“News directors being totally distracted during the interview or disorganized. I spent hours preparing, and they didn’t even take a couple of minutes to actually listen.”

“ A news director never showed up to the interview. The assistant news director was a half-hour late. It was humiliating. I later touched base with the ND to see if he had any questions and it seemed he only realized he missed the interview at that moment.”

“An ND had offered me a job and told me I had by the end of the day to think about it (less than five hours to think about it). I kindly declined the offer.”

“They were about to fly me out to interview and canceled last minute because they found someone else.”

 “I drove 5 hours for an interview, was ghosted. You would think that I would have learned, ummm, nope. I was called months later for another interview at the same station, by the same ND, drove 5 hours again, only to be ghosted, again. What's that expression, fool me twice.....”

“The interviewer was clearly just reading off a list of questions they had either prepared or gotten from higher-ups/HR.”

“Didn't feel like they were genuinely responding to my answers, though I would drop plenty of information and "hooks" that I feel like any ND would want to explore or ask more about.”

“Felt more like I had hoops to just through in answering the questions than really exchanging information and ideas.”

 “We set up an interview and they ghosted me! Never called, didn’t respond to emails... I had moved around my day for the interview and it just sucked.”

“A clearly disinterested EP who made it clear they were only talking to me because the boss told them to.”

”The owner of the station and the news director belittled me, made me cry, told me I would never be on TV.

“I had just gotten back from an in-person interview at a station and got an email from the news director saying everyone loved me, and she just talked to the GM, and she couldn't wait to give me a call on Monday (she even added a wink emoji). I didn't hear from her again for 2 months and didn't get the job. She was gone a few months later. I'm guessing someone in corporate didn't like her vision, or me, or both.”

“Anytime you’re zooming or on a phone call with multiple people, you’re already nervous as it is and it just throws you off. It feels more like an interrogation rather than an interview.”

“It was the first MMJ interview I had before I graduated. I was too personal.”

“Trying to do group interviews via zoom is really difficult because you can’t tell who is talking and people talk over each other.”

“A news director telling me they could use a “woman’s touch” around the office.”

“ND said his station was a mess and complained the entire time.”

“Totally bombing an anchor audition. The studio lights felt like hell’s fire...it was so hot in there! I mean, THE hottest studio lights I’ve ever felt in my life! Couple that with the tiniest teleprompter on a ‘92 Mac or something that I could barely see. And a nice addition was a studio that had a glass partition to the newsroom...so felt like a fish in a fishbowl while doing the audition. Could feel all the eyes on me. Felt the walls closing in. I tried my best to power through and not complain (because who wants to hire a complainer?) Needless to say, I didn’t get the job. Lol. c’est la vie.”

“It was a virtual interview and the ND was 10 minutes late, leading me to think I had the wrong link and I started freaking out. Then they ended it after 10 minutes because they took a phone call. And I never heard back.”

“The news director was taking phone calls and completely distracted throughout the interview. He also expressed frustration with an agent calling about a job. I understand the pressures of the job, but the whole experience came off as unprofessional and was a key reason I didn't take the job when it was offered to me. The environment seemed toxic and a mess.”

“Hahahahah!!! Love this question. I was talking to this ND who clearly thought he was giving me a huge opportunity by even talking to me on the phone… he was condescending the entire time and the opportunity wasn’t even that great. I ended up in a top twenty with a far better team. But I remember him saying, yes, OUT LOUD, “oh I didn’t think someone from that market size would think like that. That’s interesting makes me want to hire you now.” Only because I said when I’m at a breaker I have my ears open for six other story angles through conversations or day turn investigative.”

“A News Director kept taking calls and looking at his computer screen while we talked. It was quite rude.”

“I was offered 10,000 less than what I made and the ND told me I’d have to make sacrifices, but he could see me going to the “top” if I took the job.”

“A news director hung up on me because a bug flew in his office. He also laughed at me for knowing what I want in my next station. Oh, and he asked me if I was spoiled as a child.”

“People commenting about my accent.”

“One where an ND said they were going to send an offer letter and over, and then never did. I sent follow-ups which were ignored.”

“A News Director who has no interest in sitting down and talking. Just keeps sending you to other staff.”

Wow. I love the takeaways from this. Don’t be distracted. Let me give you a takeaway. Sometimes we have been waiting days for a call back from a corporate attorney or equally important person and we HAVE to take the call. Sometimes. Allow us some grace.

I have found as a hiring manager I like to do interviews in one day and load them up. I generally prefer to work at home when I do this, with no distractions aside from a Golden Retriever who likes to bark when I talk on the phone (weirdo), but that gives candidates exposure to me and my philosophy while I’m in the same mindset, same mood, same stress level, fewer distractions and overall just a more positive experience than if I spread them over the course of a week when they can be quickly derailed by breaking news or an upcoming storm.

Yes, Virtual interviews can suck. I say that from the hiring perspective and as a candidate. I once did a virtual interview with an entire department head team at 5 pm on a Friday before a 3-day weekend. I fully realized none of them wanted to be there, and they wanted it over as soon as possible so they could go. I even mentioned it in the interview that I was sorry they had to stay late on a Friday before a holiday weekend and appreciated their time.

So, here’s the rub on this. If I don’t do a virtual meeting with the team (and assuming I don’t have a budget to fly each candidate out, which I haven’t in any of my four News Director jobs), then the team you’d be working with would miss out on getting to know you and asking questions. If I did them one at a time, you’d have 3-10 solo interviews. But I need them to have a vested interest in your success, and you’ll be working closer with them than with me, so you should want to get to know them.

Here’s how we can try to make this process a little more bearable:

·       Send the resume to each employee who will be part of the interview, make sure they study it. Explain a few details about the person, “She’s from St. Louis, went to school in Springfield, MO, had produced at two stations, and loves dogs.” That will avoid a lot of repeated questions through the variety of interviews and you can get to the meat faster.

·       Understand some of the people on the team aren’t skilled in interviewing candidates and they are being pulled away from their work to do this. They don’t always know questions to ask. Tee them up with a few things you’d like them to dive into “This candidate said he likes to play golf on weekends, but this is a weekend shift. You can talk about how they are going to balance that with the workload of weekends from your personal experience.”

·       While I know there were complaints about a News Director who “passed off” the candidate to others, we also want you to have an experience that doesn’t include us looming over. We want you to ask about us and our management style, and we want our employees to have space where they can speak freely and not have to worry the “boss” didn’t like that answer. I encourage all of my people to be honest yet fair. We might not have the best equipment, but see the forest through the tree of what are GOING to be.

I’ve had some terrible interview experiences of my own. One as a producer in what I considered my destination city. They just didn’t give a crap that I was there. I was largely ignored, which I thought meant I should show initiative on my part and approach more people. Nobody knew I was going to be there and I think I pissed off more people than I impresses with my questions because they were busy. By the time I was told to “put my money in the clip” by a manager to order dinner, I excused myself to the hotel for dinner. Never heard from them and they certainly didn’t hear from me again. The flight back was pure pity party with me as the guest of honor.

Another time I was flown out to a city for an interview where I had only previously had one discussion with the hiring manager. As I got in his car, he told me he was leaving for the day in two hours to travel and I would be passed on to other people throughout the day because “You and I are on the same page and we’ve had time to talk.” It threw off my game, and I actually laughed at first thinking it was a joke. It wasn’t. Didn’t get the job. That was okay. 

WHAT CAN A NEWS DIRECTOR OFFER OR DO TO MAKE YOU PICK THEIR STATION OVER OTHER OPTIONS?

There were a lot of comments on this one, but with themes.

Growth, opportunities, for one.

Offer room for growth at the station or to grow to a bigger market

“Room to grow and move up”, “Genuine opportunities for growth”, “Opportunity to grow, like anchoring opportunities, etc.” were just a handful of this topic.

Also, transparency.

“Well-defined plan for when I come on-board. What does training look like and how long does it last? Will I be shadowing someone? How much support will I get/be offered until I get my footing? The first few months can make or break at a new station for both the new hire and the team around them- I want to know I'm being set up for success and not being tossed into the deep end.”

“I need to know that I’ll be supported and cared for as a human, not someone to just fill air time. In the last year especially, we’ve seen journalists burn out and I want to know how they handled/addressed burnout among their staff.”

And, money talks.

“I’ll be honest. We’re done being poor and barely paying our bills… passion unfortunately doesn’t pay the roof over my head if it did it would be amazing.”

“Just stressing the money aspect many people leave the industry not for lack of passion but the fact that our work (which required a college degree) doesn’t get treated like that at all. We are not paid our worth and it truly discourages people who are passionate but have bills to pay. I love working as an MMJ but seeing fast food workers make more than us is heartbreaking.”

But happiness says a lot too.

“Show me that other people there are happy! That's why I picked my job over another similar offer.”

“Feeling like you fit with the team. I would like more time to meet the team rather than just the management team.”

“Have a great working environment.”

And flexible negotiations.

“Being willing to negotiate on start dates and contract details like out’s.”

Ok, gonna tackle these one at a time from a News Director’s perspective and not get defensive. Just give facts.

GROWTH: Yes, we want you to grow. We want you to stay in our market forever and a day as you rise if you are good. But when we hire you as an MMJ and by month 3 you are telling us you’ve “mastered” that skill and you want to anchor, or if we brought in a producer we know wants to go on air and they asking at week 6 to miss two producing days to go out with a reporter, it’s looking a gift horse in the mouth. Your definition of “growth” might not be the same as ours. Go back to that “Do you have any more questions for me” part of the interview and ask what growth looks like at that station. Ask for examples of people who have done it.

Also, if you want to anchor, get a reel together so we can see it. Pay production a pizza or two and set up time (off your regular shift) to get some runs at the anchor desk. Then go over it with us. You never know when that magic moment is going to come when they really need help and you happen to have 5 rehearsals under your belt and “see how good I did?”

Remember too there are people in line ahead of you. Working in a strong college sports market a few years back, we had a team going to a National Championship. Everyone had a reason why they thought they were entitled to go, even the newest person on staff had a “it’s not fair” argument.

We are never going to make everyone happy, and there are a finite number of newscasts to anchor.

I suggest regular check-ins with your boss with open, honest discussions (wait until you see that graphic coming up). At least you’ll always know where you stand.

If an opening comes up you want, don’t wait for the boss to ask you to apply for it – get ahead of it. I once had a News Director get fired and he was a good friend of mine but business is business – and the next day I showed up in a black suit and went into the GM’s office saying I wanted to interview for the job, fresh resume in hand. She laughed at me and said, “You aren’t ready.” I said, “That may be the case, but I will be someday, and I want to know what a News Director interview is like and I have done X, Y and Z for this station and I think I deserve that chance.” What GM with any kind of a soul could say no to that? (I didn’t get the job, of course, but that wasn’t the point. My initiative was.)

TRANSPARENCY: There should be a well-thought-out training plan, with a buddy system, and checklists for what needs to be taught at all stations. Should be. Not always happens. This is one of those “work at home” projects I recently knocked out just to have something for new employees now that the hiring gates are more open than since early 2020.

MONEY: Let me tell you a secret. We want to pay you more. We really do. I once had 17 producer candidates turn us down in another market within a month because the salary for that position was 100% unlivable. I had one person leave because they “really wanted to move out of my parent's house.” At any corporate level I could reach, I couldn’t get that message across in a results-driven way. The reality is there is a budget and we can’t bust it, not with the kinds of financial years we’ve seen.

There isn’t a good solution to this immediately. I understand the jokes of how bad news pays have given way to “I’m not going to take it anymore” and people move on to other jobs or careers. On the other end, people have stopped, especially in the early market years, being willing to have roommates (something that got me through my first three crappy pay ranges), cut back on expenses, and just figure out a way - for now. One of my main motivating factors for being in management was I just had higher salary goals than a producer was ever going to pay. I have no desire to be a GM, so I know my salary is capped at a certain level and I just need to be okay with that.

Let me do some News Director math for you, well, more like corporate math, but the math we live by nonetheless. You make $30k and you want to make $40k because of X, Y & Z. So you want about a 35% increase. When we do our budgets, corporate is generally wanting us to stay flat or be less than the year before across the board. When financial times allow, we do have raises built-in, but it might be 5% across the board, usually called a “merit raise” in your contract or agreements. For the sake of example, say it’s a $1,000,000 budget. That means $50,000 of that goes to raises and I have 25 people. You are asking for a fifth of the ENTIRE RAISE BUDGET! Times that by 5 employees who feel they work just as hard as you? So 20 people shouldn’t get raises? It’s a tough decision we have to make.

Some companies do incentive bonuses at the end of the year for the whole staff. They get 3% or 5% of their salary in a lump sum. I always liked these better. Seeing money upfront or at the end in a lump was better than the $30 per paycheck that seemed to immediately get swallowed. To get that bonus? News Directors have to spend the year keeping the budgets balanced. Cutting down on unnecessary overtime. Those open positions for three months? That helped.

You are going to say “But these companies make millions or billions of dollars! They’ve got enough to go around!”. I know, I know. I said it too for a while. It is a business, however. They have stockholders and boards to answer to and those people need to get their cut as well. We work for a profit, so we can invest in new things and keep up to date on this rapidly changing technology. I’m not a business expert, I’m a journalist, but I’ve seen enough companies fail, merge, struggle and go dark because of these challenges. There’s the broadcast vs digital advertising, a dying TV viewer base, new technology we have to get just to be up to speed and THAT could change anytime. Ask your boss about the Retrans agreements and you’ll learn a little about where the money goes.

And before you can think “We just got a whole new automation system and new cameras! Why wasn’t that given to the staff?”. Different pots of money. The expense budget is the day-to-day stuff, salaries, car repairs, newsroom computer system bills, weather system bills, CMS invoices, gas budget, etc. The Capital Budget is a different beast. It starts about a year or 6 months ahead of time with each department saying the capital things they need. Then the GM reviews. Then the GM reviews with corporate. Then corporate reviews all the capital budget of all the stations. Then they look at what money they have to invest in that. Capital is a one-time expense, generally a big one. (Capital is technically over $1k, but the good stuff could be in the $250k range.)

It’s not a good answer to the concerns, but I hope it at least sheds light. If you think the cost of living doesn’t matter, it does. My car insurance from Florida to Nebraska went from $700 to $250 and I bought a new car in Nebraska! State without income taxes can give you an immediate 7% raise before you even start negotiating. My apartment in Nebraska is literally twice as big as my Florida one and costs $600 less per month. I’ve had jobs where I take near lateral pay but have $300 more per paycheck than the previous one based on this alone. Do your research!

HAPPINESS/WORKING ENVIRONMENT: We all have a role in this, not just the candidates or the boss. There are times I’m looking for people who are skilled as journalists but will also bring positivity to the room. There are times the people who are the most popular are also the ones who don’t work the hardest. Happiness is subjective too. I don’t have wise words for this one, because every newsroom I’ve been in, from the overnight editor, through producing ranks, up the management ladder, I’ve had times “this place sucks” and others where “these people are family and I’ll defend them to the end”. It’s like any relationship, it ebbs and flows.

You control how much gossip you will entertain. You control if someone is sitting next to you complaining all the time and it’s killing your mood. You control how much time you have with the boss. You control how hard you work and speak up about what tools you need to do better. You control if you thinking it's "tattling" or "helpful" to talk to the boss about a concern with another employee.

YOU can be the change you wish to see in the newsroom. So can I. So can your cubicle mate. So can your producer. But it’s how we react to the environment around us that really impacts change.  

FLEXIBILITY ON CONTRACTS AND NEGOTIATIONS

I am speaking about a topic that is a weak point for me. There’s a reason when I lived in Vegas I spent more time at the Blackjack tables and none in the Poker Room. I don’t have a poker face. I am face value for better and worse. I don’t tell you I’ll pay you $40k when I really have $50k budgeted. I can pay you what you are worth, but not on your definition of worth, based on my impression of worth within the budget range of the position.

You want an out? Be realistic. Say you are signing a two-year contract in market 120 and you want a top 80 out after year 1. You are really asking to sign a one-year contract. That means I’m going to spend 6 months training you, and you’re going to spend 6 months looking. What’s the point? Where’s the mutual agreement that this is about the work and not only about you and your career goals. You DO have to take care of yourself and not be steamrolled, but you have to be reasonable as well. Maybe ask for a Top 20 out.

Did you negotiate your apartment lease? Probably not. Banter with the college loan people to get an interest rate and a “if I don’t get a job I don’t have to pay it back” clause? No. Why should a work contract be expected to have so much more flexibility?

You can ask to work without a contract, but I don’t know how that will go over. It’s just an option, but then you can get let go at any time. Flip side? You can leave at any time. When producers don’t have contracts we feel this sting.

You want a clothing allowance and makeup/hair done? You need to realize that is taxable (I am not a tax attorney and get advice from real tax people before thinking this is a great idea.) If I can give you that perk (and they are lessening with each contract cycle nationwide), then can I have control over what you buy and how you present on air? The contract probably already states I can do that anyway.

I can’t speak for all companies, and some News Directors are so skilled at negotiations they bargain with you and you are thrilled and they Cheshire cat smiling knowing they just got a great deal. I’m just not that skilled. I even pay full price at Mexican vendors just to avoid the haggle back and forth. I’m the only person who goes home with a full-priced poncho.

I’m only at Question 5 of the MMJ/ANCHOR/REPORTER survey, and I have 11 more to go. But this is getting really long. I’m not sorry. It’s good conversation and texture for future discussions. I’m going to wrap up this article now with a tease for Part 2.

We’re going to dive into what on-air talent wants to tell their current News Director, their next News Director, what management can or is doing to make you feel more valued in the workplace, and how the pandemic has impacted you.

I’ll leave one piece of data to pique your interest in Part 2. We have different journeys, but we’re not in a place that can’t be fixed.