Lights On, Nobody Home

It's one thing when the crusty old Media Maven throws rocks at local media, but it's quite another when regular viewers take the trouble to whine and complain. 

From a friend's Facebook page:

Local media, especially TV, no longer holds a crown of credibility. 

In the quest for higher profits, lower operating expenses and more profit for ownership/stockholders, many once-proud journalistic operations have been reduced to cut-and-paste stenographic services. Most local TV news is an endless stream of press release rewrites and worthless feature stories provided by out-of-market sources. 

When regular viewers/users of media notice and feel the effects of cheap-skate operators, it's only a matter of time before advertisers will start to notice. 

They All Look Alike, Right?

Uh, kids. That's the wrong Notre Dame.

When you kids were cruising the interwebs looking for a nice picture of the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana to accompany your news story...you cut and pasted a copy of the wrong Notre Dame. 

The stately building pictured above is Notre-Dame de Paris, AKA Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris. That's in France, kids. 

For future reference, here's what the University of Notre Dame in South Bend looks like. (Think Golden Dome).

Careful kids, they may ask for your Macaroni Award back...

60 Seconds with City Hall or 60 Second Campaign Commercial?

By happenstance, the Maven has discovered an interesting "program" that appears on WLYV 104.3/1450 weekday mornings around 5:45am. This "program" may appear on other Adams Radio stations in town, but the Maven has only heard it at this time and on this station. 

"60 Seconds With City Hall" is hosted by John Perlich, Director of Public Information for the City of Fort Wayne. The basic format of the "program" is Mr. Perlich reading the latest press release created from his office. While this may seem rather pedestrian and innocuous, the Maven has noticed that these "programs" have announced recent awards the City has earned as well monetary grants the City has won, under the leadership of Mayor Tom Henry. In a "program" last week Mr. Prelich was lavish in his praise of Senator Joe Donnelly in securing cash for the City. The Maven is sure the Senator's campaign was most appreciative of the mention on the radio. 

Besides the obvious annoyance of this "program" cutting into regular music programming at precisely 5:45am, it often ends up-cutting into a song already playing. 

No stranger to media and politics, the Maven notes that this "program" seems to offer a convenient conduit for a sitting mayor, running for reelection, to publicize city accomplishments to reinforce his campaign positions. Brilliant! While that scenario has not happened, yet (Municipal elections are a year away), the fact that other Democrats running for reelection (Senator Joe Donnelly, for example) have been mentioned in previous "programs". 

Now, some may argue that this is no different than a mailed or emailed press release, the Maven points to some marked differences. First, press releases from outside sources are used at the discretion of the station/media outlet in regular, station-produced newscasts. In this case, it would appear that the station/media outlet is accepting, scheduling, and airing a pre-produced "program" hosted by a City employee and produced by, as the title says "City Hall". 

On the occasions the Maven has listened to the "program" through its completion, there has been no mention if it's a commercial, a news-feature, a public service announcement, and there's no "tag" saying the "program" was provided by the City of Fort Wayne.

And the Feds may have an interest in "60 Seconds With City Hall" as it applies to the FCC Sponsorship Identification Rule as well as the Federal Trade Commissions Native Advertising Rule. Here's a link:
https://www.allaboutadvertisinglaw.com/2018/01/fcc-revives-its-own-native-advertising-rule-sponsorship-identification.html

And then there's the Federal Election Commission. They just love stuff like this. 

Kayla? Sure...

When WOWO announced that station veteran Kayla Blakeslee was assuming host duties on Fort Wayne's morning news, the Maven initially was disappointed. This was an opportunity for WOWO to replace the legendary Charly Butcher with a high-profile air talent, possibly a national talent. 

However, upon reflection, the selection of Kayla appears to have been a stroke of genius...a word the Maven rarely uses in describing the Fed-Med management team, south of town in the big double-wide in the cornfield. 

For the Fed-Med managers, Kayla delivers in three critical areas that relate to listeners and advertisers. Comfortable, capable and familiar. Oh, and she's already on the payroll!

Ms. Blakeslee is a familiar voice and personality, so in shifting to the host chair, listeners won't have to deal any adjustment to the on-air presentation. While her first few years with WOWO were rather rocky and mistake-prone, she's learned well from those tutoring her to become quite comfortable and confident with local geography, street names, and the movers and shakers in local business and politics. The Maven is also sure local advertisers and politicians will find that her change to blonde hair and proclivity for wearing black leather, as seen in her introduction announcement as Charly's replacement, will provide a very attractive package for car dealer remotes, supermarket grand openings and wooing more financial planning firms to WOWO's advertiser ranks. 

The Maven wishes Ms. Blakeslee well in her new position and hopefully, WOWO/Fed-Med will allow her to grow into her new position and not micro-manage her, as Fed-Med often does with morning show hosts.  

What's So Funny?

The Maven wonders what was in the coffee (or the brownies), as the crew of WANE 15's First News Saturday conducted what could only be called a "giggle-fest" Saturday morning (10/6/18)

While bright smiles and an upbeat attitude work well for morning programs, the Maven noted that the atmosphere was more than just jovial for the morning broadcast as both anchors seemed to be enjoying a joke not shared with the audience. 

The fun and frivolity weren't confined to just the West State studios, WANE 15's reporter-ette reporting live from a farmer's market seemed to get caught up in the fun. At one point, her giggles became so distracting that she actually turned her back on the camera and guest, to compose herself and then wrapped up her reported as she fought back the giggles. 

Now, the Maven is known to enjoy a good laugh, but really, kids. 

What was so damn funny that you couldn't share with the audience? 

You left us out. The least you could have done is to share those brownies. 

Words From Someone Smarter Than Me

Is radio taking the same path to irrelevance that daily newspapers have fallen prey to?

The Maven invites you to read the words of radio-insider Dick Taylor who defines the issue and offers some suggestions and insight. 

Here's Dick's blog:

https://dicktaylorblog.com/2018/09/23/mister-radio/

Who Will Fill Charly's Shoes?

With the untimely passing of WOWO's Charly Butcher, WOWO's parent, Federated Media is facing more than just an employment quandary. 

It's hard to replace a legend, and it's even more difficult to replace someone who worked as hard at and who was as committed to his craft than Mr. Butcher. 

The people who operate FedMed don't handle change very well unless they're the ones making the change. The sudden loss of a beloved air personality has, according to people on the inside, created a debate about where Charly's replacement will come from. 

Here are FedMed's options, so the Maven has been told:

Promote from within the FedMed organization. Most likely the candidate would be someone from the South Bend cluster's News/Talk operation. There are more than a few talented individuals there.  

Conduct a nationwide search for an up-and-coming morning talent (hopefully more effective than their recent hire for K-105 mornings...more on that in an upcoming issue). One of the pitfalls of a nationwide search would be hiring another Gregg "Hacksaw" Henson. Henson is best remembered for triggering an advertiser revolt by firing Pat Miller, taking over his show, threatening the lives (on air) of several local right-to-life leaders and his attempt to kill WOWO's popular and enduring Penny Pitch charity. 

One more option would be to reach out to former FedMed employees who have moved onward and upward. Ryan Wrecker, now at KMOX, would be an example, as well as other FedMed alumni who still call Fort Wayne home, but now toil in other careers. 

If you're interested, here's what Charly's job entails: (thanks to Indiana Radio Watch, from their weekly column - used with permission):

Federated Media in Fort Wayne is looking for an experienced, multi-faceted News-Talk host for WOWO 1190AM/107.5FM’s morning show.

You’ll host “Fort Wayne’s Morning News” (FWMN) which airs 5A to 9A. It is a fast-paced presentation of the day’s top news, traffic, weather, sports, business news and farm news. It also airs live on MYTV from 5:30A-7:00A. Our morning host will work with a wide rolodex of local, state and national newsmakers ranging from local mayors, police chiefs, sheriffs and fire officials to Indiana’s Governor, Senators and Congressmen.

The Morning-Drive host is responsible for, but not limited to:

• Hosting FWMN from 5a-9a
• Prepping content for FWMN
• Reporting and following live breaking news events
• Reporting and researching local news events
• Monitoring sources for breaking news on-air and online
• Interacting with the Fort Wayne community both online and in person
• Audio editing and logging
• Appearing at local events and monthly remotes
• Booking and calling guests on occasion

Ideal candidates will have experience working in a daily newsroom environment and hosting experience. They will be able to work well with others and have a good understanding of local issues, politics and economics. They’ll need to be a morning person as our morning host shift can start as early as 4A and they must be comfortable on live television. The ideal candidate must be savvy with social media and able to inform and entertain online and on-air while also being fair and balanced. Most importantly, our ideal candidate will have the desire to learn the heartbeat of WOWOland and share it with our listeners.

If you’re interested in joining our team, please send a cover letter and resume, as well as a link to your digital portfolio/demo, to WOWO News/Program Director Kayla Blakeslee at kblakeslee@wowo.com.

Literally? Totally!

It's a word that's so over-used, it's become more than just an annoyance, it's become a general pain in the ass. 

It's a word that routinely makes those year-end lists of words that should be banned. 

It's a word, like many, that's so over-used that it's generally meaningless. 

The word? 

Listen to any conversation at your local Starbucks or any group of over-educated Millenials, and you will hear it. The word?

LITERALLY. 

No, that's the word. 

So, when it makes it's way into the news writing, even in conversational story-telling, the annoyance factor kicks in. A useless word, holding no meaning, literally. 

While LITERALLY is the most notorious, check the list for more.
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/06/09/these-words-are-so-overus_n_5447356.html

Local TV News

Sorry, no pretty pictures, just a link to a well-done assessment of local TV news. 

The issues that drive Fort Wayne viewers crazy are not exclusive to our market. 

http://www.journalism.org/fact-sheet/local-tv-news/?utm_source=Pew+Research+Center&utm_campaign=3c65befc89-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_07_12_01_09&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_3e953b9b70-3c65befc89-400229509

Journalistic Economics

A possible gang-related shooting at the Glenbrook Square Mall parking lot. Both TV news operations covered the story and did a fairly good job - heavy on details, and light on conjecture. Well done. 

But, the contrast between WANE-TV and WPTA/ABC21 coverage shows a sharp difference in their follow-up stories. 

WANE-TV plays it straight, adding new information and getting a usable response from mall management. 

Read the WANE-TV story here:

http://www.wane.com/news/local-news/1-person-shot-outside-glenbrook-mall/1242118336

WPTA/ABC21 takes a different approach. 

Read the WPTA/ABC21 story here: 

http://www.wpta21.com/story/38448264/new-details-released-in-shooting-outside-fort-wayne-mall

Relying heavily on the media press release from the police spokesman, as WANE-TV did, WPTA/ABC21 fills in the blanks of who, what, why, where and how and then offers something additional. The WPTA/ABC21 story uses their news product to go out of the way to reassure and comfort viewers that the malls are safe and secure. Besides the obvious ass-kissing, WPTA/ABC21 appears to be doing their best to protect the lucrative advertising contracts from Glenbrook Square. 

That, kids, is the economics of "journalism" in Fort Wayne TV news. 

Laughing At Media

The Emperor Has No Clothes.....

...the Media have no pride.

WOWO News with word of a PLAN crash...

Plan crash? Kids! Is that like a "plane" crash? The Maven has a feeling you'd never do that to an advertiser's name or commercial copy. 

At least the WOWO kids knew it was an aircraft.

The people in the pretty building on Butler Road left the airplane totally out of their story. 

Reading this story, it sounds like the pilot landed on his ass in the middle of a field without an airplane. But that's OK. Their newscasts save lives. 

WOWO News Comes Up A Little Short

The developers and promoters of the Electrics Works project at the former GE campus are doing something smart. Offering free tours to the public as a way to build excitement and leverage support for their project. 

When it comes to telling that story, seems like the kids at WOWO presented a big picture and only a laundry-list of dates and times. Other media, appear to have more "meat" in their stories. 

Don't try to read the fine print, but it's easy to see which news story was tossed together from a press release and which ones appear to be actual news stories. 

The WOWO story is on the left, WPTA21/ABC21 story is in the middle and the News Sentinel offering is on the right. 

While the kids in the WOWO news room have worked hard to restore credibility to the brand over the past few years, the Maven thinks they still have a journey ahead of them. 

Amazing Fort Wayne Facts

The Maven never knew the Embassy Theatre was THAT old!

The Maven loves WPTA21 aka ABC21, the gift that just keeps on giving. 

What other station could take a funny story about the planet Uranus (and it's disgusting smell) and turn it into an English pronunciation lecture? 

Rather than use the common pronunciation (ur-AY-nus), which would play into the joke, the male anchor went out of his way lecture viewers about the "proper" pronunciation of the planet's name (YUR-un-us) and spoiled what could have been a fun and humorous moment. 

Proving that Uranus isn't the only thing that smells, a few minutes earlier, WPTA21 aka ABC21 was forced to "correct" a story they ran in an earlier segment. Turns out that the fellow shot by a Dekalb County Sheriff's deputy during a traffic stop in Garrett 2 weeks ago is NOT DEAD and has never been dead, as the kids on 21 reported just 30 minutes before. Indeed, the man, Joshua Mumma is in critical condition and remains in critical condition. 

Setting aside the dripping hypocrisy of lecturing the audience right after committing a glaring reporting error, one might take heart in the boastful words of WPTA21 aka ABC21's "news whisperer" that their newscasts "save lives". 

It's true! They brought Joshua Mumma back to life right before our very eyes.

Media Covering Media = Cluster Foxtrot

First, congratulations to Terra Brantley, moving from mornings to 5, 6, and 11pm anchor on WANE-TV. Well deserved. 

Those are the roses. 

Now, here's the brickbats

<heavy snark> 
"Congratulations" to the News Sentinel for screwing up a simple news story.

Please note the headline is correct, as is the body copy. But the cut line (box beneath the picture) states that Tara is the new Morning anchor.

If you can't quite read the fine print it says "Terra Brantley will become WANE-TV's new morning anchor after the departure of Heather Herron in May". 

In the Maven's opinion, the News Sentinel hasn't been the same since they took away the printing press. 

Show Me Just ONE Flaw....Vol 1

From the Maven's email: "I dare you to find just one flaw in our news reporting".

Maven asks: "just one"?

Let's see. There was the time you told me that the entire city of Indianapolis died in a fire in Tennessee

When Columbia City was building a new water park, your fuzzy math skills were on parade. (hint, you're about 300k off)

How about the time you did a story about Amtrak passenger service but showed me a picture of a Norfolk-Southern freight train.....

Was it a "medically-induced" beating?

True to form, WPTA21 fouled up Melissa's last newscast. 

How about the time that WANE-TV invented "Future News" reporting stories HOURS before they ever happened?

The WOWO kids, reinventing the English language:

The Maven recalls when WFFT put their reporter and camera in the median of Coliseum Blvd during a snowstorm....imploring viewers to "be safe".

WFFT isn't the only station to put reporters lives in peril. Check this screenshot of storm damage and their reporter-ette standing within arm's reach of a fallen power pole and arching wires:

And to wrap up this edition of "show me just one flaw" the Maven presents the "we're the media elite and you're just an ignorant viewer" award:

Meanwhile, out in "21 Country" someone might be holding their Nielsen diary and thinking "keep calm, and kiss my ass".

"Newer" Technology Bites The Journal Gazette

Check the second paragraph. Does it seem out of place, to you?

An unfortunate technical glitch? Or, as we see more and more in the electronic media, overworked "journalists" being asked to do more with less? 

The glitch did not make it into the print version of the Journal Gazette so J-G management can rest securely knowing that no one over the age of 60 will ever see the error. 

WANE -TV, Google Is Your Friend

Considering the myriad of resources available to local "journalists", one has to wonder how ignorant and careless mistakes like this happen. 

Uh, kids.....that's not the correct name of the agency. 

Here's a hint:

WANE-TV's story quotes the agency, so they either got a media release or spoke to someone to get the information. Either they didn't confirm the name of the agency, or they really don't care. 

Uh, might want to leave this one off your resume reel.....

Media Trivializes Tragedy, Again

School violence is planned next week?

Must be true, ABC21 WPTA News published this Thursday on Twitter.....

Maybe Quincy Newspapers should re-think the open bar and Happy Hour in the newsroom. 

WMEE 97.3 Avoids Deep DooDoo

Maven's note: UPDATED INFORMATION ADDED BELOW

The kids at WMEE 97.3 had a great idea: "Let's play off of Hoosiers new-found privilege of buying booze on Sunday! Listeners will be invited to send us their receipt for alcohol purchased this Sunday and through some sort of magical selection process, someone will win a grand prize of $100. It's simple! What could go wrong?"

Well, thankfully the adults in charge of operating WMEE 97.3 got wind of the questionable promotion, put their foot down and subsequently withdrew it. 

So, what's wrong with that? Plenty. First, a contest that directs listeners to purchase booze in order to win a prize is hardly the family-friendly image that FedMed, who owns WMEE 97.3, wants to cultivate. 

Secondly, there's a pesky Federal Trade Commission rule about broadcast stations promoting gambling. Working in lockstep with the Federal Communications Commission, the Feds prohibit what they call a "lottery". In their legal description, a broadcast station's contest becomes a "lottery" when three conditions are met. First is a "prize", something of value. The second is "chance", like a drawing or prize wheel, and the last is "consideration". Consideration means the contest player must make a purchase to be eligible to win the prize. 

In the case of the WMEE 97.3 contest, the prize is the $100, chance is the drawing of a winner, and consideration is the requirement of making a purchase (that's the only way a contestant would have a receipt to submit). Since all three of those conditions are present in the WMEE 97.3 contest, by definition, it's a "lottery" and would expose the station's owners to the very good probability of hefty 6-figure fines and/or the possibility of FCC sanctions up to and including loss of their broadcasting license. 

(UPDATE) Would the FCC really come after a little ole Fort Wayne radio station for a silly little contest? Uh, yes. Many readers will recall the Maven's post on 12/21/14 when WMEE 97.3's sister station in Niles Michigan was forced into a Consent Decree (like getting caught and promising to never to it again) which amounted to writing a $46,000 check to the Feds when some advertising genius at the station thought it would be a good idea to include the Emergency Alert tones in a commercial for added impact. The Maven muses that there were no Christmas bonuses in Elkhart, that year. 

Here's the link to the Maven's post:  

http://fwmediamaven.blogspot.com/2014/12/no-christmas-bonuses-in-elkhart.html

Or read from the FCC official text: 

http://transition.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2014/db1210/DA-14-1656A1.pdf

The Maven suggests that the adult who stopped this foolishness deserves the Federated Media Employee of the Year Award for pulling the station back from the brink of possible demise. 

As a side note, before the trolls begin to stir....there are two exceptions to the "lottery" prohibition. First, of course, are government-sanctioned state and multi-state lotteries. The second are charitable contests/lotteries/fundraisers which require an application/vetting/authorizing process where a license is issued , usually by the state. The annual Turnstone Classic Corvette raffle is a good example of a permitted charity lottery.

Don't bother looking on the station's website, the "contest" has been scrubbed from the WMEE 97.3 website and all apps and no longer can be accessed. However, an abundance of screenshots exist forever.

WMEE 97.3's "Official Contest Rules" are purported to apply to all contests. Check item #2. You can find them here:  
https://www.wmee.com/contests/contest-rules/

Perhaps a case for Lt. Columbo.......

 

Even the error-prone WPTA21, where the kids in the WOWO news room copied the story from, included the WHY. But,WOWO must have thought it unimportant.

Certainly you'll recall that a news story requires WHO, WHAT, WHERE, WHY and HOW. Leaving one out renders the story useless to readers/viewers/listeners. Most writers would have learned this on their way to a Journalism degree. 

However, if you your degree is in Eastern European Art Appreciation and Essential Oil studies......you might have missed it 

400th Post

For those of you keeping score at home, this is the FW Media Maven's 400th blog post. 

To mark this occasion, and to begin the new year, the Maven would like to share some information about this blog's purpose and intent. 

First, and foremost, this blog is about the Maven's observations of local media. Do not expect this to be a fair and balanced assessment. It's the Maven's opinions and reactions to what our local media outlets spew forth every day. If you don't like something or don't agree, that's just ducky. You have the option of leaving the page, responding by email, or starting your own Blogger account to express your views. It's still a free country. 

Let's get a few simple things out of the way first. 

Q: Why do you hide behind an assumed identity? What are you afraid of? 
A: Simple. Branding. FW Media Maven has a better "ring" to it and is more memorable than "Lazlo Magillicuty". 

Q: Why do you always pick on WANE-TV/WOWO/WPTA etc. 
A: Easy, they screw up more than most other media outlets. And they have thin skin. 

Q: What do you hope to accomplish pointing out minor mistakes?
A: Well, many issues the Maven highlights are not minor. Anyone in the market who purports themselves to be "coverage you can count on" should be able to pronounce the names of local streets, surrounding towns, and local politicians. It's a credibility issue. Local media generally fails at this, considering the revolving door that media has become. 

More than a few readers suffer from the impression that the Maven unfairly singles out reporters for ridicule. That has never been the intent. 
Keep in mind it's the Maven's policy to avoid criticizing individuals, personally. Avoid is the important word. If a reporter is doing a live shot and is ill-prepared, appears distracted, and generally screwing up, the Maven will name him or her. 
The Maven, however, recognizes that typos and graphic mistakes happen. While these miscues are generally the responsibility of the individuals who make them. the owners of these media outlets share in this criticism. Because of the tremendous debt load these owners carry, they feel they must continually cut costs (people) in order to remain profitable to their owners in Quincy and parts unknown. That means reporters now not only report, but write, produce, photograph the stories they cover, as well as churning out content for their social media platforms. However, the Maven can confirm that reporters no longer are forced to wash and wax the general manager's Mercedes on the weekends. Score!

If you have any other questions, the Maven will be happy to address them at fwmediamaven@gmail.com 

The Maven reserves the right to use your comments and respond in a snarky or non-snarky manner. 

Pandemic Media Ignorance

If you thought that only Fort Wayne media outlets routinely made fools of themselves, you may want to reconsider that position. 

A sharp reader of this blog passed along a tidbit from some outfit called CBS4 in Indy during the runup to Sunday's weather event (previously known as a 'storm').

CBS4 Social Media users received this piece of journalistic excellence:

There is no word in the English language as PRODIMENT. Taking a wild guess, the Maven thinks the confused CBS4 typist meant to use the word PREDOMINANT.