Category Archives: News

Government “Transparency” – And Lack Of Same

“Government transparency” is a phrase bandied about by many politicians, promising that under their watch, their doings on behalf of the electorate will be open and free for all to see. Lofty words, but words too often not backed by action. Citizens expect transparency at every level of government, whether it’s their local town board, or… – MORE –

“March Madness” Is A Trademarked Term

March Madness is here! The Girls’ State Basketball Tournament is underway in Green Bay; next week the Boys’ tournament starts; and late Sunday afternoon we’ll know where the Badgers will be playing in the first round of the biggest “March Madness” contest of them all, the NCAA Division One Basketball Tournament.  As this article from the… – MORE –

Covering Breaking News At Crime or Emergency Scenes

Covering  breaking news at a crime scene or emergency falls within the job description of any broadcast news reporter or photographer. The recent police shooting in Madison provided a number of challenges for electronic media professionals, covering not only the scene of the shooting, but the protests that quickly materialized after the shooting, which left… – MORE –

CJR Article Regarding The Kind Of Questions Reporters Ask

“Clickworthy” and “click bait” are two words heard often regarding today’s news reporting style. Do reporters really ask questions just to try and see how many clicks the story will get on their station’s website? In this interesting article from the Columbia Journalism Review, Susan Milligan writes extensively (more than 45-hundred words) about the nature… – MORE –

A Debate That Should Be Held In Every Broadcast Newsroom

I remember watching a local news telecast on a morning several months ago and seeing a story about the death of Playboy founder Hugh Hefner. I knew the story was wrong, because the rumor of Hefner’s death had been de-bunked the day before, but not until the story had been “out there” for several hours. After a commercial break,… – MORE –

Wisconsin broadcast media are busy covering right-to-work legislation

Cameras and microphones of Wisconsin broadcast media are in evidence everywhere around the state capitol as they provide coverage of the debate and events surrounding right-to-work legislation. Reporting on what state government is doing is in the DNA of Wisconsin broadcast newsrooms. What is a “special session” of the legislature – and, is it different… – MORE –

Sources: A Reporter’s Stock-In-Trade

If you really want to know what’s going on in the beats you cover, you need to develop and maintain good sources – the people who know “the story behind the story” and are often first to know when something new comes up.  Here’s some great information about developing sources in an article from the… – MORE –

Massive Changes in Millenials TV Viewing Habits

The Millenials – those born in the 80’s, 90’s, and early 2000’s – those who followed “Generation X” and are sometimes but less frequently called “Generation Y” – have vastly different TV viewing habits than the generations that preceded them. Here’s an interesting article in the New York Post that talks about the latest Neilsen… – MORE –

Deputy Attempts To Block TV Live Shot

This is compelling video taken during an actual live shot by KDFW-TV (Dallas, TX). The link is here. The reporter on the live shot seems pretty well-informed about what his rights as a representative of the media are. To be sure you, as a Wisconsin reporter, are familiar with our state’s laws, rules, and regulations,… – MORE –