By Baylee Vrtiska University of Nebraska-Lincoln Melissa Fry, a former graduate of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and 32-year-old co-anchor for KETV NewsWatch 7 in Omaha looks back on her time as a reporter and how it compares to anchoring. During Fry’s last semester of college in 2006, she was offered a job at KLKN-TV Channel 8, the ABC affiliate in Lincoln, where she was a reporter and anchor for two and a half years. After networking for a few years, Fry wanted to go back home to Omaha and continue her career. Fry applied to KETV NewsWatch 7 seven times, before she was offered a job in 2008 as a reporter. “I really just found a passion with telling hometown stories and really getting to know the community and how it works even deeper,” said Fry in a phone interview. During Fry’s days as a reporter, she went to work around 9:15 a.m. or 1:15 p.m. On her way to work, she called sources and asked what was going on, trying to get story ideas. Once Fry got to work, she prepared for her 9:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. meetings. During the meetings, reporters and editors discussed who was covering what story. At the end of the day, if Fry was out in the field, she came back and put her story together. After 10 years of being a reporter, Fry switched to the anchor side, which included what she considers “a pretty unique schedule.” Fry works a split shift, waking up at 2:30 a.m. for the morning show that runs from 4:30 a.m. to 7 a.m. After the morning show, Fry calls people to see what’s going on in the community, looks for stories on social media, updates the KETV NewsWatch 7 website and puts together videos. At 9 a.m., she heads home, but comes back at 4 p.m. to anchor the 5 p.m. newscast. “You kind of have a little bit more of a management role when you’re an anchor. You’ve got to make sure all the scripts are correct and make sure all the information that’s coming in is put into the newscast,” said Fry. Fry said that after reporting for 10 years, she misses it. "It was a great way to get to know the community,” she said. However, the switch from reporter to anchor was the best move for her now because she’s pregnant, expanding her family of five to a family of six. Fry was first interested in journalism as a young girl, but she fell in love with it during an internship at KETV NewsWatch 7 her junior year in college. She said internships are important. “Get the internship," she said. "Lazy people will never make it. It’s a fun career, but it’s not a normal Monday through Friday (job). Jump in head first. Jump in the fire. Experience as much as you can because it’s really a ride." A career as a television news anchor isn’t always easy. Fry has made some tough ethical decisions. KETV’s reporter and photographer went to the scene where a women’s boyfriend shot and killed her daughter. The reporter caught the mother wailing on tape when she came home and realized that her daughter had been shot. The station wanted to air the wailing sound on that night’s newscast. Fry was so upset. She felt like they might be taking it too far. “It was very compelling and unforgettable. I thought, ‘Why do we need this?’ I took it up with the producers and we didn’t end up airing it,” said Fry. “When you get one side of the story and can’t get ahold of the other side, ask yourself, ‘Do you absolutely have to use it? Are you going to hurt somebody’s reputation?’ You’ll make those decisions all the time as a journalist,” said Fry. Editing is also a huge part of Fry’s job. Fry writes and edits the ticker that runs at the bottom of the screen during newscasts; she edits her script and she also writes and edits her own stories. When Fry is editing her script, she takes out unnecessary words and edits for what the viewer wants and needs to know. “The hardest part of writing is knowing what to keep and what not to. Keep it short and simple,” said Fry. Fry believes the most satisfying part of her job understanding issues that are going on in the community. Fry enjoyed writing a story several years ago about the Omaha community supporting a boy who had cancer. “I love telling that story, whether it’s a feel-good story or a story that has changed someone’s life or is going to change someone’s life. I love really getting to know people and issues that make Omaha what it is,” said Fry. Fry had this advice for reporters: “As hard as it is, read, watch and study the news. Let yourself be passionate about it."
0 Comments
By Lea Swatosch University of Nebraska-Lincoln Glen Crevier, 63, has been in the newspaper industry since 1976. His hard work and passion for sports journalism has helped him work his way up to assistant managing editor for sports at the Star Tribune in Minneapolis.
“You need to persevere. It’s a tough business, especially in sports,” said Crevier, who was born in Rhode Island and worked as a reporter, copy editor and columnist at various newspapers before landing at the Star Tribune. His determination through the years has paid off. Crevier now manages about 30 reporters, columnists and editors at the paper. His staff covers each sport from high-school all the way to professional leagues. Minnesota has a team in all four major professional leagues, so managing the sports section is a big job, he said. The StarTribune sports section features local and national stories. This makes it harder to decide what four or five stories they’re going to put on the cover for the day. One of his reporters wrote a story on the Ryder Cup, which was held in Minnesota this year. The paper also reports on historic Minnesota sports figures. The StarTribune published a compelling article when Flip Saunders, former University of Minnesota basketball player and Timberwolves coach, died in 2015 at the age of 60. Crevier also manages budgets, including staff travel budgets. Crevier graduated from Hiram College in Ohio with a bachelor’s degree in political science. In college, he worked in the sports information office and also for the school newspaper. Crevier knew from the beginning that he wanted to be involved with newspapers. After college, Crevier worked as a sports columnist at the Arizona Daily Star. Then he moved up to become the sports editor for The News Tribune in Tacoma, Washington. He was recruited to Minneapolis from Washington for his current position. Crevier has been at the StarTribune for 18 years. Crevier comes into the office everyday at 9 a.m. He starts his day with a meeting to figure out what the newspaper should do online. His days didn’t always start like this. He has watched the 24/7 news cycle emerge and he said that it has changed everything. Instead of focusing on just a daily newspaper, the staff now plans the website all day long. “There are two parallel tracks during the day to have immediacy,” Crevier said. Some people wonder if news stories published online are as accurate as printed stories. Crevier believes that the StarTribune edits online stories with the same standards as print stories. Crevier said that editors know how important it is to be accurate in all of their stories. Every story is edited before it is posted. The StarTribune uses AP Style for editing. Crevier thinks that it is very important to be consistent in print and online. AP Style is an important guide that allows the newspaper to stay consistent and accurate throughout its reporting, he said. The use of social media has evolved with the 24/7 news cycle. Crevier said the StarTribune staff uses social media all of the time. “The biggest thing is, we are trying to reach a broad audience,” Crevier said. The StarTribune and most of its staff use many different social media platforms to engage with the public. Crevier uses Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook. Crevier said editors make hard news decisions often. Crevier said that he finds the hardest news judgment decisions involve high school sports stories. The ethical decisions get tough when deciding how to report on stories involving high school students engaging in questionable behavior. Crevier has found himself in these situations when deciding whether or not to run stories, such as one in 2013 about some high school hockey players who were given game suspensions. Crevier and his staff had to take into account that the story might embarrass the students. In his 40 years in the newspaper industry, Crevier has seen what it takes to succeed. There isn’t a position in sports journalism that can be easily obtained, he said. He was willing to move for the job and it was worth it in the end. “Sometimes you have to go where the job takes you,” Crevier said. By Cassidy Adolf University of Nebraska-Lincoln Everyone has dreams, and Bridget Fargen, anchor for KOLN 10/11 Now, is no different. And though her career has taken her to a place she didn’t plan on, she has no regrets. “I just never turned down an open door because I never knew where it was going to take me,” Fargen said. Fargen, a University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee graduate, initially wanted to be a sports reporter. Once she landed her first job at WJFW-TV in 2008, which was a half news and half sports, she expected more sports to come her way. Fargen found that was not the case. Fargen found that most sports departments only have three to four reporters, so she decided to go with the path that was in front of her. “News opportunities kept presenting themselves,” Fargen said. “I just never turned down an open door because I never knew where it was going to take me.” Fargen then became a weekend news anchor/reporter at 10/11 in Lincoln in 2010. Fargen, 31, then became the weekday evening anchor for the station. While she says that it wasn’t her initial dream, she feels very fortunate. “I’m getting to tell stories and hopefully make an impact on people’s lives,” Fargen said. One way Fargen is making a difference in the Lincoln area is by telling the stories of the people who live in the community. She has found that many people are willing to “reach out and work with the media.” Fargen tells viewers, “You are your eyes and ears in your community.” She urges the 10/11 audience to send what they see and hear to advocate for their neighborhoods and to make the news more pertinent to the community. Fargen also finds the input from the community important because it helps fuel the 24-hour news cycle. “If you have viewers who are wiling to share information and content with people, you have that much more,” Fargen said. Fargen finds the endless cycle to be a good and bad thing. Because of the nature of how news is distributed, by the time the evening news rolls around, Fargen said that there’s a high chance that viewers have already heard the story. Fargen tries to find a “nugget,” or a piece of information to tell a story in a different way. “Sometimes you can make an extra phone call,” Fargen said. “Find a new twist.” Fargen admitted that sometimes it isn’t possible to find a new angle, but she says it's still important to try to advance the story. While the 24-hour news cycle is about getting up-to-date information to the readers or viewers, accuracy and sound judgment are still just as important. Fargen said that accuracy has suffered throughout the news world because of the 24-hour news cycle, but as far as judgment calls, she finds that every story is different. “It’s about taking one case at a time, never apply anything across the board,” she said. Fargen said that balance is very important when making news judgment calls. When to give a warning to viewers about graphic content and how to show that content are among many questions that are asked before airing certain stories. “Don’t be afraid to make the wrong call,” Fargen said. Fargen acknowledged that sometimes it may not be right, but if the conversation took place, then it’s something to learn from. “There is always discussion in the newsroom,” Fargen said. Fargen acknowledged that working in a newsroom requires a lot of teamwork, and for a journalist to wear many “hats.” In larger markets, Fargen said that there are often many people assigned to the many jobs that produce news. Lincoln is a smaller market, so Fargen has to take on many responsibilities in order to deliver. “The viewer doesn’t care when the news open rolls,” Fargen said. Fargen said that it can be hectic at times, but it’s always important to make the right call to give the viewer what they need. As Fargen has grown in her work, she has some advice for aspiring journalists. “Don’t be afraid to take advantage of opportunity. Be willing to adapt and be flexible, and be your own advocate,” Fargen said. |
A note about the content: This site showcases the final projects of University of Nebraska-Lincoln editing students. Each semester, students pick a journalist or communications professional to profile. This is their work.
Categories
All
Archives
April 2018
My Favorites
On the mediaNieman LabPoynterRomenskoPoliticoErik WempleThis is me. I run this site. |