RE <VV> Media attention

Kent Sullivan kentsu at corvairkid.com
Tue Aug 8 04:19:29 EDT 2006


Arjay, what you say makes sense--for a top 15 media outlet (or even top 25).
But my understanding is that CORSA and the local host chapters have had far
better success than what you describe, at least in those cases where the
convention was held in a slightly-smaller city--like Flagstaff, AZ,
Carlisle, PA, Lexington, KY, or Buffalo, NY. Folks from those locations can
jump in but I recall considerable newspaper coverage as well as decent radio
and TV coverage--at least in the cases where the local clubs made reaching
out to the local media a priority.

--Kent
-----Original Message-----
From: virtualvairs-bounces at corvair.org
[mailto:virtualvairs-bounces at corvair.org] On Behalf Of Arjay Morgan
Sent: Monday, August 07, 2006 9:49 PM
To: virtualvairs at corvair.org
Subject: RE <VV> Media attention

I have been watching all the references to "get media attention" to the
various activities at a corvair attention. I'm here to tell you it ain't
that easy, having worked at an assignment editor at  one of the top 13
stations in the U.S. Everyone envisions the big TV station on the corner as
having unfathomable resources.  Wrong.On weekends (when most convention
activity happens) I had one crew, one shooter and, if things got hairy I
could scramble a helicopter.
   
  My fax machine overflowed every four hours with news releases about the
latest and greatest, this one time ever, event that really, really, deserved
coverage. do the math: there was no way to cover 'em all, so most went into
the hopper and one, maybe one, event made it to the staff meeting where we'd
agree to cover it if 'nothing else happens.:  Even today in TV if it bleeds
it leads, and we on the production lived by our daily tally of blood and
gore.
   
  Even if you personally came to the newsroom (which you couldn't because
it's locked) and begged me to cover your event, and even if I had a car in
the event, I'd be hard pressed to give you more than a 'maybe' And if it
were a big event you wouldn't even get that since your event required more
manpower than I could ever dream about.
   
  All those faxes and backgrounders and pictures of historic cars you've
been sending me were nice, but of totally no use. TV news is a dynamic
business driven by tiplines and police scanners. There is precious little
planning and the coverage shows it.
   
  Remember, the average segment on a local news show is 90 seconds long and
a good one can take up to an hour to produce. unless it's a terribly slow
news day I won't commit a crew to your show for that length of time because
I know a shot black man in a drug hole with his 300 pound girlfriend
slobbering over his supine body is the piece that's gonna lead the  newscast
and I don't want my crew over there doing a nice job on your corvair
convention when they could have been prowling the drug holes.
   
  If you do want to make the  11  o'clock news I might suggest you pile one
of those expensive, one-of-a-kind into a light standard and have it
incinerate at least one spectator. That will get my attention and I'll have
a crew there even before the EMS guys start to pry the lifeless cinders out
of the wreckage. If you can arrange a gunfight at the same time, that's even
better-- you might just get 94 seconds on the 11. 
   
  Admittedly, small markets are much easier, but you still have to do the
repetitious faxes, telephone calls and arm twisting to get even a blip on
the radar.
   
  Bottom line, it's probably a waste of resources to do more that put out
the standard press releases and hope for a miracle. Besides, lucky tops good
any day.
   
  Hope this helps put "get TV coverage" into perspective for future events.
   
  Arjay Morgan
  64 monza convert

 		
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