Winter 2001
Making the Most of Morning News Meetings
By Dave Kurpius
Assistant Professor
Louisiana State University
What’s the most critical news department ritual for a television station?
It’s the morning editorial meeting, the place to assess and discuss coverage as well as to assign it.
In my years of studying top television news operations, I’ve sat in enough morning meetings to know when I’m in a good one. And the good ones share some common traits: They are inclusive, democratic and engaging. They push for depth, context and diversity. And they discuss not only what to include in upcoming newscasts – but what’s missing.
Consider a couple of examples:
KING-TV, Seattle
A mix of producers, reporters, managers and others attended a 90-minute meeting I visited in December. Several said they try not to miss the morning meeting because they are afraid they will miss out on the discussion. You can see why.
The focus is on framing enterprise stories. And everyone joins in the discussion on equal footing. They have already digested the morning news reports and thought about the stories they want to cover.
The day sheet, listing all the possible stories, is never read as a list, a common practice at many stations. Instead, the discussion focuses on depth, context, sourcing and framing of meaningful stories. Community ties are discussed and decisions made as the discussion progresses. It is only after the reporters have left for the field that the assistant news director, assignment editor and producers discuss the shorter stories that will become pacers in that day’s newscast.
KARE-TV, Minneapolis
This morning meeting, held in the middle of the newsroom, is set up for the staff, including the managers, to simply pull chairs into a loosely formed circle. Attendance by reporters and photographers is spottier here but many drop in to pitch and discuss stories.
Like at KING-TV, there is deep discussion of potential stories. Notably, the journalists don’t defer to the managers. In fact, News Director Tom Lindner says his voice is no stronger than the newest intern’s. Lindner invites everyone, including sales people, but makes it clear the news department controls the editorial decisions. He welcomes the multitude of perspectives and news from neighborhoods where KARE’s non-journalists may live. Here, too, the focus is on enterprise reporting. Those attending are expected to bring story ideas to the table. Some staff members even e-mail ideas when they cannot attend.
Key Elements of a Good Morning News Meeting
Good Ideas: The level of enterprise story development and work on framing story ideas begins long before the meeting. In newsrooms with consistently good reporting, managers expect everyone to bring an idea. Some stations require story idea submissions via e-mail the night before. But beware of edicts demanding all news staff submit story ideas. It may result in poorly conceived ideas and reporter resentment.
Attendance: Management-heavy newsrooms may mandate attendance but this show of power could stifle discussion and lead to ideas centered on what the staff thinks the manager wants to hear. The liveliest exchanges occur in meetings where everyone is welcomed and discussions are an open exchange of ideas.
Rewards: Rewarding good ideas and the process of developing them are critical to good coverage. KING-TV news director Pat Costello allows his news editorial meetings to run as long as two hours, if needed, to be sure he considers all ideas brought to the table. The station benefits from a deeper idea discussion and ultimately better stories.
KARE’s Lindner rewards good enterprise ideas by rotating general assignment reporters and photographers into the long-format “Extras” unit. This rotation ensures that deserving stories receive both more time in the field and on air.
Diversity: A few stations invite non-journalists – other station workers and community members – to their meetings, which can expand the realm of stories for consideration. More diverse voices generate new perspectives and alternative story frames. Be sure to set clear boundaries for the decision-making process to avoid awkward or unethical situations.
Conversely, beware of closed-door policies that limit newsroom input. The worst is the editorial meeting that starts with a “managers only” pre-meeting. It sends a message that coverage decisions have been made before the newsroom meeting begins, thereby stifling staff enterprise ideas and setting a pattern for reporters to simply accept assignments from the desk.
Framing: At KING-TV, it’s common for a story discussion to generate five or more suggestions – of different angles and different sources – before a primary focus was uncovered. This helps reporters broaden their source base and guards against overusing the same sources.
Facilitating: Morning meetings need to have enough time for meaty discussions and a good leader to facilitate them. Choosing a meeting leader sends an important message about the significance and the expectations for the meeting. There is no one perfect choice. Assignment editors tend to focus on logistics and getting the crews quickly into the field. When news directors take the lead, journalists tend to defer to authority. Line producers tend to worry more about the framing of stories for their particular newscast.
Assistant news directors and executive producers, who may be the same person at many small and medium stations, tend to focus the most on developing story content and the least on logistics. There is always tension to end the meeting so you can get crews into the field quickly. One trick is to assign an early crew to get right into the field. By rotating this crew, you ensure that no staffers are regularly left out of the morning meeting.
Editors, news directors and producers can all be effective meeting facilitators. More important than job title is the facilitator’s longevity in the community and approach to the task.
Community Ties
Staffers who hold great knowledge of the communities they cover and the ties that connect communities and individuals are key to all great editorial meetings. Their deep connections provide institutional and historical memory and allow for more contextual reporting.
Such knowledge does not develop overnight. It comes from spending time getting to know unfamiliar areas and citizen groups. Visionary managers can help by providing time for journalists to get to know their community.
Daily pressures to “feed the beast” and get crews into the field will always exist. But imagine, for a moment, the power of a more dynamic editorial meeting. It could be key to helping your news team consistently deliver a better, more accurate reflection of the people and communities you cover.