by Maddie Dockery (NCC News)
November 17, 2010, 5:00 p.m.
A2: SCSD Budget Deficit
I decided to lead off with Kit’s anchor actuality about the Syracuse City School District’s $50 million budget deficit because it was an important story about a local school district. Kit got a great soundbite from Dick Strong, the President of the School Board. I think a lot of people would be interested in this story, especially if they have children who go to school in the SCSD.
A3: SU Transfers
We followed Kit’s anchor actuality with another school-related story, this one a wrap by Gino. This story was about a new agreement between Syracuse University and Onondaga Community College, which will guarantee admission to OCC students who maintain good grades for two years. SU also reached a similar agreement with Georgia Perimeter College in Atlanta. I thought this story would appeal to a lot of people in the area, as it deals with both education and money.
A4: Laundry Money
Our next story was a local reader about a Syracuse man who stole $176,000 from his job over a time period of 17 years. The man was an accountant for the Syracuse Housing Authority and he stole the money from laundry machine tokens. I thought this story flowed nicely out of A3 because it still involved Syracuse, and it was also about money.
A5: Oneida Tobacco
Next we had a wrap from Rochelle about a new law that would forbid minors from possessing tobacco. The law was proposed by the City of Oneida, which is not far from Syracuse, and would likely interest many people here. This story kept with the law/crime theme that was also present in A4.
A6: Four Loko
I decided to follow that story with a reader about Four Loko, because it also involves a ban. As a class, we have been following Four Loko in the news for a few weeks now, so I thought it was appropriate to include it in the newscast again. This particular story was about Senator Charles Schumer’s announcement that caffeinated alcoholic drinks will likely be banned as soon as this week. This story would be of high importance to many college students, among who the drink is very popular.
A7: Rangel Guilty
Next we stuck with the law/government theme with an anchor actuality from Kit. The story was about New York Congressman Charles Rangel, who was found guilty of 11 out of 13 ethics violations. Kit got a soundbite off of ABC Newscall from one of the representatives on the ethics subcommittee. This was more of a statewide story, which transitioned well into the rest of the A block.
A8: Catskill Casino
The next reader stayed with the government theme. The story was about an announcement from Governor David Paterson, saying that he is working to reach an agreement to approve construction of a casino in the Catskills. This story also mentioned the effect the casino would have on the state’s economy, which is important to a lot of people.
A9: Economy
We followed that story with a reader that gave perspective on the national economy. The Commerce Department says that the construction of new homes and apartments fell sharply last month. It was the housing industry’s poorest showing since April 2009. I thought this flowed really nicely out of A8 because it stuck with the economic theme, while giving more of a national viewpoint.
A10: Empire State Games
Our final story of the A block was a reader about the cancellation of the 2011 Empire State Games. The Games were canceled because of New York State’s $9 billion budget gap. Like the last few leading up to it, this story was also about the economy. I also thought that by putting this story last, it made the A block come full circle, as it started and ended with stories about budget gaps. We ended up dropping this story because we were running short on time.
Kicker: Royal Wedding
The kicker was about Prince William’s engagement to his longtime girlfriend Kate Middleton. I thought it was important to include this story because so many people are enthralled by the royal family, especially since Princess Diana’s death. The story was heartwarming because Prince William gave his fiancé his late mother’s engagement ring.
B2: Weather
Kit read all of the weather, including the weekend forecast. She ended the newscast right on time.
Floater 1: Canal Traffic
The first floater was about an increase in traffic on the New York State canal system. This story was interesting because traffic along the waterways has increased, despite a decrease in commercial traffic. We did not end up using this floater.
Floater 2: Cafeteria Manager
The second floater was about a former cafeteria manager for a school in Buffalo, who admitted to stealing $40,000 from the school over a 6 year span. This story was very similar to A4. I thought it would have worked well with the rest of the rundown because it is about crime and money. We did not end up using this floater either.
No comments:
Post a Comment