PSST...NEWS REPORTERS...GIVE YOUR PTC SOME TLC

News on Kenyan television, has of late become 'inspiringly' standardised. The various channels seem to have all reached a plateau phase, with not much effort seemingly being put to differentiate their product from what the competitor is offering. Psst...News Reporters...give your PTC some TLC.

Content in a news story is said to be king. But in this royal setup, the queen is ably represented by form, or in this case, the format of delivery. And this witchcraft news story aptly illustrates this point.

Ordinarily, this could pass as one of those numerous episodes of a community held captive by superstitious beliefs. And I had marked it down as such, ready to confine it to the temporary holding bay, in a dimly-lit part of my brain.

Then a flash of brilliance elevated the story to a more prestigious address, in the leafy suburbs of my psyche, reserved for the intellectually-gifted elements, meant for long-time retention.

The Piece to Camera oozed creativity. It may have appeared strange to some, but for me, it showed much thought was invested in determining its delivery, and this deserves a hefty round of applause.

It's not very often that you see Reporters going the extra mile to make a story memorable. A well- crafted PTC can help a story in this regard, no matter how simple the news content is.

That's why I still remember the story above, about floods, many months later. The Reporter wanted to capture the desperation on the ground, and is there a better way than to be seen in the very predicament, during his Sign Off?

There was also a news item about Halloween, that had the Reporter donning the attire of a witch in the Stand Upper. Now that was creepy...but in a good way....given that I still remember the story.

So, News Reporters, extending some Tender Loving Care to your Piece to Camera, adds value to your story, especially if you opt to disregard what is prescribed in journalism text books, and venture into the realm of unbound creativity.

I'm still amazed that seven years down the line, I still encounter people, who recall a story I did, while on a news assignment in Kingston, Jamaica. And yes. The PTC is largely responsible for that.

However, there's got to be some sensible restraints.

The delivery of the PTC does not always warrant a soap-opera performance!

ENOUGH OF THE WELCOME BACK AND ON AIR GOODBYES!

It's pretentious and a stage-managed ploy to hoodwink the audience. One can even describe it as media personalities playing to the gallery. So you've been away for whatever reason, and when you reappear on TV screens, it's made to seem as if the public desperately needs an explanation of your absence. Enough of the welcome back and on air goodbyes! 

I can bet the proposed Standard Gauge Railway that TV news presenters and other journalists of a given broadcast station, have interacted or been in close contact, prior to going on air, even if one of them has been away from the office for some time.

So, when someone is introduced on air, the simulation of excitement at seeing each other is already an exaggeration. It should not be made overly dramatic, lest some soul out there is left with the impression that somebody is seeing his or her colleague for the first time on air, after their return to the newsroom.

And again, I plead, dear quasi-celebrity media personalities, spare us details that border on very personal information like who has procreated, (and no... this is not intended to be trash talk).

If 'Welcome back' pseudo-ceremonies are a visual nuisance and psychologically draining, then TV news broadcasts should not burden the audience with more 'Goodbye' festivities.

If one of the staff members is leaving, then the audience will eventually get a clue, if he or she ceases to appear on screen. There's nothing really special about changing jobs, to warrant excessive display of emotions on air.

It's also not exactly a complement to your employer, if you wish the departing colleague well, as he "moves to greener pastures!"

Enough of the welcome back and on air goodbyes! 

TWO COINS OF THE SAME SIDE

If one is to distinguish between journalism and blogging, will it be more clearer if one uses the point of view of a journalist, or the perspective of a blogger? Or is either option not equal to the task? This is one of those debates that can continue in perpetuity. It's like a two coins of the same side scenario.

If you try and see it as two sides of the same coin, then you are likely to end up questioning the very existence of a coin that purports to have the capacity to have two sides.

And that was the folly of a gallant attempt of one of Kenya's mainstream media, when seeking to interrogate the role of bloggers and whether they needed to be regulated.

This was clearly from the point of view of standard journalism practise. In other words, trying to use apples to explain how bananas taste.

Below is a sample of online reactions.

JUBILEE BABIES BURDENED BLESSING

Finally. A very interesting long-format TV feature has graced Kenyan screens. In a stark departure from the usually over-dramatized investigative pieces, the producers managed to weave a compelling story of human existence and its attendant variations. It succinctly depicts how mothers are burdened with the blessing of babies.

The new arrivals seem to forever alter their mothers' lives, as they know it, irrespective of the economic situation they are born into. Many viewers expressed shock at the different unfolding scenarios for the three mothers, in the two-part feature.

But in total honesty, is there any valid reason for one to have expected the experiences of a working class, slum-dwelling and homeless mother, to be not so markedly different?

And therein lies my often-stated problem with this kind of 'brilliant' features:

So What? So What? So What?

In other words, wasn't this 'epic story-telling' bound to be self-fulfilling from the very onset?

Yes. The emotional hook made for very engaging viewing. But in the end, what was the central message cutting across what was presented to the audience? That life is unfair?

Hey. Even baby Jesus was born in a manger. That didn't stop him from becoming our Saviour!

Below is a sample of how viewers reacted.