You might be in a small market if...

[Sm Mkt Bunny]

Ok...I'll go first...

You might be in a small market if...

You show up to the city council election 'one-man-banding' it, and the chair of the council asks you which NEWSPAPER you're with...

[Little wig]

The Davey Crockett statue is your claim to fame!

[Climbing Up]

-Run the Audio Board and than do the weather for the same newscast.
-Drive your sick photog home, shoot, produce, edit and you're a weather guy.

[4Caster]

Live in Marquette, MI

[moody midwesty]

you dream of one day working in des moines

[Okie-Wan Kenokie]

...you would've gotten your scripts printed on time, but you couldn't because you had to edit a VOB and two PKG's.

[MN gal]

the theft of paul bunyon's wooden gun statue is your lead...

[BamaBoy]

You have to booth your show as you run teleprompter.

[HEAVY SNOW WARNING]

Most of the 'city' shuts down by about 10-11pm.... http://web1.carmel.net/ubb/medialine/NonCGI/frown.gif

But WALMART & DENNY'S IS OPEN 24 HOURS http://web1.carmel.net/ubb/medialine/NonCGI/smile.gif

A sleepy little town indeed.

[smallmarketblues]

You go live at five, six and ten from a freaking arts and craft show!

[Newsnose]

When you drive over an hour...in your own car....for a one-man banded vob.

when you work as the teleprompter operator after you've produced the six and reported the lead pack.

[Oh let me....]

1. You run the prompter for the show you anchor and it looks more like you are playing Atari on the set.

2. Your director is also running audio and trying to hit the CG buttons for graphics.

3. Your morning weather guy waltz's in at 5:55 for a 6am show.

4. Your Sports Director is your News Director

5. You edit tapes for the show you anchor

6. Cut and paste news from 5 and 6 is your
Ten PM newcast with MAYBE a lead change. I stretch the word MAYBE.

8. Producers still in college

9. Interns sometimes report

10. Mayor used to be main anchor


SHALL I GO ON????

[Silent_Bob]

If your director is calling the show running the DVE and the graphics and timing the show.

[shopgirl]

You operate studio cameras the same time you are doing a live-chromakey...right after you posted the days stories on the website, shot the video for the package you edited and were the main weekday reporter while you were still a college intern! All for 5.15 an hour! Is that still legal?

[CG anyone]

-your CG op makes a nightly effort of misspelling words...and his/her success is determined by limiting the misspelled words to "only a few" each night...

Favorite misspellings:

-Wendesday, Anahiem, Pheonix, Millwaukee, burthday, socker, Bosston, Mane Street (as in Main Street), finnally (supposed to be finale), and resultz.

At the end of each show, the director, without fail, complements the CG op and tells him to "just try harder next time."

[NOE-body]

The main female anchor at the "other station" used to be the secretary/tinkerbell sidekick for the local kids TV show that used to air on their station over 20 years ago.

[not so fond memories]

1. you work weekends at the JC Penney to make ends meet.

2. your main anchor is related to the station owner.

3. a good news day is when the rodeo comes to town.

4. city council makes top story on a regular basis.

5. you window shop at WAL MART because there's nothing else to do.

[200+]

You're still typing your scripts on script paper and ripping the wire that collected overnight.

[trythisone]

Your news director is also the assignments manager and anchors the 5 and 6.

You produce, report, edit, shoot, and anchor your own show while making less than 15k, no OT.

Your personal car also doubles as a station vehicle.

[You might be...........]

........in a small market if?.......

Your live truck is a '67 Chevy Impala, station wagon ............and you've fashioned a coat-hanger and some tin foil into a transmission antenna. http://web1.carmel.net/ubb/medialine/NonCGI/smile.gif

[newsgal2]

1. If you want to anchor, they let you.
2. A weekend lead might be a car accident graphic
3. I liked the atari prompter comment. It's either that or a foot pedal, and you're really talented if you know how to operate both.
4. You string cable outside the station so it you have a live presence in a show.
5. You have to drive at least 45 minutes in any direction for a story
6. Sports covers gymnastics (nothing wrong with the sport at all, but you just don't see it covered a lot)
7. The scanner is a source of entertainment

[ahh...]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by smallmarketblues:
You go live at five, six and ten from a freaking arts and craft show!<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Let me guess...Odessa-Midland?

[How about...]

...your prompter has a conveyer belt.

...your scripts have carbon paper.

...you pull some file vo from 2 years ago, and it's on 3/4".

...you type your stories on a Swintec 800 typewriter.

...one of your reporters calls in sick and your day shift is cut in half.

...you come in at 2pm and all the stories on the board are ones you read at home earlier in the paper.

[Longer]

if "local" means anything within 3 hours driving time -- one direction

[Ahhh memories]

1. You're still on 3/4 or MII.

2. Christmas bonus: $20 Gift Cert. to Wal-mart

3. You're pay checks jingle instead of crinkle

4. You're ND is likely an on air staffer.

5. You on air guests are "encouraged" by
the sales department.

6. There's no cloverleaf in the city

7. The tallest building is the hospital

8. Your always late because of "the train"

9. You go live from the Super Walmart Grand Opening

10. You turn the scanner down in the newsroom because it's interupting whatever you are watching on TV during your "break".

[One more]

Even as a full time employee you work a second job just to reach poverty level and you are eligable for food stamps.

[Ted Bell]

Most of your co-workers are graduates of

1. Notre Dame
2. Syracuse
3. USC
4. Texas
5. UCLA

[You might live...........]

..........in a small market if?..........

............if everyone in town has slept with Daisy, including you! http://web1.carmel.net/ubb/medialine/NonCGI/smile.gif

http://images.google.com/images?q=tbn:JR_L8-AfPuMC:www.sheeplove.com/everything.jpg

[My_Turn]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by CG anyone:
-your CG op makes a nightly effort of misspelling words...and his/her success is determined by limiting the misspelled words to "only a few" each night...

Favorite misspellings:

-Wendesday, Anahiem, Pheonix, Millwaukee, burthday, socker, Bosston, Mane Street (as in Main Street), finnally (supposed to be finale), and resultz." <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

The resultz are inn from last Wendesday's socker match held on Mane Street on my burthday. The match between Millwaukee and Anahiem was held in Pheonix, and next year's finnally's will be in Bosston.

How many misspelled words can you find hear?

[Zeke]

-- When someone is fired from the Promotions Department, they re-name the Department.

-- 80% of the commercials on the station star co-workers, and the other 20% were done by the clients themselves on what looks like 1980's VHS.

-- Your webmaster doubles as a camera op. and gets paid the same.

-- You terminate your entire News Dept. and think it will help.

-- You promote infomercials as if they were a show.

-- The break-room TV doesn't even pick up your own station.

-- You take a 2-shot with a camera that's on a tripod.

[take it to the house]

Hey Zeke....I feel your pain bro....I know what it's like to do 50 million jobs and get paid the same crapy wages...
Man, I thought about applying at 49 a couple times, but it sounds like it was just as bad as the other stations in town....

[depressed]

Guy's...We are in the wrong business!! Reading all these posts just makes a person wanna cry!

[here's another one!]

The only channel you get on ALL the TV's in your station is your own.

(I would like to add that this topic has been one of my all-time favorites, and it's only depressing if you're still stuck in the triple digits!!!)

[Luxemturd]

1. You get paid cash under the table.

2. After you anchor the six, they make you go cut the grass at the transmitter.

3. Your station softball team is also the local triple A affiliate.

4. Your grandmother comes to visit, and they make her shoot a pack on how precious you were when you were little.

5. You have a part time ND, because they have to stay full time at the plant in order to get benefits.

6. They make you sign your contract in blood.

7. Your main weatherguy wears a cowboy hat while he delivers his "guaranteed" seven day forecast, which just happens to last 7 minutes.

8. You have to shoot your own standup without a tripod.

[Langolier]

...if your ND and Chief Photographer think it would be funny to have a girl call your wife at home and ask when her boyfriend is coming out to meet her.


...if you're the ND and your brother-in-law is the GM (well not anymore).

Man, this is fun! Can I go on?

[bah humbug]

i posted this on the other small market thread that mysteriously disapeared....

The GM turns the VOLUNTARY potluck xmas party into a MANDATORY staff meeting because no one will sign up to bring the assigned department casserole.

[honk honk]

your EP insists on sending a live truck because a road is being paved, then cuts-in with updates throughout the newscast.

[JB]

You are the Chief Photographer because you are the ONLY photographer, and the title almost makes it worth it.

[my moniker]

if your creative services/promotions department gets all their video from the news files -- and still gets paid for full time work!

[Zeke]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by take it to the house:
Hey Zeke....I feel your pain bro....I know what it's like to do 50 million jobs and get paid the same crapy wages...
Man, I thought about applying at 49 a couple times, but it sounds like it was just as bad as the other stations in town....<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>


You're dead on.

[tiny texas]

--according to police, your main anchor tries to buy drugs from an under-cover officer while driving a station news vehicle..after his release he calls the new photog to come shoot an investigative story on how the police are doing a sting, and gets fired soon afterward.

--photogs have to use trash-bags as rain covers

--your main anchor is also the news director/managing editor and takes off to go to the "races" all of the time

--your news director get really drung and drives himself home...you get called the next day to take him to the tire shop because he hit a curb and blew a tire

--the one live truck you have never works well, but you still do live shots even though the signal sucks

[foghorn]

you're pager runs off of gasoline...

the only people you can find to shoot your standups work at competing stations...and you help them, too

your News Director brags about being number 2!

you HAVE to work with a Mizzou grad

you tape your 10:00 news!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[hmm...]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by foghorn:
you're pager runs off of gasoline...

the only people you can find to shoot your standups work at competing stations...and you help them, too

your News Director brags about being number 2!

you HAVE to work with a Mizzou grad

you tape your 10:00 news!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Gee, why do I think this person is a newbie?

[parshooter]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Zeke:

You're dead on.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>


You unplug the coffee machine, and you're suddenly off the air..

[Magician]

-You shoot, report, write, edit, produce, assign, and forecast every bit of the newscast. But someone else does sports, so why are you complaining.

-Your news car is a leased Hyundai. That's car. Singular. Car.

-You have one field tape. It is 30 minutes long and you must use it for all eight of the vosots you have to shoot today. And hurry back, the show ain't gonna anchor itself.

-The newsroom computer (yes computer-- singular again) is referred to as that "humming magical typwriter/tv thing over there."

-You turn your 5pm scripts over and put them back in the printer to print the 6pm show on the flip side. Hey, saving paper.

[Zeke]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Magician:
-You shoot, report, write, edit, produce, assign, and forecast every bit of the newscast. But someone else does sports, so why are you complaining.

-Your news car is a leased Hyundai. That's car. Singular. Car.

-You have one field tape. It is 30 minutes long and you must use it for all eight of the vosots you have to shoot today. And hurry back, the show ain't gonna anchor itself.

-The newsroom computer (yes computer-- singular again) is referred to as that "humming magical typwriter/tv thing over there."

-You turn your 5pm scripts over and put them back in the printer to print the 6pm show on the flip side. Hey, saving paper.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Heh, sounds like some survival book.

[Feel your Pain]

--you truly believe that the entire station is held together by strategically positionned bubble gum and duct tape
--your new photog is the guy who took your order at the McDonald's drive through last week
--you have a feeling of relief if you get a vehicle with a working 2-way
--your engineers can't fix the backfocus on your camera but know how to reconstruct a carborator in 3.2 seconds flat

[DeskTV]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by JB:
You are the Chief Photographer because you are the ONLY photographer, and the title almost makes it worth it.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

[lion tamer clawd ballz]

i have actually been there .....not very gratifying unless you're talking to people that think that Mr.Food (syndicated food segment guy) is actually in the studio for every newscast, even though try have been watching when a tape of the segment went south

[lion tamer clawd ballz]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by JB:
You are the Chief Photographer because you are the ONLY photographer, and the title almost makes it worth it.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I have been there man.... not very gartifying huh???

[Other Way?]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by parshooter:

You unplug the coffee machine, and you're suddenly off the air..<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Here we have to brew coffee 1/2 hour before any newscast.

The coffe pot and the light grid are on the same breaker, coffee pot + lights on = blown circut....no lights for news.

[ms understood]

--The owner built the station by hand, FROM SCRATCH 45 years ago, and still has the same philosophy, 'Why buy one when we can make one?'

--You're invited to the school board president's wedding

--Even after 3 years on the job, people still say 'You ain't from 'round here, are ya?'

--And you say, Thank God, no.

--Your ND, Assignment Editor, Morning Anchor, and Chief Photog all went to elementary school together

--A "press conference" means you and the drunk guy that writes, shoots, and edits for the newspaper

--The Wal Mart Supercenter is still packed at 1 am Saturday morning, because there's literally nothing else to do Friday night

--The hot spot for teens on the weekends is a 2-block circle they drive around and around...and they come from hours away to do it

[Banjo Boy]

They are considering changing the name of your town to "Deliverance"

[23]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Banjo Boy:
They are considering changing the name of your town to "Deliverance"<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

You sure do have a pretty mouth, boy.

Now, squeal like a pig, LoserT.

[MgmtPuke]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by foghorn:


you HAVE to work with a Mizzou grad

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Dry yourself behind those ears and pay attention to that Mizzou grad...you just might learn something.

[You might be if...]

...you can get a great-looking live shot from the Vatican City but the ones from 5 miles away look like you're experiencing Russian jamming.

...your production department consists of one guy who does nothing but spots for the local hardware store.

...people keep asking "When is the swamp cooler gonna get fixed?"

...your studio has skylights up above and windows on the west side so you can save on lighting for your noon, 5 & 6pm shows.

...local motel has plaque outside one room that says "Buck Owens Slept Here".

[Redface]

Your local weatherman gets busted in a gay prostitution sting at an area rest stop.

Engineers use coathangers to hang up their coats and to extend the live truck mast.

Your desks are made from left over wood(?)scraps and are only big enough for the middle school students they thought would be working there.

There aren't enough chairs for everyone in the newsroom.

You either have to dodge beetles, mosquitos and gnats all summer long-in the newsroom-or suffer respiratory damage from breathing in the engineers homemade pesticide.

[Moved on Up]

While driving 80 mph on the Interstate to a story, you get a call from the Assignment Editor -- "Be careful! Your news car doesn't have brakes!"
The scary cars along with everything else wrong with the place added up to the 15 longest months of my life. God, that place sucked!

[120+]

Your news director was promoted from intern to morning producer to news directed in less than a year because nobody wanted either the am producing or ND job.

[Pepsi]

There is only one computer in the newsroom with internet access and you have to have the News Director come type in the password so you can log on.

There is a code you must first dial before making long distance calls so they can monitor your calls and talk time.

Your news units are work-model mini vans with sun-faded logos that are three generations old.

You have to pull over and use a payphone to answer a page from your EP/Assignments Editor/Main Anchor.

Your studio cameras are field model Ikygami's with a teleprompter hood on the front and a system of weights on the back to ballance out the weight.

Everyone in the building has a secret stash of sugar and coffee creamer because there is none in the breakroom.

Everyone in the newsroom (all three of you) stop in stunned silence when a tone goes out on the scanner.

All three of your editbays are in the same room. (The engineers no longer keep the tops of the machines screwed down because of the intensive maintenence required to keep them running)

Some bald headed guy with grown children pops into the station because he started there when he was a kid and laughs because the livetruck and tripods are the same ones he used back in the day.

[Working for Peanuts]

You might be in a small market if...

weekly a crazed whacked out senior citizen stops by the newsroom to discuss story ideas with whoever is unlucky enough not to be on a shoot, and when the news director sees him coming just sends him to your desk and leaves the room