VRT News Project

In Theory: Why Change

VRT News Project

y y gSeparate Newsrooms?

Wim Willems/13 December 2007

VRT News Project. In Theory

11. Reasons to Change

2. Baseline

3. Input and Output

4. Decisions

5. Theoretical Model

1. Reasons to Change

But the VRT just called me!Ah e’ e got a jo rnalist in Darf r! Wh didn’t o tell s?Ah, we’ve got a journalist in Darfur! Why didn’t you tell us? That’s rubbish. Why do our radio colleagues bring a story like that?like that?Could you please print your planning so that we know what you’re doing?The Flexicart has broken down once again.Has anyone seen the tape on our new government?Could you go and sit somewhere else? We need this place now.

1. Reasons to Change

But the VRT just called me!

Ah we’ve got a journalist in Darfour! Why didn’t you tell us?Ah, we ve got a journalist in Darfour! Why didn t you tell us?

That’s rubbish. Why do our radio colleagues bring a story like that?

Could you please print your planning so that we know what you’reCould you please print your planning so that we know what you re doing?

The Flexicart has broken down once again.

Has anyone seen the tape on our new government?

Could you go and sit somewhere else? We need this place now.

1. Reasons to Change

But the VRT just called me!

Ah we’ve got a journalist in Darfour! Why didn’t you tell us?Ah, we ve got a journalist in Darfour! Why didn t you tell us?

That’s rubbish. Why do our radio colleagues bring a story like that?

Could you please print your planning so that we know what you’reCould you please print your planning so that we know what you re doing?

The Flexicart has broken down once again.

Has anyone seen the tape on our new government?

Could you go and sit somewhere else? We need this place now.

2. Baseline

Together when possible, separately when necessary.

Joint news gathering. Separate news production.– Single point of entry: 6666, nieuws@vrt.be– Internal VRT news wire– Internal VRT news wire– Coordinate double check– Medium-specific output

3. Input and Output

Input: Responsible for newsgathering, original ideas.

Output: Responsible for bulletins.

Input: interior desk, foreign desk, sports department

Output: radio news, tv news, online

4. Decisions

Who decides? Input or output

What to do? News selection

Who does it? People

How to do it? Angle of news story

How to produce it? Production means

Who communicates with reporter?

5. Theoretical Model

Input suggests, makes offers, research, planning

Output decides, makes choices, has the overview

Output communicates with reporters, short communication lineslines

Input implements and facilitates decisions taken by output

Everyone is responsible for news and ideas.

5. Theoretical Model

OUTPUT INPUT

Radio

TV

Interior Desk

Foreign Desk

Online Sports Dept.

VRT News Project

In Practice: Does it Work?

VRT News Project

Wim Willems/14 December 2007

Bad timing?

Project delayed several times (originally 01/12/06)

Start: 25 June 2007

National elections : 10 June 2007

July & August : holidays

3 September 2007: Restyling Radio1

7 January 2008: Restyling TV Shows & Website

> 6,000 days of trainingy g

Tensions

Why change? Everything goes fine…

Video kills the radio star. Radio journalists will become desk journalists

I don’t want to do video editing! A journalist shouldI don’t want to do video editing! A journalist should concentrate on content.

Tensions

Tensions

New roles for new people

Privileges are lost

Equality in the newsroom

Old habits die hard

A day’s work disappearing in cyberspace

We want our tapes back! The system doesn’t work.

Coincides with more limits to growthg

Coincides with new corporate structure

The Model in Practice

Output starts producing much earlier than Input starts thinking Output takes the leadthinking. Output takes the lead.

Less meetings, more informal, 2x/day coordination meeting

But does it work?

Organisation

- Staffing intake desk, TV reporters, current affairs…

Planning- Planning

- One Man Band (Radio) not possible

- Communication between News and Current AffairsCo u cat o bet ee e s a d Cu e t a s

- Sometimes training not adequate

+ Central intake desk

+ VRT Newswire

+ Communication on News floor

+ News coordination

+ Multi skilling

Technology

Technology

- Architecture too complex- Still under construction- Reliability- Radio On Air (Schedplayer)- Subtitling (Swift Lite)

Desktop editing (resistance training EasyCut)- Desktop editing (resistance, training, EasyCut)+ One Newsroom Computer System (iNews)+ Stability Online system (Polopoly)+ Simultaneous access video speed (Ardome)+ Simultaneous access video, speed (Ardome)+ Instantaneous access to archives (Ardome)+ P2 cameras+ TNG+ Efficiency

1. Infrastructure

Conclusion

We know more. We miss less. We are faster.

Together we are strongerTogether we are stronger

New developments possible

– Radio: Feyten of Fillet– TV-News:TV News: – Digiplus– Website: http://www.vrtnieuws.net/cm/de.redactie

( )But we still have a long way to go (organisation, technology)

Conclusion

Conclusion