What it takes to be a TV news anchor

FAYE D'SOUZA

Commits alumna FAYE D'SOUZA (Class of 2004) is the assistant editor of personal finance at ET Now in Mumbai. She also anchors the "Investors' Guide" show on the channel. Here she gives television news aspirants helpful advice on what it takes to be a news anchor:

I will not pretend to know how to become an anchor on a television news channel; I am just a product of a series of events in my life that brought me here. Even so, I don’t consider myself an “anchor” as much as I consider myself a journalist — presenting the show I work on is just one part of the job I do.

Nevertheless, I have put down some pointers that I hope might help those of you who see anchoring as a career choice.

There are two parts to being an anchor: content and presentation. Let’s start with the former.

CONTENT
There are several people who might lead you to believe that looking good is enough to become an anchor, and it probably is, but it’s not enough to keep the job. If you watch television news regularly you will know that the strongest and most respected anchors are those who are experts in their respective fields, specialists. Looks fade, knowledge and experience don’t.

READ at least seven newspapers every morning and scan updates on the internet right through the day. There is no excuse for being ill-informed in this business. Other than news, it helps to read whatever you can get your hands on. History, literature, the classics, the contemporary, art, music, even culinary books. It helps tremendously to be well-informed.

WRITE: Make a habit of writing your own scripts and run-downs. It will build your credibility as an anchor.

RESEARCH: Always be prepared. Find out everything there is to know about the guests on your show, about the stories you lead into, and the subject matter of your show.

PRESENTATION
Don’t confuse presentation with good looks. As I have noted above, looking good is temporary. But diction, clarity, and enunciation are not. Thankfully there are some tricks you can use to work on your presentation:

READ OUT LOUD: When you are reading those seven newspapers every morning, read them out loud. Become comfortable reading aloud in front of other people. If you are embarrassed by the sound of your own voice or you have trouble reading fluently, then anchoring is not going to come easily to you.

RECORD YOUR VOICE: We all think we know what we sound like, until we hear our voices played back. Make notes of the areas in which your voice falls short, the words you are having trouble pronouncing, and the problems you have with breathing while you read. Once you have a handle on your problems, speak to your teachers about them. Commits has the good fortune of having an accomplished voice trainer in none other than Ranita Ma’am, the dean, who can work wonders in this area.

WATCH YOURSELF: Make many tapes of yourself anchoring, watch them later when you are free to be your greatest critic. Make notes of the problems with your body language, facial expressions, and posture. Remember: an anchor needs to build a relationship of trust with viewers; a fidgety, nervous anchor will have no luck.

BE WELL TURNED OUT: Make sure your hair is always done, your face clean, and your clothes neat. Especially when you are not in the studio. You have to see yourself as on-air material before anyone else does. Start to look after your appearance now.

UPDATE: On November 1, 2015, Faye D'Souza launched a new channel for the Times Group, "Magic Bricks Now".

FAYE D'SOUZA IN ACTION ON MAGIC BRICKS NOW.

UPDATE (December 13, 2017): Earlier this year, Magic Bricks Now was rebranded as Mirror Now, a general news channel helmed by Faye D'Souza, who has been drawing praise from all quarters for her superb performance as journalist and anchor. Yesterday TV news legend Barkha Dutt tweeted this photo (see below). Her post read: "One for the album. I brought together Salma Sultan, Dolly Thakore, myself and @fayedsouza at @WeTheWomenAsia #WeTheWomen."

THE PHOTO BARKHA DUTT TWEETED ON DECEMBER 12.

Also read:

• What it takes to be a TV news reporter-1

• What it takes to be a TV news reporter-2

• What it means to be a sub-editor at a TV news channel 

• Want to know how to have a successful internship at a TV news channel? Read this post.  

UPDATE (May 4, 2015): Veteran journalist Aakar Patel wrote an interesting piece recently in Mint Lounge on TV anchors he has interacted with. Read the article here: "The art and whimsy of being a TV anchor".

What it means to be a TV news reporter-2

SUSHMITA CHATTERJEE

Commits alumna SUSHMITA CHATTERJEE (Class of 2008), who was the Aaj Tak/Headlines Today correspondent in Bangalore, discusses some crucial aspects of television news reporting: 

Well, my junior Neha Mehta has already given you all a good idea of what it means to be a TV news reporter. While she has covered most of the tougher aspects of television reporting, I thought of sharing some personal tips that I learnt as a reporter with Aaj Tak/Headlines Today.

Yes, TV reporting is tough, but I sincerely believe if you’re passionate about it, you will love it. I most certainly did!

Okay, so you are passionate and you would love to do stories that can change someone’s life. What next? You have to keep some crucial aspects in mind if you are planning to become a TV news reporter. Here are a few pointers.

1. YOUR STORY IS YOUR BABY — TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR IT

“Wow! I have the power to do things that my other friends can’t!” “I have access to places where no one else can think of entering!”

When you are new to TV news reporting, these are some of the thoughts that can cross your mind. But remember, however clichéd it might sound, with power comes great responsibility. Also remember that what you say on screen as a reporter does hold great importance. Your story might change the lives of many, but if it is portrayed wrongly it can not only ruin your channel’s reputation, it can also put your career in jeopardy.

So, treat your story as your own baby. Research your idea thoroughly. Find out all possible angles for your story, figure out whom it can impact, and, if possible, speak to all of them. After you have collated all your information, fight for your story to go on air. Do not let anyone scrap it from the channel’s run-down if you know you have the content to back your story.

2. PITCH FOR STORY IDEAS THAT WOULD INTEREST YOU

When planning your story, think of yourself as a viewer. Would the topic interest you? If it doesn’t then most likely it will not impact your viewers either. Remember that your story should appeal to you first! Read through newspapers, journals, magazines, watch other television news channels, look through public data and crime reports to find a peg that grabs your attention. And then weave your story around it.

SUSHMITA CHATTERJEE IN ACTION FOR HEADLINES TODAY.

3. BE NOSY, BE THICK-SKINNED

When I say this, I don’t mean it in a negative way. During my career as a TV reporter, I realised being nosy was one of the most important qualities you need to acquire. To give you an example: I got a half-hour special story — ‘Boy Chained by Family’ — by talking to a friend who went shopping and saw this boy in one of the shops. Remember, you can get your story from the most unexpected person — just by talking with them.

Poking into other people’s lives comes in handy for TV news reporters at times :-). Ask questions! Sometimes you might get bad-mouthed for asking questions people term as ‘stupid’. But as Ramesh Sir says, No question is stupid. As a TV news reporter, you always need to keep these golden words in mind. That’s what I mean when I say be thick-skinned, do things that will impact the end-result: YOUR STORY!

4. KNOW WHEN TO STOP WHILE TAKING SOUND BITES

It is difficult, but you have to learn to do it. A lot of times you will meet people who can go on talking, though it might not add any value to your story. You, as the reporter, should know when to stop them after you have got your desired sound bite without making it evident. The best way is to tell interviewees in the beginning about the story line and discuss the contents of the sound bite with them.

But there could be cases where some people reveal a lot of details while they are talking. If you expect such a thing, do not stop them. The best way is to reduce the duration of each sound bite by asking questions in between. This would make the task of selecting crucial sound bites easier for you.

SUSHMITA CHATTERJEE, ALONG WITH OTHER ALUMNI, WAS AT COMMITS EARLIER THIS YEAR TO JUDGE THE SECOND SEMESTER TELEVISION NEWS BULLETINS.

5. MAINTAIN CORDIAL RELATIONS WITH

REPORTERS FROM REGIONAL CHANNELS

Regional channel reporters can be a great source of information. I say this out of experience. If you are working for a national news network, always remember that a regional news reporter would have much more access to different areas as compared with you, often because of the sheer fact that they are more in number. Regional channels have specific reporters for each beat, but since you are a national news reporter you focus on three to four different stories in a day. Hence, maintaining cordial relations with regional news reporters will help you get to know some stories which might make it to the national network, too.

6. DON’T FORGET TO FOLLOW-UP ON YOUR OWN STORIES

This is what most people forget to do. When you do a story and see it on air, don’t just forget about it right after. Every story you do can give you a new perspective a few months down the line. It can throw up another new angle. Hence, following up on stories is very important to keep your story ideas flowing.

7. STAY HEALTHY!

You might not get this tip from any book on journalism. But this is very important! Yes, as a reporter you might never get a chance to eat on time because of the numerous assignments you will be working on! But try carrying your food along, or at least something to munch on, be it biscuits or bananas. Only if you are healthy will you have the strength to run behind your stories!

These were just a few of the things that might make your dream of becoming a TV news reporter easier. I enjoyed my stint with television for two years. And I hope a few of these tips will help you carve a better future too. It’s absolutely true that the feeling of seeing your story on air after a hard day’s work is worth all your effort. All the best!

• Sushmita Chatterjee now works as an Instructional Design Analyst for Accenture's Content Development Centre in Bangalore.

• FURTHER READING: Sushmita Chatterjee's Commits junior NEHA MEHTA (Class of 2009) gives us her views in "What it means to be a TV news reporter-1". 

• ALSO READ: What it means to be a sub at a TV news channel, by Neha's classmate, DIPANKAR PAUL and What it takes to be a TV news anchor, by FAYE D'SOUZA, Class of 2004.

• Want to know how to have a successful internship at a TV news channel? Read this post.

What it means to be a TV news reporter-1

Commits alumna NEHA MEHTA (Class of 2009), who was the Times Now correspondent in Bangalore, gives television news aspirants an insight into the challenges of reporting: 

What is it like to be a television reporter? (Hmm… welcome to hell, people! Oh, I'm kidding! Or am I?)

Reporting is one of the best and, at the same time, one of the most challenging jobs in television journalism. TV news reporting has various aspects to it; the actual reporting is only one of many.

It may all look easy on the small screen, but in reality, it can be totally frenetic. To get your face on TV for those 60-odd seconds in a day you have to work like a maniac for the rest of the 23 hours and 59 minutes. But once your story is on air, the feeling you experience is something out of this world, especially when you know your story can change the lives of many.

There are at least three things to keep in mind if you want to be a successful TV reporter.

AWARENESS OF YOUR SURROUNDINGS: It's extremely important for you to be aware of your surroundings — people, places, and, of course, information. Keep an eye on everything possible; sometimes the least interesting people can give you the most important story of your life. Also, please read newspapers EVERY DAY and, most important, watch other news channels, even regional news channels. This will help you to gather a lot of information that you can use when the need arises.

SOURCES: Your best source of information might not be someone at the head honcho level; often, to your surprise, it can be the ubiquitous chaiwala who sits around the corner. I was primarily a political reporter and I would get much of my information from the chief minister's driver, gunman, watchman… never from his PA. So make as many friends as possible because 'har ek friend zaroori hota hai'.

NEHA MEHTA BROKE MANY STORIES ON TIMES NOW.

SCRIPTS AND PTCs: Your script should have an interactive feel to it and you should always “write to the visuals”, this will help to explain your story better. Don't try to tell your audience too much, nor give them too little; at the same time, don't ever consider your viewers to be simpletons — don’t try to give them information which, more often than not, they would already know. Don't keep asking them questions in your story, probably once is more than enough. Your story always has to be future-looking; otherwise why will your viewer come back to your channel?

Coming to PTCs or the Piece to Camera (also referred to as the P2C), please remember this is your only claim to fame on a news channel. So be presentable, well-groomed, and confident. Your looks can sometimes add credibility to a story.

ON THE "PERSONAL" FRONT: All this was very technical. Now for some “personal” advice. It is very important that you be yourself. It takes a lot of hard work to be a part of a news channel. You will have to work insane hours and days without leave and, of course, appreciation comes once in a light year.

When you have a story in mind go and find out everything about it. Think of ways you can shoot and script it. Think about how this story can be beneficial to people around you; after all, the press is the fourth estate and we journalists carry the baton of responsibility for society. You can get vulnerable in such surroundings but it depends on you how you hold on to your ethics and values. It's very easy to sensationalise news and sometimes your news channel might ask you to do so, but I think it's you who needs to decide where you want to draw the line.

THE TIMES NOW EXPERIENCE: As for my experience with Times Now, it was the best reality roller-coaster ride of my life. Sure, I had my ups and downs but who doesn't?

I enjoyed my stint as a TV reporter because after working hard on my stories I would see them on air and that would give me the best feeling ever, something I don't think anything else can give me in my life.

Not a single day in my life was identical once I joined Times Now. Every day was a different challenge; there is so much pressure when it comes to deadlines that I was constantly hounded for stories and ideas and for months I wouldn't get a day off. Come rain, come shine we had to work and deliver. That’s when I would think back to my days at Commits, the days when Ranita Ma'am would tell us students to pop a pill and get to work. There is no escaping, folks. :). Or, as Ramesh Sir would say, c'est la vie.

• Neha Mehta, who moved to Kolkata after marriage, is now the executive creative director of D'Oh-Boy!, the city's first doughnut cafe. 

ALSO READ:

• What it takes to be a TV news reporter-2

• What it means to be a sub at a TV news channel

•  What it takes to be a TV news anchor

• Want to know how to have a successful internship at a TV news channel? Read this post.

What it means to work on the desk at a television news channel

Commits alumnus DIPANKAR PAUL (Class of 2009), who worked on the Times Now news desk in Mumbai, gives television news aspirants an insight into the responsibilities of the subs: 

The sub has mainly one broad role in a TV news channel: Writing news so that the anchor can read and the viewer can understand.

That said, there are numerous other responsibilities that lead up to the anchor reading the news out aloud on air.

DIPANKAR PAUL WORKING THE NIGHT SHIFT AT TIMES NOW.

BREAKING NEWS

During a 'newsbreak', a sub is usually required to operate the ticker. The ticker is a place where the viewer sees the latest news — in real time.

More often than not, in such a breaking news situation, information comes in via text messages, or off the screen of another channel. And both are prime sources for mistakes. The text message may have a typo (for example, while a reporter may have intended to say "1 killed", he may inadvertently type 11, or 12), so it's a great idea to call the reporter and verify. And taking news off another channel is OK only if you can verify with either your reporter, or if at least another channel puts out the same news.

However, that said, in the (highly competitive) world of TV news, where time is of the essence, mistakes do get made. The only thing to do then is to put your hand up, make the correction, and move on. Just ensure it never happens again.

SOUND BITES

A substantial part of a sub's day goes in listening to press conferences, and other bites (collected by reporters on the field). Most bites are lengthy and rambling; some are full of propaganda, especially if there's a political party involved.

The trick is to listen to the entire bite, and then select which part you think is most effective in adding value to the news at hand. At the beginning of a career, the sub is not expected to make calls on selecting sound bites. The senior editors will usually decide which parts of a press conference or a bite will go on air. However, as experience grows, that responsibility falls entirely on the sub. In fact, the sub is the unseen face of a TV news channel. (More on this later.)

CUTTING A BITE. COMMITSCION AAKASH VERMA (CLASS OF 2004) IS ON THE LEFT.

GRAPHICS

Today, all TV news screens are an explosion of graphics. There are 'top bands', 'story slugs', 'infosupers', full-frame graphics, 'stamps', and a plethora of other variations of text on screen, all of which serve one purpose: Informing the viewer.

A lot of importance is laid on graphics because the general assumption is that people watch news with their TV on 'mute'. So, all information that would otherwise be in the script is pasted on the screen.

WRITING THE NEWS
I call this the most important, and the most neglected, duty of the sub. A sub spends so much time on selecting the perfect bite, getting it cut and published, and on creating graphics that there is little time (or so the perception is) to think through a script and write.

But at the end of the day, all frills aside, the job is all about processing the news and presenting it to the viewer. Language must be crisp, precise, devoid of ALL subjectivity. A sub must remember that there aren't a lot of words to play with (a story is usually not longer than three minutes; the bites, PTCs, and graphics will take up close to two minutes, leaving 60 seconds or 200 words to actually write).

FINAL TOUCHES AS A NIGHT SHIFT GETS OVER WITH THE FIRST BULLETIN OF THE DAY.

It is important to know that a TV news script is not the same as a newspaper article. There is absolutely no scope for 'flowery' language. Viewers don't sit with a dictionary when watching the news. The prose must be conversational; it must never be preachy, and never look to incite the viewer: Present the facts as they are; let the bites do the talking.

Most TV channels, though, are likely to have a defined stance (pro-government, or whatever), and this can seep through into the scripts being aired; the subs' challenge, therefore, is to keep their integrity intact.

DIPANKAR PAUL (SEATED, EXTREME LEFT), ALONG WITH OTHER ALUMNI, WAS AT COMMITS EARLIER THIS YEAR TO JUDGE THE SECOND SEMESTER TELEVISION NEWS BULLETINS.

• Also read: "An excellent example of an interview-based local feature".

• Further reading: What it means to be a TV news reporter-1; What it means to be a TV news reporter-2; and What it takes to be a TV news anchor.

• Want to know how to have a successful internship at a TV news channel? Read this post. 

Controversial remarks on Karan Thapar's show by new Press Council chief

I caught the fag end of Karan Thapar's interview with the new chairman of the Press Council of India on CNN-IBN on Sunday and I was dumbfounded at what I was hearing. It seemed to me that Justice Markandey Katju did not have a very high opinion of the media; he appeared to be particularly incensed with television news channels.

So I was glad to read in today's Times of India that the Editors' Guild of India has been very critical of his remarks on Devil's Advocate.

Here is the Editors' Guild press statement in full (reproduced from ToI):

EDITORS' GUILD SLAMS KATJU’S COMMENTS

Editors' Guild press statement in response to remarks by Press Council of India chairman Justice Markandey Katju:

The Editors' Guild of India deplores the ill-considered, sweeping and uninformed comments on the media and on media professionals by the new chairman of the Press Council of India, Justice Markandey Katju. Mr Katju has been making negative statements on the media ever since he assumed office, but his comments in an interview to Karan Thapar on CNN-IBN, broadcast over the weekend, touched a new low.

The Guild notes that Mr Katju thinks the media divides people on religious lines and is anti-people. He objects to TV channels that focus on cricket and other subjects that he disapproves of. He believes that journalists have not studied economics, politics, literature or philosophy, and he has a poor opinion of the media and media people (some of whom, as it happens, are members of the Press Council that Mr Katju chairs).

The Guild notes that Mr Katju, after expressing such sweeping negative sentiments, has asked the government for draconian powers to impose fines on the media, to withdraw advertisements and to suspend the licence to publish or broadcast. The Guild strongly opposes such powers being given to the Council, especially a Council led by someone who it would seem wants to invoke “fear” in the media.

The Guild wishes to draw attention to the fact that its attempt to engage in dialogue with Mr Katju has been rendered futile by Mr Katju, who however continues to express his tendentious and offensive views. The Guild wishes to remind Mr Katju that the Indian media is as diverse as it is vigorous, and that while it has drawbacks and shortcomings, on the whole it contributes to the strength of the Indian system.

Press freedom is a bulwark for the Indian people against the onslaught of people in authority, and the Guild will firmly oppose the assumption of any draconian powers by a Press Council that was created with an altogether different purpose. Further, as the very name of the Council suggests, only the print media comes within the Council’s ambit. The issues and drivers of the electronic media are such that they call for separate regulation. Therefore the Guild firmly believes that the Press Council should have its brief limited to the print media, as it is at the present.

UPDATE (November 3): Today's ToI carries this report on broadcast editors also criticising the new Press Council chairman: 

BROADCAST EDITORS CRITICIZE KATJU

New Delhi: After the Editors’ Guild of India, the Broadcast Editors’ Association (BEA) on Thursday criticized Press Council of India chairman Markandey Katju for making “irresponsible and negative comments” about the media. It said such statements from the PCI chief were “extremely disappointing”.

Taking strong exception to Katju’s remark that “media professionals are of low intellectual calibre with poor knowledge of economics, history, politics, literature and philosophy,” the BEA said it “shows scant knowledge” of the great journalists the country has produced.

It said that in a democracy, criticism was welcome against institutions by individuals and representatives of institutions as that gives a fillip to self-corrective process. TNN

FURTHER READING:

• Mint editorial — "Educating Justice Katju".
• Asian Age column — "Much of what Justice Katju says is not new".
• The Economic Times on Sunday column — "Journos of the country, learn philosophy".

UPDATE (September 5, 2012): "The Hindu’s readers reveal Katju’s infinite bluff" (from Outlook editor Krishna Prasad's blog)

TV news is young, full of vim, and unafraid...

...says Outlook in its 16th anniversary issue, and I believe it.

Headlined "The under-30 gospel", the article, written by Anuradha Raman, brings us up to date on the current scenario:

News on TV, if you haven’t noticed, is young and restless. Its young reporters are everywhere, demanding answers for everything, 24x7. It’s a world of hysterical PTCS (piece-to-cameras), of soundbite warriors, of cacophonous debate. It takes high energy levels and single-minded professionalism to cope with the rigours of TV reporting. It can be taxing on the not-so-young.

ARNAB GOSWAMI, RAJDEEP SARDESAI: ALL PRAISE FOR GEN NEXT.

There are interesting quotes about the young ones from some of the big guns of television news, including Arnab Goswami and Rajdeep Sardesai. Arnab is quoted as saying that most crucial editorial positions at his channel are manned by the young and he’s amazed at the passion and enthusiasm they display for news, while Rajdeep "sees enormous energy in young members of his team, combined with the willingness to stalk a story for hours without end".

Read the article in its entirety here.

Why is India TV what it is?

This is the television channel which was launched with the best of intentions, as Rahul Bhatia writes in a recent issue of Open. But somewhere down the line, after it failed to make any headway with viewers or advertisers, founder Rajat Sharma, of Aap Ki Adalat fame, decided on a change in strategy. "It was becoming a question of survival," Sharma tells Bhatia. "If I perished what would I do with my idealism?"

Bhatia also quotes extensively from an unnamed former bureau chief of India TV, according to whom the place was a haven for journalists, but it struggled to maintain its ideals and, as Bhatia writes, "slowly, quietly, the bureau head believes, the rules disappeared".

And then all sorts of bizarre programmes began to be telecast on the channel:

The former bureau head says, “One day they picked up a YouTube clip and ran it, saying, ‘Shaitan ki aankhen. Dekho shaitan ki aankhen’ (Eyes of Satan, watch the eyes of Satan). They made a half-hour show around the clip. Woh dikhaya. Log dekhte rahe. Baad mein kuch pata nahi chala (We showed it. People couldn’t stop watching it).”

Read this cautionary tale to understand why India TV is what it is today: "The world according to India TV".

Larry King: 50+ years in television

Do you agree with the perception that you ask soft questions? -- Michael West, Copenhagen

Larry King (pictured here at the mike in the late '70s): Don't agree with it. I'm not there to pin someone to the wall. If I were to begin an interview with [speaker of the House of Representatives] Nancy Pelosi and say "Why did you lie about torture?" the last thing I'll learn is the truth. I'd be putting them on the defensive to make me look good. At that point, they're a prop. To me, the guest is not a prop.

To read some more questions and King's perceptive answers in a recent issue of Time, go here.
 
And go here to absorb the seven lessons from King's life.

• Photo courtesy: TV Guide