December's a good time to see what's on the other side of the fence

Several years ago I was doing the traditional Salvation-Army-kicks-off-kettle-drive story and I was grabbing a soundbite with the public relations person. This was turning into an auto-pilot story until she said something that surprised me.

"We might not have enough money to pay our bell ringers this year."

"Huh? You guys pay bell ringers?"

"Well, we don't have enough volunteers, so we have to pay people to ring the bell."

I was floored. I mean, who knew? I simply assumed all those people you see at supermarkets and malls were just nice people who volunteered. The story suddenly took a different turn. Then we got into a discussion about why certain large venues didn't have bell ringers. Again, not enough money, not enough volunteers.

So naturally, guilt took over and I offered to ring the bell for a few hours.

A few weeks later I was assigned to do it at a super Wal-Mart, and, as luck would have it, the weather was absolutely miserable. Cold and pouring rain. The store manager took pity on me and let me bring the bucket inside.

Then I wished I had a camera with me.

The people who were well dressed and obviously not broke wouldn't make eye contact with me when I said, "Merry Christmas." The people who looked as if they were one step above being homeless stopped and put something in the bucket.

Anyway, two hours, a little over two hundred bucks in miserable conditions. I walked away with a new insight into human nature.

A few years later we worked out a deal with the Salvation Army where our staff would take turns for an entire day at one location, ringing the bell. I think it had the same effect on a lot of people.

We've all done stories on helping people during the holidays, but many times we really don't take the time to understand a different point of view. What's it really like to be poor? What's it like to run the Salvation Army and not have enough bell ringers?

Just some thoughts for a slow news month. Then again, it might not be a slow month for someone with a different point of view.

A Black Friday package I'd love to see

ANCHOR INTRO: Well, it's Black Friday, and that means all of you were up before the crack of dawn looking for Christmas bargains. Reporter Joe Goodhair set his alarm clock to see what all the fuss was about.

TAKE PKG

Nat sound: Door sliding open at store

Voiceover: And they're off! Shoppers kicked off the holiday season at four this morning, hoping to save big bucks while getting away from their relatives.

Sound Bite Shopper: Microwaves are 110 percent off! They'll actually pay me to take them away!

Voicover: But giveaways like that aren't the only attraction. The season's hottest toy was out there, the elusive Tickle-Me-Cabbage-Patch-Barbie-That-Hooks-Up-To-Guitar-Hero-And-Has-An-iPhone-Ap.

Nat sound: Parents wrestling on ground for toys

Sound bite Parent: I took two cheap shots to the ribs and broke a tooth, but I got one.

Standup bridge: Despite the fact that my News Director made me get up in the middle of the night, it wasn't a total loss. I scored these blank DVDs for two bucks, which should save me a ton of money during resume tape season.

Voiceover: Store owners say the madness is worth it, but the starting times are getting earlier each year as each store tries to outdo the other.

Sound bite Manager: I was sad to see that the store across the street opened at two a-m. So next year we're going to open on Wednesday.

Voiceover: So Black Friday did what it was supposed to do... put stores in the black... while filling two minutes on an otherwise dead news day. Now for more of our time-killing team coverage, let's throw it to Susie Fembot who can tell us about the economic impact.

Hometown applicants have an advantage

Ever notice how so many stations tend to promote the people who actually grew up in that market? There's a reason for that.

They're not going anywhere.

Awhile back we ran a poll on dream jobs, and "getting a job in my hometown" was the winner. More so than cracking the network, more people want to work in their hometowns; they already have roots, and getting a job back home would put the seemingly endless task of job hunting to rest.

News Directors know this, and that's why it is always more appealing to hire people who grew up in the market. If there are two people applying for a job and they're dead even in talent, the one who is from that market will more than likely get the job.

News Directors, for the most part, hate the job hunting process. The huge boxes of tapes, the endless interviews, countless phone calls to check references, and the crapshoot of actually hiring someone. By hiring someone who wants to come home, a ND knows he won't have to worry about that person leaving in two years.

It's one less person to hire.

Several years ago a friend of mine got a job in his hometown and told me, "I'll never have to job hunt again." That was ten years ago, and he's still there.

Recently one of my clients got a job in her hometown, and I'm sure she won't be making any resume tapes either. How did she do it? She laid the groundwork for the past year, visiting stations on her trips home, keeping in touch with News Directors, sending tapes every few months. NDs got to know her face to face, knew she wanted to come home, and saw her talent grow each time she sent a tape.

That's why I always tell you guys not to waste those trips home for the holidays. Visit your hometown stations, let them know that coming home is your ultimate goal. You may not find an opening right away, but you'll be in the back of the mind of a ND when the time is right.

Another myth exploded: people are getting hired during sweeps

Well, I'd never seen this before, but apparently the time honored rules of television news job hunting are totally out the window.

Two of my clients got jobs during sweeps.

In the past (the very recent past) you'd never see this. You wouldn't dare bother a News Director during sweeps, just as you'd never call a News Director at 4:30 in the afternoon.

But now the rules have changed, as some NDs are spending time during sweeps interviewing and hiring.

What's changed all of a sudden? Not sure, but considering the knee-jerk tendencies of owners and GMs, it's possible that a few NDs are trying to get the jump on their counterparts by snatching up the good people.

Or, what might have happened is that stations are so short staffed that people who gave their notice in October will be leaving their stations stretched even thinner for the holidays, and the NDs want to fill those openings quickly.

Doesn't matter. It's a good thing.

Don't look for ratings to validate your efforts

Very often sweeps will end and be followed by up to three weeks of tortuous waiting. You'll see your ND get even twitchier during this period, and that often trickles down to the staff. You start to second guess yourself. "Did I do enough? Was my work good enough?"

And if the ratings that come in aren't good, you sometimes blame yourself.

Ratings are often not a validation of quality.

Sure, it is nice to be number one, but there is plenty of quality work being knocked out by people working for last place stations. And lots of garbage being produced by people at first place stations.

Even if you're under a new regime and have made wonderful improvements, it often takes a year or two to reflect that in the ratings.

And sometimes it never makes a dent.

Ratings, like everything else in this business, are subjective. And viewers are slow to change, doing so at a glacial pace.

The only thing you can do is continue to put forth your best efforts every day, not just during sweeps. As long as you do that, you won't have any regrets if the ratings aren't good.