Required reading: The Declaration of Independence and The Constitution

In light of the Massachusetts election, we've heard more in the last few days about the parliamentary procedures of Congress than ever. We've seen lots of experts on the subject who can iron out what seem to be a whole bunch of scenarios available to those who make and pass laws.

We've seen experts, because most reporters have never even read our nation's two most important documents.

Trust me, it won't take you long. Our founding fathers were certainly not long winded, nor did they have word processors at their disposal to take things to ridiculous lengths. They also didn't pack things with legalese and write bills more than two thousand pages.

Trust me, it will be worth the read, and perhaps open your eyes about some of the stuff that happens in Washington.

If you're still interested, you might start looking into the procedures by which bills are passed. Never has that knowledge been more important. It's imperative that those in the news business become more familiar with the way our country works.

The magic formula

My other half is a math teacher who deals with absolute formulas. Two plus two always equals four.

That's not always the case in television news when it comes to your career.

People are always looking for the magic formula in order to find that perfect job. After one of my clients gets a good job, new clients frequently ask me, "Can you do for me what you did for her?"

There's no way to answer that question, because every person, every situation is different.

In math terms, you guys are all mutually exclusive.

This coming Sunday, the Jets will play the Colts. The Jets always seem to choke late in the year, the Colts seem to do so when they rest their starters after they clinch a playoff spot early.

History means nothing in this game. It is mutually exclusive.

Your career is the same. There is no reporter with your exact style, with your look, your background, your experience, your voice, your demographic. You may see someone who seems to be a carbon copy, who has made it to the top, but that doesn't affect you.

There is no magic formula. An agent cannot wave a magic wand and produce a job for you because said agent got a job for someone like you. I can teach everyone the same set of skills, and people will end up in very different situations.

When looking for a job, when planning a career, the only thing that matters is you. Sure, your classmate may have shot up the ladder while you're stuck. Someone you know may have just gotten some dumb luck. And some dumb people may just be lucky.

I've known very talented people who never got a decent break and crash dummies who ended up in a major market or a network. Life's not fair. Broadcasting is really not fair.

So what's the best thing you can do? Do your best. Trust in your abilities. Work hard. Send out your tapes. Hopefully you'll find the right formula that works for you.

Your timetable is not on a News Director's agenda

Several years ago I went on a job interview. The day was a Friday, and as the ND dropped me off at the airport, he told me he'd call me with a decision one way or another on Monday.

On Monday I jumped every time the phone rang. He never called. I figured he may have been busy, major breaking news might have happened in his market, or he just forgot.

Tuesday, no call. Same with Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. By the weekend I figured he'd moved on to someone else and was like many NDs who hate to make calls and deliver bad news. So I moved on as well, focusing on the other opportunities out there.

Three weeks later I got the job offer.

What happened? Well, in a News Director's life all sorts of things can delay the hiring process.

The one thing you have to keep in mind is this: Unless filling your position is absolutely critical by a certain date, that task sits on the back burner. Job hunting may be first and foremost in your mind, but filling the job you want might be number 22 on the ND's priority list. There are numerous things that can push back that phone call you were expecting; breaking news, newsroom drama, orders from the GM to drop everything you're doing, orders from corporate to drop everything you're doing, etc. And in many cases a ND who absolutely loves your tape might get overruled by the GM or corporate.

So if you're promised a call and it doesn't come, it doesn't "mean" anything. Trust me, a ND has a hundred things on his or her mind at any given time. The ND is not sitting there all day long thinking about one job applicant.

Relax and stop watching the phone. You may still get the job, but it rarely comes in the time frame you expect.

Random thoughts: I got your global warming right here

-Now I'm all for saving the environment and try my best to recycle everything. I walk to the drugstore when the weather is nice instead of driving. But when you live two miles from the Florida border and the thermometer reads 12 degrees, when there's ice in the driveway, when I have to dig out my upstate New York wardrobe... well, maybe it's time for a story or two on weather cycles and mini-ice ages. Those stuck for a package might hit the local weather service.

-If you want to know how to conduct a long-form interview, check out the MLB network's interview last night of Mark McGwire. Bob Costas did a nice job of listening, then following up. He also knew when to shut up and let the natural sound of McGwire sniffling carry some weight in the interview. (Yes, you can have nat sound during a sound bite.) Pausing and letting McGwire twitch while his voice cracked was a good example of listening rather than waiting to speak, and also letting the video do the talking when McGwire was not.

-Is it just me, or is Morgan Freeman mispronouncing Katie Couric's last name during the CBS Evening News intro?

-If you've ever had some yahoo stick his face in your live shot, check out photobomb.com. You're not alone.

-A few clients have recently gotten job offers that come without contracts. Hopefully this will become a trend, and it shows some real outside-the-box-thinking by News Directors who have figured out this is a good idea.

-If you're ever asked to call a News Director in regard to a job opening, don't sound scared. Use your normal reporter voice. I'm amazed at how afraid some people sound when they call me for advice for the first time. News Directors are people, just like you. (Although in many cases I admit that's a real stretch.)

Teases are not just a producer's responsibility

Never before has the importance of teasing a story become more apparent. The NBC-Jay Leno situation proves it.

I know. You're thinking, "But Grape, that's just the lead-in to the newscast. What does that have to do with me as a reporter?" Ah, Grasshopper, you have much to learn about the care and feeding of the average viewer.

Years ago, before remote control, children were assigned the duty of "channel changer." Generally the kid would sit on the floor close to the TV while parents directed said child to "see what's on." If said child had gone to bed, parents who were too lazy to get up and change the channel generally stuck with the newscast that followed what they were watching.

But now we have hundreds of channels at the tips of our couch potato fingers, so you might think the "lead in" is not as important as it used to be.

You'd be partially right, since it's no big deal to switch to the newscast you want. But the thing about lead-ins is that they offer the best opportunity to tease stories.

And that's where you, as a reporter, come in.

Back when I was a rookie I didn't think about teases. When the anchor (we had no producers) asked for tease video, I generally cut the first piece of b-roll that was cued up.

Now put yourself in the producer's shoes. You haven't been out with the crew and you have no idea where the money shot might be or what piece of video might be used to really sell the story. So you might be inclined to do what I did... cut the first piece of b-roll that's cued up.

It takes very little effort to become part of the tease production. When shooting a story and when looking at your video before writing the script (I sure hope you're doing that) keep an eye out for something that might make a viewer stick around after the lead-in. Then tell the producer about it, or cue it up when you hand that person the tape.

You may think, "What's in it for me?" Well, higher ratings mean you keep your job, and your company might have money to give you a raise. (Ah, now I've gotten your attention.)

See, all this stuff with Jay Leno isn't solely about a great lead-in... a lot of it has to do with promotion.

And a successful promo only works with help from the reporter.