This is somewhat entertaining....we are in the run up to Katie Couric's takeover at CBS this fall, and I understand that the entire program will be made over for her debut. That leaves NBC's hand unrevealed. Will Nightly News see big changes, tweaking, or no changes? I remember reading a while back that their set needed to be rebuilt to take full advantage of high definition broadcasting, so I wonder if that is planned for sometime this year?
Does anyone else know any details? The competitive landscape of American news may get slighly more interesting as these programs evolve around the new personalities that host them.
This is somewhat entertaining....we are in the run up to Katie Couric's takeover at CBS this fall, and I understand that the entire program will be made over for her debut. That leaves NBC's hand unrevealed. Will Nightly News see big changes, tweaking, or no changes? I remember reading a while back that their set needed to be rebuilt to take full advantage of high definition broadcasting, so I wonder if that is planned for sometime this year?
Take a look at the CBS Evening News, and notice the restrictive shots they have been using for the past month or so. It is chromakeyed, as the set has been struck to allow work on Couric's new set to begin. With regard to NBC, the Today show is currently (or will be soon, can't remember) across the road in a temporary studio while the normal studio is being upgraded for HD. Perhaps Nightly News will follow after that.
As for ABC, I notice it is still billed as 'World News Tonight' on the BBC News 24 EPG listing, and the presenters still call it 'World News Tonight' when linking into it.
This is somewhat entertaining....we are in the run up to Katie Couric's takeover at CBS this fall, and I understand that the entire program will be made over for her debut. That leaves NBC's hand unrevealed. Will Nightly News see big changes, tweaking, or no changes? I remember reading a while back that their set needed to be rebuilt to take full advantage of high definition broadcasting, so I wonder if that is planned for sometime this year?
Take a look at the CBS Evening News, and notice the restrictive shots they have been using for the past month or so. It is chromakeyed, as the set has been struck to allow work on Couric's new set to begin. With regard to NBC, the Today show is currently (or will be soon, can't remember) across the road in a temporary studio while the normal studio is being upgraded for HD. Perhaps Nightly News will follow after that.
As for ABC, I notice it is still billed as 'World News Tonight' on the BBC News 24 EPG listing, and the presenters still call it 'World News Tonight' when linking into it.
I can assure you all now that the changes to the CBS Evening News will be both short term and long term. Yes, the entire set - including the studio newsroom - has been struck and as I write, the new set is being built, the newsroom reconfigured. From the CGI demonstrations and the artwork I've seen already, the look will satisfy all of those amongst you have felt (like myself) that broadcast was in need of a refresh. In addition, the music and graphics package has been recommissioned and this will be applied across the news division's entire programming. 48 Hours, 60 Minutes, CBS Morning News, CBS Up to the Minute, CBS Face the Nation and the Early Show are all undergoing a makeover in the course of the next few months to present a coherent brand. In addition, you should look out for one significant change in the network's approach to news that, scheduling wise, will make it look more like BBC One...
At the same time, though, much of the work that Bob Schieffer has done in the last 18 months will be expanded upon with Couric arriving at West 57th. The level of interaction between the correspondent and her will mark a significant departure from the usual broadcasts, and the hope is that more insight will be provided in a more accessible manner (trust me, accessible does not, in this instance, mean 'dumbing down'). The intention is that the anchor will be just that - an anchor, throwing back and forth between the correspondents, asking questions and providing the correspondent with more opportunities to discuss stories. That said, when major stories do break, Couric will be broadcasting on location, but will only do so when absolutely necessary. The correspondents in the field are those with the most experience and knowledge and shoudl be left to do their jobs.
For a few weeks now, the Evening News has been broadcast from a smaller studio adjacent to the main broadcast suite. The set is chromakeyed, but using technology that was developed in the last 6 months. Because of this, the 'set' has a more natural feel to it, in comparison to those seen elsewhere or even when I've seen chromakeyed sets when I return home to Blighty. For the record, the newsroom is currently operating out of an area that was previously a restaurant at the Broadcast Centre and from the remaining office suites utilised by the news division. Also, remember that the production desks used by the networks to coordinate and manage the broadcasts (variously called the Rim, the Fishbowl, the Horsehoe, etc) are located elsewhere. These are still functioning properly.
With regards to the other networks, NBC Today is currently utilising an outdoor broadcast facility at Rockefeller Plaza that has been used in the past. With Meredith Veira taking over from Katie Couric this fall, the entire set is also being struck, the music and graphics pacakge also being redesigned. Aside from this, you should expect a new look to the Nightly News and NBC's other news broadcasts in the coming months to complement this.
ABC hasn't long changed it's news studio facilities and, according to colleagues that work there, is in two minds as to whether or not to progress with plans to relaunch. Certainly, the thoughts at the moment are that given the problems swapping over from Peter Jennings to Bob Woodruff/Elisabeth Vargas and then to Charlie Gibson, it does seem like a bit of mish mash and uncertainy. To demonstrate its commitment, it is quite likely that a new look will be implemented, both at World News and at Good Morning America.
So there are some big changes afoot. Reaction to the news that Katie Couric was taking over at CBS was surprising. Once John Roberts left for CNN, it was almost certain that Couric would take over, so why people expressed surprise or concern is strange. What is more significant is that Couric does have the right credentials. In the first instance, news is in her blood, given her family background. Moreover, she has been in the industry for 25 years now, tackling one of the news division's most awkward postings - the Pentagon. Admittedly, there is a lack of foreign news reporting that many look for, but in 15 years at NBC Today, she has secured interviews others have not, covered THE stories of the two decades and to believe that she does not understand the news, nor fully appreciate the background, the causes, the circumstances surrounding events is a joke. Two more things to note - how many of the PAST anchors of the network newscasts began on the morning shows? Brokaw, Cronkite, Gibson, Jennings, McGee, Walters, Chanellor, Schieffer, Reasoner, Stahl, Wallace... And secondly, when Peter Jennings was first appointed anchor of the ABC Evening News, many noted his inexperience in foreign reportage. After a hiatus, he returned to the anchor chair. Need I say anymore?
It's nothing too scientific. It's based around the computers and the servers that handle the images, etc. The most difficult part of chromakey (so I'm told by those in the know two floors down) is the handling of lighting and shadowing. The new programming makes much of this easier to handle, interacts with the lighting in the broadcast suite to compensate and avoids the problems with shadows that previous tech has encountered. If I have to, I'll try and get hold of someone more in the know about all of this and have them explain it.
In addition, you should look out for one significant change in the network's approach to news that, scheduling wise, will make it look more like BBC One...
Really? Is it a move to put the national news before the regional news? Or are we talking a 10 pm newscast?
Schiwing posted:
Aside from this, you should expect a new look to the Nightly News and NBC's other news broadcasts in the coming months to complement this.
Does that mean that John Williams's music is out then? And do you know if the familiar ABC News music will be changed too?
Could the presentation all be fresh and new within a few short months? That would be surprising but, considering the dynamics of it, it's probably best for all three to do it together.
Also, I haven't heard much of how NBC feels about Brian Williams's performance? I mean, they brought him on before they knew what would become of the other two anchors, so there was probably some reactivity built into their plans. However, given that he faces new, younger counterparts at ABC and CBS, is there any intention to alter his image in order to adapt to what has become a younger news anchor pool? I'm asking this because there seems to be something of the classic 1950s Chet Huntley-David Brinkley look about him. Compare his face, tone and mannerisms to those of anchors past in the opening titles and there is little difference. He is, in short, a young man that an older audience can easily identify with...but is that the demongraphic on which NBC News's focus will continue?
How much of the changes in the role of the anchor at CBS are the doing of the News division itself? I get the impression that Leslie Moonves's office was involved after the scandal that ended Dan Rather's career, and this makes me think that a lot of the innovation in the style of news reporting in the USA occurs when producers who are not news producers get involved in creating news. Roone Arledge's contributions via ABC News in the 1970s come to mind, as do Ted Turner's contributions via CNN in the 1980s. Neither of these fellows had prior experience in news production, but both developed programs that took advantage of new technology and new reporting methods and styles that were ultimately very successful and lasting. Maybe we can look forward to something similar coming to life in the next season.
From the clips at TV Ark I just find all US news programmes basically the same - they all seem to have virtually identical theme tunes!
Re: CBS - by anchor only going on location when "neccessary" I guess what they really mean is they'll only go on location within America and won't leave the country!
