"We are working through the financial issues, but are advocating the hiring of a Morning Edition producer, even before we might hire another reporter."
One universal problem we found is that Morning Edition is under-resourced at stations, particularly when you consider the impact and importance of the program. Few stations have a Morning Edition producer. In many cases, one person acts as host, newscaster, reporter, producer and editor.
The MEGS team believes that since Morning Edition is the program that reaches the largest number of listeners on stations, it deserves the attention of a full time host and a producer.
Some of the ways a producer can improve the quality of the program:
- Advocate for airing only the best station-produced content on Morning Edition - the program with the largest audience.
- Ensure that local production and editing match network quality.
- Make sure that any local newscast stories are written to be relevant for "today."
- Pull audio cuts for forward promotion of local features and add tags to the feature promoting availability on the station's web site.
- When bumping national segments for local material, insure that those aired are the "best" features available.
While negotiating budgets and licensee bureaucracies can be challenging, several MEGS stations have made hiring a producer their primary long-term goal.
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