How long is too long a story? In commercial TV news, the worry is that viewers will get bored and and click the remote to find a snappier pace.
"Keep it short. You can tell the story of World War Three in a minute and 30 seconds." I heard that more than once from newsroom supervisors.
When I started in TV news in 1977, a 20-second "soundbite" was the norm. Often there were longer 'bites--I recall the late Kauai Mayor Eduardo Malapit getting one minute and two seconds on the 6 pm news to explain, haltingly, his handling of a hotel controversy.But PR professionals teaching at paid media workshops would say: "You've got a very small window to make your point. Make it your single overriding objective to say what you need to say in 20 seconds!"
Forget 20. And banish the thought of 1:02! Now the average is more like eight seconds. Once in a while, it's four seconds--just long enough to let the newsmaker say, "I'm voting for the bill," or "I didn't kill my wife," just long enough to flash the speaker's name "super" on the screen.The reporter or anchor paraphrases the gist of the story, to keep the story short and to keep the show moving.
Me,I prefer to hear speakers tell their own stories. And that's why it's a pleasure to have a role in PBS Hawaii's newest local program, Long Story Short, featuring interesting people sharing stories in conversation.
How a person tells a story is sometimes as revealing as what he or she says. You get a sense of character along with the content.
Long Story Short premieres tomorrow night at 7:30 on PBS Hawaii, with Maui recording artist Kealii Reichel, and will air every Tuesday night with a different guest. Not all the guests will be well-known, because some of the most intriguing people in Hawaii are not household names.
Like all regular PBS Hawaii programs, the half-hour program isn't interrupted by commercials. But you know what? Even though it's a heckuva lot richer than eight seconds, or 20 seconds, even a half-hour isn't long enough when the stories are compelling.
i remember an english teacher telling us that our term papers had a very specific length requirement:
'as long as it takes to get your point across. that's all. just like a phone call.'
which is kind of funny since he was talking to a room of teenage girls...
Posted by: cw | October 16, 2007 at 07:22 PM