Backstage

So, just what happens backstage?

Well... a lot actually!  But I don't want to get into all that, because our production staff would be much better suited to tell you all the intricacies of getting our newscasts on the air.  I want to tell you about one of the things I've found hardest to deal with so far: my hair.

Now, at first glance you may think... what is she talking about?  Let's discuss.  My hair is very thick and naturally curly.  It doesn't look so bad when I'm out on the town over the weekends.  But on-air, curly hair looks messy.  And in high definition, which WMBF News will broadcast in starting 08.08.08, it would look CRAZY!  So I need to tame the tresses.  After a month working in this climate... here is my recipe for straight hair:

Combine:

1 part showing up to work with wet hair

A quarter size of Brilliant Brunette Runway Straight Smoothing Milk (please stop reading if you are blond.  I don't know what you should do, as I have been a brunette my whole life.)

Add one paddle brush; one medium, metal barreled round brush plus one large, wooden barreled round brush; use all three intermittently during blow-dry.

Finish with a really hot flat iron and lots of hair spray.

This should last about three hours.  After that, use a rubberband and many bobby pins to hold style in place.  Another trusty alternative: A HAT!

Hopefully this helps someone out there.  If anyone has better suggestions... shoot me an email!  I'd love to hear!

  Paula Caruso | pcaruso@wmbfnews.com

First pictures

It's finally here! The first pictures available to the public of our new studio!

I'm very excited. We've been clamoring to open up the studio to all you folks, and now we can! We're officially two weeks out from our launch, and everyone here is getting anxious.

Take a look at the studio. This place is great.

Here's the sneak peek.

Timothy Donley | Internet Director | tdonley@wmbfnews.com

It is better than I imagined.

For months I have imagined what our newscasts will be like. I have planned, reviewed scripts, made spreadsheets, created schedules and then planned some more. I spent a week in Washington, DC creating our rundowns.  In my head, I thought I could imagine what our newscasts would look like. It is no secret that we have started rehearsals. At news time every day, the anchors sit down on the desk and we do a newscast.  However, I will confess, I didn't know EXACTLY what your new LIVE LOCAL LATE BREAKING station's newscast would look like-- until now.

It is better than I expected, and that is saying a LOT. I am a perfectionist. Annoyingly so, just ask my husband. However, our team exceeds my expectations.  From the on air talent, to the behind the scenes crew, I am not sure how we got lucky enough to hire this group of people. Everyone is working so hard.   You are liable to see people at the station at any hour.  Many of them are staying late or coming in early to get a sneak peek at what we will put on the air TWO WEEKS FROM TOMORROW!

I will be honest. We have tools you usually only see in big cities. Wait 'til you see them.

Jennifer | jdale@wmbfnews.com

It's getting closer...

As I was mic'ing myself up for rehearsals early this afternoon, I had a crazy flashback to when I was in the 2nd grade - and prepping for my first talent show.  I know it sounds like an odd comparison, but I will never forget how nervous I was to get up in front of my school with my cheerleading squad and do a dance to an oldies tune called "Hey Baby."

Rehearsing for our big launch, I guess you could say, made me feel the same exact way.  It was like I didn't know what to expect the first time around, but somehow I knew things would be just fine... and they were :)  I had about 8.6 million butterflies flying around in my stomach, but in the end, it's just us and the cameras.

I'm so excited for you guys to see our product once we get on air - I know everyone will LOVE it!  Everyone is pulling together and working their hardest so we can make our way to the top for news in MB and Florence, and I couldn't be happier to be a part of WMBF News.

Meghan Miller | meghanmiller@wmbfnews.com

Keeping Secrets

Keeping secrets isn't easy for me. It never has been. I am by nature a communicator, by education a writer, and by profession a journalist. My job is to make sure YOU KNOW what's going on in your community.  For the past few months, I have been consumed with getting WMBF News ready to go on the air. I have organized, interviewed and trained.  That last part is the secret that is about to make me burst. You see, I can't wait to show everyone in town what we have been training on.  When WMBF News hits the air  on 08.08.08-- that's three weeks from today, we will do it with equipment usually only seen in much larger cities.  We are the beneficiaries of some of the best storytelling tools in the nation.

    It is no secret that WMBF News will be the ONLY high definition station in the Pee Dee or Grand Strand. It is no secret that when we go on the air at four o'clock every afternoon you will get your first look at the big stories in our area.  What is a secret (at least for now) is the amazing selections of tools we will use to deliver the best LIVE LOCAL LATE BREAKING coverage.   Although I have been a producer for almost 10 years, for the past few weeks, I have been learning all about these tools.  I just want to tell someone about them. I just want to share them with the viewers whose trust we will have to earn, and who I hope will come to depend on WMBF News for the information they need. 

Maybe telling a little won't hurt. Our live trucks were delivered this morning. In three weeks, I will show you the rest. 

Jennifer | jdale@wmbfnews.com 

Lights, camera, action

Even though I'm on a conference call right now, I just had to blog about this CRAZY feeling that just came over me.

Where I am positioned in the newsroom is at the assignment desk with Kyle and our APs, and the desk is stationed higher up off the newsroom floor - where all of the other desks and actual the actual set sits.  I guess you could say that Kyle and I are sitting in the "hawk's nest."  Out of the corner of my eye, I just started seeing flashing, and low and behold, the set lights are being installed!

I'm sure you're probably sitting here saying, "Meghan.  Get a grip.  It's just lights."  Yeah, they're just lights that cost thousands of dollars a piece, but now it is REALLY hitting me:  we are going to be on-air in three weeks.  I feel like jumping for joy, running a marathon, screaming and yelling with a big smile on my face and my fists in the air like a little kid and doing a crazy dance ALL at the same time.  This might not be a big deal to some people, but when you see your childhood dream starting to come true in front of your eyes... it almost makes you want to cry some tears of joy.

I can only hope that everyone has these moments in their life - because these past two months are filled with memories that I will never, ever forget.  It's go time.

Meghan Miller | meghanmiller@wmbfnews.com

A little about a lot...

As a journalist, you have to know a little about a lot.  For example, since I started my career many years ago, I have learned more about how the goverment works, economics & weather than I ever learned in any class.  I like to think I pick up things pretty quickly, but there is a gap in my education.  I don't know a lot about putting STUFF together.   When I was growing up, if I got something new, my dad put it together.  My job was to hand him the tools.  Need a Phillips head screwdriver?  What about needlenose pliers?  I am your girl.     Now that I am grown up, if I get shelves or anything else that needs assembling, my husband puts it together. He's an engineer, figuring things out is in his blood.  However, I really could have used some of their knowledge this week.  When we moved into our building we all moved our own computers.  Taking it apart was no problem.  I am a master at unplugging things.  I also didn't have a problem carrying it from our temporary offices to the studio,  especially since Jason (our morning anchor) helped load it and unload it from my car.  But when I sat it on my desk, it was just a mass of wires.  Wires connected to speakers, wires connected to keyboards, and wires not attached to anything at all.  My mouse was even dangling off the edge desk, swinging back and forth as the mass of humanity rushed to their cubicles.   I dug into the mound of cords, determined to be set up and ready to write news.   A few minutes later, I was still trying to untangle my cords.   Enter Laura Thomas. Laura is one of our reporters.  She grabbed the computer tower and climbed under the desk. 5 minutes later, I was up and running.  In fact, by the afternoon, she had set up several computers.   We started telling her she should moonlight on the "Geek Squad"!

It's great to be in our building.  However, someone noticed the countdown clock hadn't been set up in the new office. Greg, another reporter, took care of that. 27 days to go 'til your LIVE LOCAL LATE BREAKING station hits the air.

Jennifer | jdale@wmbfnews.com

   

Feels like home

We have finally settled into our new home on Frontage Road, but things are less than quiet around the WMBF Newsroom.  As Kyle said this morning, most of the newsroom is "crippled" because only certain areas of the  newsroom have internet - but that hasn't stopped us from shooting and producing the news that will matter the most to the Pee Dee and Grand Strand.

Our launching date is inching closer and closer, and I'm sure everyone would attest that there are probably 1.3 million things to accomplish before we turn the switch and go live.  Meredith, Catherine, and Shari are huddled at Jennifer's desk learning the ins-and-outs of ENPS- the software that will allow them to produce newscasts and rundowns,  Rob and Jamie are embodying the "french maid" role as they dust and vacuum off the weather center, the engineers are running around trying to get the internet and phones hooked up, and our photographers and VJs are out on assignment.

Everyone at WMBF is working hard so that we have successful launch - and a great one it will be! 

Be sure to check out the newest Vlog from News Director Matt Miller as we show you the craziness of "moving day" on WMBFNews.com.

Meghan Miller | meghanmiller@wmbfnews.com

Counting down

I visited WMBF News for the first time in March, when I came up to interview for the Executive Producer position.  At that time, our building on Frontage Road was little more than a shell. In fact, Matt (our news director) made me wear a hard hat while showed me where everything would be placed. When we went back to the temporary office to talk about what Raycom wanted to accomplish, there was a countdown clock on the wall.  It read 154 days.   

When I returned a little more than a month later for a quick visit to listen to our research project the drywall was up.  The countdown clock read 127 days.

By the time I moved to Myrtle Beach at the end of May, there was paint on the walls.  I went to work at our temporary office on Grissom Avenue. The countdown clock read 72 days.

Tomorrow, I will go to work and start packing. Our building is finally complete and we are moving in.  When I left work this afternoon, the countdown clock said 29 days.

In 29 days, for the first time in history, Myrtle Beach & Florence will have its own NBC affilitate.

In 29 days, WMBF News will launch its first newscast. 

In 29 days, we will be able to share with you what we have been planning for months.

Your LIVE LOCAL LATE BREAKING station is ready to serve the Grand Strand and the Pee Dee.  Thanks for letting us be a part of this beautiful area.

Jennifer| jdale@wmbfnews.com

 

MOVING DAY!

My morning started off to a sluggish start (all thanks to a night of extreme circuit training at the gym the night before), but my mood quickly changed when the Internet Director, Tim, came into one of the "makeshift newsrooms" and told me that him and I will be moving to the station tomorrow!

This, my friends, is glorious (and I mean absolutely GLORIOUS) news...  and as I am typing this blog, Ted just sent out the official TCO notice to our staff.

This week has been a crazy week for everyone working at WMBF - our research consultant, Bill, from SmithGeiger, is in town to conduct seminars and meetings about the research that helped to fuel the "makings" of the station and our brand - WMBF News - LIVE, LOCAL, LATE BREAKING.

I'm not one for all of the scientific mumbo-jumbo (hence why I am a communication and journalism major), but what Bill presented to us amazed me.  In order to better launch our station, SmithGeiger surveyed a portion of our market to see what kinds of news is "missing" in the market - they wanted to get down to the nitty-gritty of what people wanted to see in a newscast.  They surveyed on topics ranging from hurricane and weather coverage to consumer and area growth reports to see what local television stations are failing to cover in our market - and how we can build upon that to create a stronger presence in our market.  Bill also showed us the areas WBTW, WPDE and WIS succeed in, and how we can succeed in those areas as well.

As for the rest of the week, we will be busy moving from the temporary offices on 48th and Grissom to our new station on Friday and will be finishing up on our consulting sessions with Bill.  BUSY, BUSY, BUSY! 

30 days until your new LIVE, LOCAL and LATE BREAKING station hits the air! 

Meghan Miller | meghanmiller@wmbfnews.com