Oh nice! Wasn’t able to go inside myself but from the footage it’s pretty speccy!
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Local 10 News updates gone on break for Christmas and the New Year - back on Jan 9
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Updates from Friday night:
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As hinted on last Friday’s bulletin (Tasmania HQ just uploaded it this morning), SCA Spencer Gulf News is on holiday mode for five whole weeks. (not kidding) Doesn’t make a difference, since SCA holds a TV monopoly there. News production resumes 16 January.
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But so much local news happens over the New Years holidays. Why would SCA rest regional SA and Broken Hill’s only news service?
The simple answer is that with only one VJ in each town (most if not all who are not locals), they need to take holidays at some point and most would opt to go home for Christmas so who do they get to make the bulletins?
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We need the break to recharge our batteries after a busy year. And production doesn’t resume on the 16th, that’s what the bulletin will return to air, but in the previous week, us as 7 Spencer Gulf News will be getting stories and filming.
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Well, that’s a well-deserved break for them. I hope the whole staff enjoys Christmas with family and friends behind the cameras and mics.
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5 weeks off is a bit of a stretch to be honest, probably forcing the reporters to use them now so they don’t have to deal with Annual Leave during the year. I am surprised this bulletin has survived to be honest, each year it slips further and further into obscurity and the quality has complete bottomed out. It’s like a captainless ship. All these young reporters fresh out of uni given no support and just left to their own devices, stilted and dull presentation, and on scheduled where nobody sees it. Even that end of year message was bizzare. SCA would be better to just run updates in the region and divert some resources into Tassie, which will need it ahead of 9 launching.
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You can always email us your feedback at: SGT-News@sca.com.au
And please don’t make unnecessary speculation about us being “forced” to do anything.
We all have annual leave that we take throughout the year and none of us reporters are “fresh out of uni” as you assume,
I have 12 years experience as a Journalist alone and we all have a fantastic level of support from our management team in South Australia and Tasmania.
We’re all Video Journalists, and while our camera-work might not get to be as dynamic as a professional seperate cameraman can do, we are able to write, edit, report, research and film two packages per day to an audience that does watch us.
Suggesting we axe the only local tv bulletin for the Spencer Gulf and Broken Hill is a disservice to all of us that work tirelessly in some of the most isolated areas of television.
After 5 months at 7 Spencer Gulf News, I’ve done about 170 reports, broke news, and reported on stories that even the ABC haven’t covered.
I’m proud of my work, I’m proud of my collegues and I’m proud of my Captain Madeline Kerr
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Well I don’t live or travel in the region anymore so I don’t have any skin in the game, am an observer from afar.
I don’t doubt how hard you and the video jounros work, I can’t think of another bulletin that expects so much yet provides such little in way of resources, but the fact is that SCA lets the show flounder. Moved to a silly timeslot on a multi channel, no investment in the presentation.
Go back a few years and the show was a bit creative, all the reporters ended up in metro markets and there were fresh faces coming through, it’s a shadow of what it was under Casey or Frasier or Tim or Julie Snook. I mean watch that end of year message and compare with this one: Redirecting... or this one: Southern Cross News SA - Friday December 15 - YouTube
Why is nobody sitting down with the reporters and talking to them about voice delivery? Why is nobody having a word to the reporters about lining up their shots better so there’s not a giant hand with a mic taking up a third of the screen? Like that’s just me as a casual viewer picking these things up.
The social media presence has fallen away, it used to pump out alot of stuff with local alerts and stuff, we used to check it for weather warnings, now a few random stories go up, sometimes.
As I say I don’t doubt how hard the journos work, but the support from above clearly isn’t there. And if the company isn’t going to invest in it a bit in terms of resources or training or even some new graphics, then you have to wonder why they’re still bothering. It’s good they do, when compared to the alternative, but you have to think about how viable it is. SCA have cancelled better bulletins in this in the past as we all know.
Re the shutdown… if a company gives staff 5 or 6 weeks of leave but forces them to take 4 at Christmas then I mean the maths says it all. But I apologies for assuming you were a recent graduate, I think it’s great that someone with experience has taken on one of these jobs… but needs to be more of it.
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It really does beg the question: what does this bulletin achieve? Is it what wins them the ratings or advertising money?
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it’s also a disservice to the viewers.
SCA should be credited for maintaining a bulletin where it is not obliged to do so AFAIK, and as regional news outlets have been brutally cut back or axed all together in more populated markets.
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They don’t measure ratings out there, because SCA runs 100% of commercial TV.
Pretty sure they have the old style diary system in place in those markets where Regional TAM does not have their panels.
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They could all do with some (additional) training and extra resources, but you have to remeber these bulletins aren’t expected to be as polished as the metros, or even WIN. They have always been a bit of a ‘play ground’ for ‘green’ journalists to get a taste and feel for broadcast journalism and to build a resume and showreel. Without these bulletins, there would be less opportunities for young journalists to get a foot in the door.
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There is also no reason why WIN or even Seven Regional formally Prime Television couldn’t do the same in the regions they don’t already have bulletins.
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The reason is money. There’s no money to be made in producing news in those regions.
Making the news isn’t free, the affiliates aren’t in a position to piss their ever-dwindling finances away. TV everywhere is on a slow decline in the age of streaming, regional areas more so.
It’s heartbreaking, but it’s the unfortunate reality.
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What does the bulletin achieve?
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We’re the ONLY local TV News service for the Spencer Gulf and Broken Hill
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We provide a vital service in times of disaster and emergencies (re my reporting on the Port Augusta floods a few months ago)
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We are able to travel around a region that is very isolated and doesn’t get as much attention
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We provide jobs and experience for Journalists who have (and will) go on to great things
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People WATCH us, our audience cares about what we do and we care about them
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On the topic of the Spencer Gulf bulletin, it does need to be said, and this isn’t a criticism of anyone on here but the camerawork isn’t up to scratch. I can appreciate that they VJ’s have a fair bit going on and do their best, and should prioritise the storytelling over cinematic shots, but it really couldn’t hurt to have some improved footage over there, even if it’s stock.
SCA should get a camo over there, even if it’s only for a few weeks to help out the VJ’s or at least teach some of them how to do some of the basics, can’t say I’ve ever seen a 3 point lighting set up shot or a nicely lit/exposed Vox Pox on a bulletin for example.
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