By Remy Raitt

What these people fail to recognise is that broadcast journalists don’t just work in front of the camera, they are out hunting stories, conducting research and interviews, writing scripts and then at the end of it all presenting it to large audiences on screen.

“I’m a news and politics reporter and while I’m often able to interact with and interview interesting, influential people, ‘glamorous’ isn’t a word I’d use to describe my work,” says Sukhdeo Raath. “It’s constant hard work. And, if I’m being perfectly honest with you, I despise having to wear make-up for camera each day – it’s my least favourite part of the job.”

American news anchor at Fox 29 Alan Gerstel agrees about the hard work that’s required to thrive in this industry. “We work long hours, the pay is average, and you have a lot of stress. You really have to want a career in this business to succeed in it.”

Behind the camera

Executive producer of CCTV Africa Matt Edwards says TV journalism is very similar to other mediums of the profession, “it’s just much more concise”. “Whereas a print journalist would have 300 words to get a story across, a TV journalist would have 30 seconds,” he says.

“The filming and production aspect is a very small part of the job. The majority of my time is spent researching, networking and planning. I think TV journalists spend significantly more time just working on logistics than their print counterparts,” Edwards explains.

Sukhdeo Raath says TV journalists need to be versatile. “Being a broadcast journalist for web means being a Jack of all trades. I identify stories to cover and then contact and book guests to be interviewed in studio. I do my own research, write my own scripts and present my own shows. I then load those videos onto our site and share them via News24’s social media channels. It’s exhausting but rewarding."

Post production fallacies

Edwards says the six little words “you can fix that in post” present a massive misunderstanding.

“There’s a big misconception about the production process and how much we can manipulate what is filmed. Yes, content is always manufactured to a certain extent, like all media, but TV journalism does not have the facilities to make you more attractive or sound better and post-production should be as simple as possible.”

He says broadcast is much more honest than other forms of media, “because you’ve got to work with whatever is in front of you, it’s hard to prove that someone misquoted you when there’s video evidence,” he says.

Haters ‘gonna’ hate

News journalists who present online or on TV aren’t just subject to the stresses that come with tight deadlines and difficult sources, they are also under constant public scrutiny.

“Because my broadcast work is hosted online, our viewers are able to interact with my reports via our site’s comments section and social media channels,” says Sukhdeo Raath. “Most of the time the feedback is positive and helpful. Unfortunately, internet trolls are unavoidable in my context and I do receive some off-colour comments.”

Edwards says it’s important for people to understand that TV journalism is not like other TV. “I’m here to give you the facts, not to market you or your product," he says.

What are some other misconceptions TV journalists might be subject to? Have you had any related personal experiences? Let us know in the comments section below.