The best(and sometimes the worst) promos around! Have something you'd like to share? Email me at donsjr@hotmail.com
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
WBAL 11pm Image
I guess industry standard for shooting investigative reporters still requires smoke machines in the background.
9 comments:
Anonymous
said...
Close, but not there yet. I get what they're going for with music track and camera style, but the investigator shots we're amateurish and came off cheesy and fake. Do all investigator reporters talk to their sources in the middle of the night in a dark alleyway? I don't think so...
I’m sorry but this is as clichéd, formulaic, a news promo as I’ve seen anywhere, let alone a market the size of Baltimore. This spot lacks authenticity, realism, and thus effectiveness. The copy is as clichéd as it gets…’live reporters, digging up the stories that matter to you….’ As opposed to what, dead reporters!! And digging up the stories? Really? The shots of the reporters on scene are as stilted as is their copy. I’m sorry, I know it’s best to say nothing if you don’t have anything nice to say, but really… Paul Greeley Pgreeley98@aol.com
*This* is their promo response after losing two full books in a row? If you want to be number one again, you have to cut through the clutter, not add to the noise.
There's nothing in this 30 seconds that's memorable. The only thing even sorta memorable is the "exclusive I-Team reports"--something that obviously would separate them from the competition. That should be its own promo, though, not a 5-second afterthought in this one.
Yea, if they've lost two books in a row, this isn't going to cut it.
Research talking points-driven promos only work when you're number one. The simple reason for that is the majority of research talking points (breaking news, weather where you live, big investigations, etc) are not unique enough product differentiators to encourage a switch and only serve as brand reinforcement. A number 2 station needs growth, not just reinforcement.
Obviously, if you're already the market leader, you don't want to segment away the audience you have, so you stick with talking points or to a differentiation strategy you put in place when you were #2, 3, or 4.
I'd hate to have worked that hard on the production of a spot that was that forgettable. Photography, lighting and editing was top notch. The dolly shot of the fire with reporter and firefighter walking and talking was amazing, too amazing. If it was hand-held I might have believed it wasn't staged. Everything was too clean and too perfect to be believable. The alley lighting was cool, but who actually interviews sources in an alley? Shoot an undercover stakeout in the alley but not an interview. Pretty Production though, but not realistic and not memorable.
Let's not beat up too hard. I agree with all the comments, but the one thing that's been notably left out: Perhaps its exactly what management expected. Given that possibility, let's applaud the solid production and perhaps give the producer a break on the script.
Very typical WBAL. Also I think the staged emergency scenes and "Dimmly lit meeting with the mysterious informant in a smokey brick ally on the bad side of town" are mass-produced for Hearst station promo shoots, are they not? All Hearst stations send their talent to a location where they all take their turns in the scenes. Assembly line production. That's what I heard years ago.
9 comments:
Close, but not there yet. I get what they're going for with music track and camera style, but the investigator shots we're amateurish and came off cheesy and fake. Do all investigator reporters talk to their sources in the middle of the night in a dark alleyway? I don't think so...
I’m sorry but this is as clichéd, formulaic, a news promo as I’ve seen anywhere, let alone a market the size of Baltimore. This spot lacks authenticity, realism, and thus effectiveness. The copy is as clichéd as it gets…’live reporters, digging up the stories that matter to you….’ As opposed to what, dead reporters!! And digging up the stories? Really? The shots of the reporters on scene are as stilted as is their copy.
I’m sorry, I know it’s best to say nothing if you don’t have anything nice to say, but really…
Paul Greeley
Pgreeley98@aol.com
Hmm. I wonder what the musical direction was in this piece? Can't QUITE put a finger on it....
Cliche' much?
*This* is their promo response after losing two full books in a row? If you want to be number one again, you have to cut through the clutter, not add to the noise.
There's nothing in this 30 seconds that's memorable. The only thing even sorta memorable is the "exclusive I-Team reports"--something that obviously would separate them from the competition. That should be its own promo, though, not a 5-second afterthought in this one.
Yea, if they've lost two books in a row, this isn't going to cut it.
Research talking points-driven promos only work when you're number one. The simple reason for that is the majority of research talking points (breaking news, weather where you live, big investigations, etc) are not unique enough product differentiators to encourage a switch and only serve as brand reinforcement. A number 2 station needs growth, not just reinforcement.
Obviously, if you're already the market leader, you don't want to segment away the audience you have, so you stick with talking points or to a differentiation strategy you put in place when you were #2, 3, or 4.
I'd hate to have worked that hard on the production of a spot that was that forgettable. Photography, lighting and editing was top notch. The dolly shot of the fire with reporter and firefighter walking and talking was amazing, too amazing. If it was hand-held I might have believed it wasn't staged. Everything was too clean and too perfect to be believable. The alley lighting was cool, but who actually interviews sources in an alley? Shoot an undercover stakeout in the alley but not an interview. Pretty Production though, but not realistic and not memorable.
JWalker
Let's not beat up too hard. I agree with all the comments, but the one thing that's been notably left out: Perhaps its exactly what management expected. Given that possibility, let's applaud the solid production and perhaps give the producer a break on the script.
Very typical WBAL. Also I think the staged emergency scenes and "Dimmly lit meeting with the mysterious informant in a smokey brick ally on the bad side of town" are mass-produced for Hearst station promo shoots, are they not? All Hearst stations send their talent to a location where they all take their turns in the scenes. Assembly line production. That's what I heard years ago.
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