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Listen to On the Media with Real Audio |
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Andrea Thompson
June 30, 2001
BOB GARFIELD:
When CNN announced that it was hiring a reporter from a station in Albuquerque, New Mexico to anchor headline news, it made the front page of the New York Post. That the reporter's last job was starring on the television series NYPD Blue may have contributed to the hype.
Andrea Thompson's hiring came on the heels of the firing of hundreds of CNN employees who were scandalized to learn that someone who had once been naked in a movie would now be sitting in their old chairs. To the best of anyone's knowledge, Bernard Shaw had never been naked -- anywhere.
Determined not to add to the controversy by making a fool of herself, Thompson engaged the services of former television journalist Herb Brubaker who runs a training facility called The Television News Center. He joins me now. So, Herb, how did she do?
HERB BRUBAKER:
Well, I didn't-- I-- first of all, I -- just a little background on us - we're serious journalists; I'm a 20 year NBC veteran and you know I think she's doing very well, and I was-- not a believer at first and had known her background and the important thing to me always is -- is she pay-- willing to pay her dues?
She took reporter training here in, in the Washington, DC area which is a 2 day program in which we go out on stories and work with them on their writing and their performing and their producing.
BOB GARFIELD:
So it wasn't like it was the 1 day journalism school training--
HERB BRUBAKER:
No.
BOB GARFIELD:
-- it was the full 2 days.
HERB BRUBAKER:
[LAUGHS] Yeah. Right. Well-- that's just scratching the surface, and-- we always tell them this is just the beginning.
BOB GARFIELD:
I mean as a practical matter for this particular job for which Andrea Thompson has been hired, does she have to even know where Canada is?
HERB BRUBAKER:
[LAUGHS] The reality in, in, in, in large market television and in network television is that the anchors don't write as much, don't write much copy, and she probably will be going in and reading somebody -- I'm sure she will be -- somebody else's copy! But if she doesn't understand what the stories are; if she hasn't covered them herself-- she's not going to do a good job!
BOB GARFIELD:
I guess my ultimate question is why does it matter that she even tries to be a journalist, since clearly she's not going to get any kind of, you know, serious background in a year doing live shots on, on an Albuquerque TV station. It's not going to give her exactly the in depth experience.
HERB BRUBAKER:
Bob I think you bring up some good points. I'm not going to defend her all the way down the line. But I've talked to her about experiences out there, and I know people who worked with her out there in Albuquerque. She wasn't merely doing live shots. She was writing all of her own stories. She didn't have people writing her stories.
She would go out there, and she'd -- people weren't doing it for her. In addition to that she was doing live shots. But a year is not a lot of time. She needs more time at, at that.
BOB GARFIELD:
Let's forget that she ever came from NYPD Blue.
HERB BRUBAKER:
Mm-hm. Mm-hm.
BOB GARFIELD:
If this woman were your student and she were up for this job--
HERB BRUBAKER:
Mm-hm?
BOB GARFIELD:
-- would you recommend her based on her skills at this moment?
[BOTH SPEAK AT ONCE]
BOB GARFIELD:
At this stage of the game, well of course I didn't hire her for-- Headline News. You know I think that Headline News has used a lot of very young, inexperienced journalists, because I've watched Headline News. But I would say--she should have about 5 years experience in the business before going to Headline News. Yeah! I mean I, I don't think it's a very challenging assignment! I'll be, I'll be honest.
I would have recommended that she do something else. I would have recommended to her that she stay out there in the field, get several more years reporting experience, and, and then go to something that's more thoughtful.
But-- she's concerned about her career!
BOB GARFIELD:
If Andrea Thompson makes it -- you know on the one hand that will be-- a nice feather in your cap because after all you helped train the woman. And w-- you know, you will bask somewhat in the reflected glory and probably get some more business, you know, at -- when Roseanne Barr decides to succeed Dan Rather, you may - you'll probably get the call.
HERB BRUBAKER:
[LAUGHS] I hope not.
BOB GARFIELD:
But-- if she makes it, doesn't it also kind of belie your central premise which is that journalistic chops are at the heart of everything?
HERB BRUBAKER:
Well I mean I agree with you! I mean the, the, the 2 days of training with us and a year in Albuquerque aren't nearly enough; they're just a beginning, but you're assuming that she's stopping, and she's not going to get any more experience and that she's going to-- just rise to the top with a-- without any additional experience, and I, I take issue with that! I think that she will continue to grow and learn!
And I would counsel-- counsel her to, to get--as deeply involved in writing and producing and, and other things as, as, as much as possible or continue to do so. I mean she won't just stop learning at this point.
BOB GARFIELD:
Herb Brubaker is a 20 year NBC veteran. He runs the Television News Center in Rockville, Maryland. If Herb and the Television News Center sound familiar to you, there's a reason.
HERB BRUBAKER:
NPR covered my-- our anchor training--
BOB GARFIELD:
Who did that?
HERB BRUBAKER:
It was-- Amy Dickenson.
BOB GARFIELD:
Oh, yeah.
HERB BRUBAKER:
She did a cute piece. She was talking about a guy with an eyebrow issue and how anchoring is a pantless job because you - they just see you from your waist up, and it doesn't matter. It was a cute piece.
copyright 2001 WNYC Radio
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