TAB’s Southwest Broadcast Newsroom Workshop Returns to Lubbock on Nov. 1

The Texas Association of Broadcasters and the Texas Tech University College of Media & Communication will present the Southwest Broadcast Newsroom Workshop, on Saturday, Nov. 1, from 8:30 am to 6 pm, in Lubbock.

TAB's annual newsroom training event features nationally recognized newsroom trainers and respected local journalists presenting sessions on newsgathering for Texas broadcast news professionals and developing student journalists.

National presenters include Al Tompkins, national Edward R. Murrow award winners Brendan Keefe (WANF-TV) and Josh Hinkle (KXAN-TV), as well as IRE executive director Diana Fuentes, and past RTDNA chairman Kevin Benz of Kevin Benz News.

Register online and see the current workshop schedule here.

The early professional registration fee is $66 and includes lunch, morning coffee, and pastries. The fee increases $10 on Oct. 22.

The day-long seminar is packed with nearly 20 sessions for professional broadcast journalists, as well as students pursuing a career in a Texas broadcast newsroom. Workshop topics include:

Mastering MMJ Skills: National Murrow award winner Brendan Keefe will present two
sessions to two sessions to help reporters develop MMJ skills. Keefe will impart the need-to-know
basics of being an MMJ in today's world of newsgathering. This session will cover basic lighting,
compelling shot composition, capturing great audio, and putting it all together on deadline.
Another session will focus on advanced techniques and gear, including multi-camera shoots on a
budget.

Enterprise Reporting: TAB will have two different sessions filled with ideas and techniques to uncover
and develop original stories not generated by a news release. This session will help you find new ways to
discover the bigger stories others miss.

Using FOI Laws to Generate News: Texas members of Investigative Reporters and Editors (IRE) will
present three sessions at the workshop, including this knockout session on how to use the Texas Public
Information Act (TPIA) and the federal Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) to break stories and add
context to daily news coverage.

Artificial Intelligence and Newsgathering: The workshop will have two sessions exploring how AI is
currently impacting newsgathering, both good and bad, and what's in the future for newsrooms.

Connecting with Audiences: Based completely upon years of viewer research into how news consumers
identify authenticity, this session will reveal the secrets to writing and delivering deeply connected
stories with sincerity, authenticity, and excellence every day.

Mastering Live Shots: The TV news live shot has become ubiquitous in the newscast, and it remains one
of the core elements viewers look for when deciding the importance and urgency of a story. The live shot is special, and it requires specific skills to perform one well. This session will look at inspirational live shots and break them down - what works, what should newsrooms do more of, how can newsrooms consistently deliver on the live shot.

Multi-Platform Reporting: Today's news consumers connect with audiences in many ways, from their
TVs, radios, online, and increasingly, on their phones. Broadcasters must go where the audience is and
this can be a boon for investigative reporting and general assignment coverage. Why? Multi-platform
reporting gives pieces room to breathe beyond the limitations of an over-the-air newscast, further
serving the audience. In this session, using recent investigative story examples, two national Murrow
award winners will detail how some of their best work began with a question and led to the story being
told on multiple platforms, not just the over-the-air signal.

Creativity on Deadline: What may seem like limitations on that day's story (lack of time to shoot/edit,
lack of visuals, etc.) can often seem like insurmountable hurdles to creativity. But they don't have to be.
Learn strategies to turn problem journalist lemons into compelling storytelling lemonade.

Building Audience Trust: Explore how local news has damaged its relationship with the
audience and what newsrooms need to do to earn trust back.

Spreadsheet Data Reporting: Ever wonder how newsrooms use data contained in spreadsheets to uncover exceptional stories? In this session, veteran database reporting experts will show attendees the basics of using spreadsheets. There are all kinds of data out there waiting to be unlocked and utilized for innovative reporting. All one needs is some basic knowledge, and the storytelling can begin.
Battling Bias: How to navigate around and through individual biases to accomplish the journalistic
goal of reporting without fear or favor.

Work/Life Balance: This session is about the ways journalists can take care of themselves in the stressful
environment of the newsroom. It will provide strategies for managing mental well-being both in and out
of the newsroom.

Questions? Contact TAB's Michael Schneider or call (512) 322-9944.