Don't Bash Consultants For Tabloid TV News   

They say the format isn't necessarily the answer for local stations.

Some critics fear tabloid journalism will soon become the preferred format for local television news. They often blame consultants, including the three major firms: McHugh & Hoffman in McLean, Virginia; Frank Magid Associates in Marion, Iowa; and Audience Research & Development (AR&D) in Dallas.

The consultants deny responsibility. They say they're as disturbed as anyone about what's happening in local news. They also say there is a misconception about what tabloid news is.

"What people are labeling as tabloid journalism is often just the style of presentation and not necessarily related to the content and quality of journalism being practiced," says Frank Graham, vice president of McHugh & Hoffman.

Steve Ridge, a group vice president at Frank Magid Associates, concurs. "A lot of newscasts have that tabloid look because of all the whiz-bang, fast-moving graphics," he says. "But only a handful of stations can truly be called tabloid because of their blood-and-guts coverage."

The consultants also contend many viewers confuse local newscasts with such true tabloid magazine programs as "Hard Copy" and "A Current Affair."

"We have research that shows younger viewers in particular don't differentiate between 'Hard Copy,' 'Oprah Winfrey' and the local news," says Jim Willi, executive vice president of AR&D. "These are just sources for them to get information."

Still, stations tend to imitate a format that has worked elsewhere, consultants say, which can lead to a homogenization of local television news. They're worried that many stations may want to adopt a sensationalistic format because of its success at stations in Miami, Chicago and elsewhere.

"Certainly there is some audience potential in tabloid news, but it may be a very small niche," says Ridge. "People see how successful it is at a few places and they say, 'Gee, maybe we're missing something.' We warn our clients not to overreact or panic but to take time to examine their audience. Going to tabloid may be totally against what that audience is looking for."

Some consultants concede that they may be partially responsible for the sameness of local television news across the country.

"In the '70s and '80s there was a generalization by a lot of consultants about what people wanted as TV news," says Graham, a television news and newspaper executive for nearly 20 years before joining McHugh & Hoffman two years ago. "So the stations replicated the standard techniques. But in the '90s it's necessary to understand that each market is uniquely different. The audience in Houston has a set of expectations for TV news that is totally different from Dayton."

Ridge, who was a news director in Buffalo during the early 1980s, says too many stations have "lost the differentiation, that unique character that used to separate one station from another. So, tabloid comes along and is different and people think it may be a quick fix."

Consultants say they don't recommend the tabloid format even though some of their clients may switch on their own. But this claim may be a bit disingenuous. WBBM in Chicago, which broadcasts a tabloid-style newscast at 4:30 p.m., is an AR&D client. Its format was instituted by the station's former general manager and news director – with research assistance from AR&D.

Other news managers say the consultants show them examples of the tabloid format but don't push it as the best approach. "I have been to seminars on promotion and content where tapes have been shown on what's working in other markets and there are tapes on tabloid news from Miami and elsewhere," says Ed Godfrey, an executive at WAVE in Louisville and until recently the station's news director. "Consultants have never suggested we should use it. It's just shown for ideas, but if someone thinks it would work in their market they could use the techniques."

Fred Young, a longtime news executive with Hearst Broadcasting who has worked with all the major consultants, says they shouldn't worry too much about what the stations do.

"The consultants help us look at ourselves," he says. "Tabloid news is this year's T.B. [tuberculosis] scare. Frankly, it has forced all of us to become more interesting programs. Our writing is better, our content more sophisticated, our video is better and we have better sets and graphics."

Consultants cite Miami's WSVN as the originator of the tabloid news format. Joel Cheatwood, the news director who is now also overseeing the news at the company's new station in Boston, created it without consultants.

"WSVN is at one extreme with a frantic pace covering a lot of crime and other such stories that appeal to that unique audience," says AR&D's Willi, another veteran television news executive. "But most local newscasts are at the other extreme, slow-paced and traditional, spitting out news rather than explaining it. There's a tremendous middle ground..between these two formats that isn't being used." l