The Inside Life : Delving Into The Work Of A Television News Presenter, Part 2

A DelhiPlanet Exclusive

We’re back with last and final part of the first feature of “The Inside Life“. Checkout the first part here. We would now present the remaining part of our Interview with noted News Presenter for Televisa Monterrey (A Mexican News Channel), Miss Christine Waller.

DelhiPlanet (DP) : So Christine, as we understand it reporting News involves dealing with a gamut of emotions. You could be reporting a war or you could be a reporting a funny incident. What kind of demeanor are you instructed to maintain? Do you get ever let go of your emotions while reporting say something sensitive or tragic ?

Christine Waller (CW) : You know, this is an interesting question. Perhaps under different circumstances, I may be more affected by the tragic details of a difficult story. But since my reports do not require me to immerse myself in the culture or place where the story is happening — all of my research is remotely conducted — this does not tend to be a problem for me. What’s more, my reports are short and deal with the large scale picture… there’s not enough time to get involved emotionally in a period of just 3 minutes. Although, during the research stage for the segment, you come to realize that so many things are happening in the world… the average person may choose to ignore this reality, but as a journalist it all fits into the larger world context you are trying to report on, so it can be difficult in that sense.

DP: Now then, coming to a question that a lot of girls would like to know about and a lot of guys won’t mind knowing about is about the way you maintain your looks and appearance as presentation is very important part of Television. Many young girls and women get influenced by the image and looks of young and attractive women like you who regularly appear on television. Please tell us as to how you maintain your looks and your advice to other women who might be reading this ?

CW: I think broadcast journalism allows for quite a bit of flexibility in this regard. What’s most important is that you tell a good story. From there, the make-up artists can work some real wonders. My advice for young women would be to be healthy, eat well, exercise regularly, love yourself, and go find a great story to tell!.

DP: That’s surely great advice. I bet that men would adore women who can tell good stories, that don’t revolve around gossip ;-). Please tell us something about the shooting process of a News Broadcast. As there can’t be any re-takes or mistakes, how do ensure that you won’t stumble or get tongue tied at some point.

CW: There is quite a bit of production process behind a news broadcast. In my case, a large portion of my report is pre-recorded. The process is as follows: I pick a topic that I’d like to report on that week, usually the most influential international news story going on from Wednesday to Friday. I research about it, and write a script that goes beyond just reporting the facts but include a brief analysis. From there, the news editor will help me make any necessary adjustments with the report regarding my grammar. On Sunday evenings, before delivering my report on live television on Monday morning, I go to the station and record my script. During the night, news producers will match appropriate images to my audio recording. Monday morning, I arrive to the station and interact with the main news anchor on live television, introducing this week’s topic and closing the report with a few comments.

DP: Wow, that surely seems like a lot of work. But then I’m sure that you party just as hard as you work because it’s a general perception that people in the media have really hip and happening lives with really wide friend circles. Is this true in your case and can it be generalized for all ?

CW: Actually, for most local news reporters, having a job in broadcast televsion is just like any other job. It’s true that due to my position at Televisa, I’ve been invited to moderate certain events in the city as a master of ceremonies, or attend other public openings, but nothing extraordinary. In most cases, the networking you conduct as a journalist is more due to your personality and not your position — always looking to meet new people, hear new stories, and make new contacts.

DP: Well said, you seem to be a good proof of the fact that Man is a Social Animal. So tell us something about your popularity, have you ever met someone who was a regular follower of your newscast? Do you expect people to recognize you when you go out somewhere. If not, then do you do wish for the same.

CW: I have a group of close friends who faithfully follow my reports. I also upload my reports to YouTube for my family in the U.S. to watch. I’ve received some interesting comments from viewers through these on-line forums. As to whether people recognize me in public here in Monterrey, not so much… I suppose I’d need more air time for that, maybe someday!

DP: And finally, we would like to know some funny incidents that you’ve been involved in. Viewers love it when people on television make mistakes especially newscasters who always seem perfect.

CW: Oh, I have plenty of these. I still get very nervous just before delivering my report in front of our viewing audience of over 1 million people in metropolitan Monterrey, but at the very start when I was first learning how to participate with the news program, I used to get even more nervous. There was one time when the camera man counted down, 3-2-1, you’re on! He pointed to me to let me know that I was on live television and I completely blanked. I had no idea what to say. It was terrible! Although only 2 or 3 seconds of silence passed, it felt like a lifetime. They actually had to cut directly to my segment before more time passed because the news producers said I looked like a ghost!. It was embarrassing but very funny at the same time because all the news anchors said that is bound to happen at one point or another. Let’s just hope that it doesn’t happen too soon again!

DP: That would have surely been really funny. It was great talking to you Christine, thank you very much for your time and I’m sure our readers would have got some understanding about the Inside Life Of A News Presenter.

Note: The Inside Life and all content published as a part of Inside Life is owned by and exclusive to DelhiPlanet. Any reproduction without permission is prohibited.

The Inside Life : Delving Into The Work Of A Television News Presenter, Part 1

A DelhiPlanet Exclusive

Have you ever imagined what it would be like to be a Doctor, an Engineer, an Architect or a Teacher. Hmm, not really, because these are some of the most common occupations in the world and most people more or less have an idea of what these people do. However wouldn’t it be exciting to get to know a Professional Dancer, a Musician, a Investigative Journalist, a Travel Writer, an Actor, an Archaeologist, a Disc Jockey, a TV Host etc. There are 100’s of occupations in the world and sometimes it’s just so fascinating to meet someone who’s work is very different from the normal run of the mill stuff, especially so when it involves interaction with the media, appearing on television, attending a lot of parties, traveling etc.

While from the outset it appears that such people have really great jobs and a terrific life, that’s mostly not the situation and it’s just another instance of the “the grass being greener on the other side“. But even the realization of this fact is not enough to satisfy human curiosity and to answer the question “why does this person get to a great job with so much money and fame while my life’s going nowhere“. To answer such questions we at DelhiPlanet decided to introduce a new theme of articles titled “The Inside Life“.

The Inside Life would take an in depth look at the lives of people in occupations that seem very creative and interesting from the outset. Here we would get to know these individuals through personal interviews and would find out more about their life and work in their professions. We start of this series by interviewing a Television News Presenter. A News presenter is someone people see everyday and someone they sub-consciously develop an attachment with. The news presenters bring information about the world to us and take us into the lives of other famous people. Their jobs involve hours of exposure to the television, frequent travel and recognition.

So what’s it like to be one, let’s find out in an exclusive interview with noted News Presenter for Televisa Monterrey (A Mexican News Channel), Miss Christine Waller.

DelhiPlanet (DP) : Hi Christine, A very warm welcome to you from the entire team at DelhiPlanet. Let’s start by getting to know you better, please tell us something about yourself.

Christine Waller( CW) : Hi, my name is Christine Waller and I’m originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in the U.S. I have lived in Monterrey, Mexico for the past couple of years working full time for a company called CEMEX as part of their Corporate Communications team. I also work with a local TV station called Televisa, delivering a weekly report on live television about US - Mexico relations.

DP: What kind of News do you present and for how long are you infront of the Camera daily ?

CW: Every Monday morning I deliver my report on live television at 7:30am about a broad range of international topics covering such issues as the 2008 U.S. Primary and Presidential Elections, the 2008 Olympics, U.S. - Mexico Border Politics, etc. My report lasts for about 3 to 4 minutes, but approximately 5 hours of preparation are necessary for this seemingly short period of time.

DP: That’s an interesting fact Ms. Waller (shown below in action while delivering a report ), I’m sure not many people are aware about the preparation that goes in before delivering a report on live television.

DP: So tell us, Did you always love to be in front of the camera from an early age or did you start liking it at a later point of time.

CW: I think that I’ve always loved telling stories from an early age more than being in front of the camera. My mother says that ever since I could talk, I told stories to whoever would listen, and that ever since I could pick up a pencil I was writing stories for whoever would read them. My passion is much more about telling good stories, in my personal and professional life, than being center stage on camera.

In high school, I gained a bit of experience as a student reporter on our internal high school news channel which was broadcast throughout the community . Later in college, I published my stories through a variety of University Creative Writing Journals and other media channels. These expereinces were helpful in making me realize that the world of journalism was something that suited me well, but again, it’s always been more about telling good stories, whether in print or broadcast format, than anything else. .

DP: I see, “the ability to tell stories” that’s seems to be an important quality that should be inherently present in someone looking to be a journalist or a News Reporter. Now tell us something about your work as a TV Presenter, how rigorous are the schedules and how hard is it to be in front of the camera ?

CW: The most rigorous part about being a broadcast journalist is most certainly finding and developing an interesting story. Presenting the story on live television is just icing on the cake. The most difficult part is looking at the world through an angle not seen before, finding out why the story I want to tell is interesting, and what is the best way to tell it. Then it’s a challenge to organize the details of the story in such a way that a broad, general audience clearly understands what you are trying to communicate, how the story fits into their personal life, and why they should care about listening to the report.

Since I participate with the morning news program, it is a challenge to wake up at 5:30am to arrive to the station for them to do my hair and make-up before appearing live at 7:30am. It’s important to have plenty of coffee on hand. Another challenge about actually being in front of the camera is staying on your toes, and to be ready to answer any question they may throw your way.

Catch the rest of the interview here .

Note: The Inside Life and all content published as a part of Inside Life is owned by and exclusive to DelhiPlanet. Any reproduction without permission is prohibited.