James answers your questions about the news, including: why taking selfies with reporters is bad. He also explains how producers choose soundbites and how sometimes unsavory characters get on the news. Finally, he explains what a show-stacker i

No Experience, No problem: The TV News Recruiting Crisis

Dec 13th, 2022 20m 53s

James talks to fellow recovering producer Tim Millard. He provides his perspective on The Great Resignation and how its hit TV newsrooms. They also talk about how TV stations are the land of the haves and have nots. The episode ends with Tim re

B-Roll, Toss-backs, and Looklives

Dec 6th, 2022 19m 41s

James talks about why looklives are not fooling anyone, why B-Roll is pointless, and why the OTS should be left in the 1970s where it was developed. He also discusses why toss-backs are weird and how producers are censoring the news. Wherever N

Anderson Cooper, Jeff Zucker, CNN and how I ended up in the New York Post

Nov 29th, 2022 21m 42s

James discusses what happened when video of a question he asked CNN President Jeff Zucker landed him in the New York Post. He also talks about how he got a job at CNN at age 24, and the differences between producing news at the network level ve

Earn It #MeToo

Nov 22nd, 2022 20m 7s

James talks about his experience with an executive producer who told him that if he wanted a better show, he was going to have to "earn it." He is also discusses a TV station he worked at where a scandal was an implied employment perquisite. T

Part 2: I'm going to hang up on you now

Nov 15th, 2022 18m 47s

This is part two of, "I'm going to hang up on you now". James talks to fellow recovering news producer Tim Millard about the significance of market size, the other parts of a TV station besides news, and how you can manipulate the Nielsen ratin

Part 1: I'm going to hang up on you now

Nov 8th, 2022 18m 54s

James talks to fellow recovering news producer Tim Millard about his experience working in small and large market TV. They discuss ratings, angry news directors, and why producers need to be the master of Murphy's Law. Don't turn that dial, ex

Teleprompter Dependent

Nov 1st, 2022 17m 58s

James talks about how a TikTok news anchor (@carolineontv) is failing her producers, why showing up to the set as the show is starting is frowned upon, and why on-air talent believes the world revolves around them... always. Finally, he explain

Process Language and Fake Breaking News

Oct 25th, 2022 18m 56s

James explains why moving up the ranks meant doing weird and off the wall things at work, the single purpose of television news, why process language makes David Muir number one, and how breaking news is fake and always has been. This is not co

Produce it Up

Oct 18th, 2022 23m 29s

James explains what a news producer is, how much they don't get paid, why it's the most important job in a TV newsroom, and why news directors are slimy. He also discusses why news producers should be seen and not heard. Finally, James talks a

Rate