Getting A TV Job: Know Your Current Events

What's one of the most embarrassing things that can happen in an interview with a TV station?  You not knowing some major player in a breaking news event (a commonly known president's name, or the head guy at the Federal Reserve), or you not knowing anything about some major breaking weather event that just took place.

Here is an excerpt from the book where we discuss knowledge of current events, along with the importance of that knowledge:

A common problem in news is when a new reporter or anchor doesn’t know what’s happening in the world – they just want to be famous on TV. It is important that you’ve at least heard significant people’s names and have a rough idea of what they do and who they are. That way, when breaking news happens you’ll have a good idea of who the person is and how significant the news is. What is the worst and most embarrassing thing that can happen when you don’t know who someone is and you’re anchoring or reporting? You have to ask who that person is. While it won’t be the end of the world, it doesn’t help your image around the station at all either.

Keep that in mind not just while you are applying for your first job, but also after that as well!

To find out more about this section of the book  and other related sections, please click on the "Buy Now" link at the top of this page or click here.  Remember that until April 30th you can order the book with free shipping by using the code APRILMAIL305 upon checkout.  You can also download the PDF version for about half the price as the printed book.

Stay tuned for more excerpts from the book "So You Want To Be A TV Star?" along with more personal stories from the author!

~Aaron Shaffer

The Phone Interview

In a traditional job (i.e. not a TV job), you will likely get a phone call at some point from a potential employer or a recruiter.  They will ask you a few questions, making sure you are a good candidate for their position.  Eventually you will get an in-person interview and both you and your potential employer will figure out if you are a good match for each other.

In television news, the story is much different.  Most, if not all, of your first (and even second or third) job interviews will be done via the telephone.  This section of the book helps to prepare you for what to expect in those situations:

We just spent all of this time and paper space talking about the in-person interview – but the odds are that more than half of your interviews will actually take place over the phone. Even if you end up with an in-person interview, you probably had to get through a phone interview of some sort first, in order to end up with the in-person interview. As such, this topic is definitely one to consider. 

Some people will literally move across the whole country for their first job without even seeing the station first.  While that is not recommended, it might be what it will take in order to land your first job.  Try to seek out opinions on the station and their building before doing something drastic like that (posting a thread in Medialine asking about the market is a good start).

To find out more about this section of the book  and other related sections, please click on the "Buy Now" link at the top of this page or click here.  Remember that until April 30th you can order the book with free shipping by using the code APRILMAIL305 upon checkout.  You can also download the PDF version for about half the price as the book itself.

Stay tuned for more excerpts from the book "So You Want To Be A TV Star?" along with more personal stories from the author!

Making A Resume Tape: Watch Yourself

In a previous blog posting we discussed the need to get critiques from people you intern with.  Another great - and very important - way to make your tape better?  Watch yourself.  You will likely be one of the biggest critics you will ever have.

Prior to getting my first on-air job I would practice in front of the camera.  I remember one time where I declared after recording a fake weathercast for my tape that it was "the best I had ever done."  Upon getting home and watching what I had just recorded, I got to that weathercast and was appalled, thinking "that was the worst I have ever recorded."  That appalling weathercast was the one I had declared to be my best.  Watching yourself is very important, here is an excerpt from a section on doing just that from the book:

Sometimes you are your own worst critic. Make sure you find other people more experienced in the business to do true critiques – but also make sure that you are taping yourself as you practice your skills. You do it in different ways, but it is important for all facets of the news industry – be it reporting, anchoring, or weather. 

We talk about the answers to questions surrounding resume tapes, and give you suggestions on how to make the best possible resume tape in "So You Want To Be A TV Star?"  To find out more about this section of the book  and other related sections, please click on the "Buy Now" link at the top of this page or click here.  Remember that until April 30th you can order the book with free shipping by using the code APRILMAIL305 upon checkout.  You can also download the PDF version for about half the price as the book itself.

Stay tuned for more excerpts from the book "So You Want To Be A TV Star?" along with more personal stories from the author!

~Aaron Shaffer

Radio Interview Tonight!

Radio interview on KULT tonight for Northern Iowa University on the book... listen at http://www.uni.edu/kult starting at 9pm tonight.

We'll have more updates on the blog in the next couple of days!  Stay tuned!

~Aaron Shaffer

Designing A TV Resume

One major difference you'll see between a TV job hunt and an "ordinary" job hunt lies in the importance of difference pieces of the puzzle.

One major difference can be found with regard to a paper resume being sent along with your resume tape.  If you were applying to Proctor & Gamble you'd likely format your resume quite a bit differently that you should be doing for a TV job.

Here is an excerpt from the section of "So You Want To Be A TV Star?" where resumes are discussed:

Let’s start with this statement: your TV resume should NOT look like your friend’s resume that is applying for a job at Proctor & Gamble for a middle management position. Nor should it look like your friend’s resume applying for an entry-level engineering position at 3M. Television is all about visuals & being able to sell your product to viewers.

While a boring resume will certainly not keep you out of most people’s lists of the top 10 candidates for a position

– it certainly won’t help you stand out from the crowd either. 

We talk about the answers to questions surrounding resumes, and give you suggestions on how to make the best possible resume in "So You Want To Be A TV Star?"  To find out more about this section of the book  and other related sections, please click on the "Buy Now" link at the top of this page or click here.  Remember that until April 30th you can order the book with free shipping by using the code APRILMAIL305 upon checkout.

Stay tuned for more excerpts from the book "So You Want To Be A TV Star?" along with more personal stories from the author!

~Aaron Shaffer

Free Shipping Coupon Code

If you've been watching this book as a potential purchase, the publishing company just sent me a coupon code (APRILMAIL305) for "FREE SHIPPING," so buy away!  

This is what the email says that Lulu Press sent to me:

Use coupon code APRILMAIL305 at checkout, select Mail Shipping and receive the single book shipping cost free. Maximum savings with this promotion is $4.99. Print and tax amounts are excluded. You can only use the code once per account, and you can't use this coupon in combination with other coupon codes. This great offer ends on April 30, 2011 at 11:59 PM so try not to procrastinate! While very unlikely we do reserve the right to change or revoke this offer at anytime, and of course we cannot offer this coupon where it is against the law to do so. Transaction must be in US dollars.

How Long Should A Resume Tape Be?

One big question you'll be asking yourself as you conduct your first job hunt is this:

"How long should I make my resume tape?"

There are many different routes you can go with that question, and here is a brief excerpt from the book on the subject:

So you are wanting a reporter position and you just put together 2 great packages that are each one minute and thirty seconds long. Or you’re a meteorologist who after months of practicing off-air finally got two weathercasts that are about three minutes and thirty seconds long. That means the reporter has potentially only a 3 minute long tape and the meteorologist has what could possibly be a 7 minute long tape. Which one is right? 

We talk about the answers to that question, and give you suggestions on how to make the best possilbe tape in "So You Want To Be A TV Star?"  To find out more about this section of the book  and other related sections, please click on the "Buy Now" link at the top of this page or click here.

Stay tuned for more excerpts from the book "So You Want To Be A TV Star?" along with more personal stories from the author!

~Aaron Shaffer