The OMB.

OMG! it's the OMB! What's the OMB you ask? You mean you don't know?! Well, the OMB's been coming our way for a long time, and guess what? It's finally here. Dear reader,       If only you knew what dread the OMB has cast upon so many of my peers in the television business. You'd think the OMB was directly tied to the Swine Flu, sitting here waiting for it's imminant arrival but hoping it never actually affected anyone of us in particular.      But alas, that "hope and a prayer" approach has proven fruitless. The OMB is here and will only grow. Of course, it won't affect me one bit. Yup that's right, immunity baby! Why? Because I think the OMB should've been a part of local TV news since the start. You see this job begs for the OMB. Chasing stories, with light portable gear, Do It Yourselfer's that can get in and get out and put a good story on the air.       Okay! Okay, I know what you're thinking.  Are you sure Oscar? Do you really want to embrace this, this thing that so many have feared for so long. Perhaps they're right? Maybe they know exactly what OMB means and you just haven't thought it out well enough? What if in the end OMB completely wipes out the industry as you know it? I mean look, OMB sounds like, "the promise of a better future" but realize, with every promise of "a new era" comes new unseen obstacles. Do the negatives outweigh the positives? Perhaps. Maybe it isn't a good thing to go 100% OMB. I do think the folks in the biz who are masters of there craft already probably shouldn't be expected to be OMB. But I've said it before this job is catered for OMBing.      But most importantly (as it's been pointed  to me while confronted out in the streets for doing OMB work), squeezing two jobs into one and promoting loss of jobs?           Well let's review: The economy took the big flush, businesses and homeowners lost their shorts, and desperation set in. Those who are surviving are doing so by taking creative (drastic?) but necessary measures. Our company in particular is joining forces with another local television station in the same town. The drop: big time lay-offs.       Guess what? No matter how you spin it, The OMB had nothing to do with it. People are losing their jobs regardless. The very thing that the OMB naysayers predicted would happen if  TV stations went the way of OMBs.      Why don't I blame the OMB? It's just like when tape took over film, memory cards took over tape and non-linear computer editing took over manual-tape editing. All of these changes and countless others had all of us, in turn, lamenting the end of an era(s). Yet through simple climatization periods we all adjusted and rather easily I might add (even the old timers). OMB is just another "change" in my book. With a little time, routine and dust-settling, we'll look back and laugh at when OMB was a bad word (acronym). Then we'll light our cigars and speed off to breaking news, by ourselves, in our OMB mobiles.       In the end, Wall Street not the OMB, did us in. Soon I'll know whether I'll have a job or not, at which point I'll either be an OMB or I'll just be S.O.L.                                                  The original OMB

Comments

[Tom]

Hey, I just read in the star-bulletin that you guys laid off nearly everyone at KHNL/KFVE yesterday. Don't you think KGMB should make some sort of statement about it, so as not to appear completely heartless?

[NewsCamera9]

Tom- I think any lay-offs, no matter what the situation, are gonna be deemed heartless. I think we're all unfortunately victim to the harsh times and none of it is gonna be pretty.

[Bryan Lee]

Interesting post as always.
Can you point me to the original anti-OMB blog/forum/site? Where did this all start?
I'm an independent video producer/director/shooter/editor. Am I an OMB? I don't feel like I've ever been a threat to production people at the stations.
Sorry for being uninformed but is this a union thing?
Mahalo and I hope you make the cut- I really like this blog. Keep shooting.

[7-11]

I have enjoyed your blog for a few months now. Thanks for taking the time to post. I know Jared gently twists your arm.

OMB is the worst thing local news can do in Hawaii. The viewers will not tune in once they see packages from OMBs. You are completely sacrificing quality. A reporter and photographer are a team for a reason. Different skill sets for one, more eyes and ears for another. I am disappointed in the management if they think the station will still turn good packages and continue good ratings with OMBs.

A reporter does more than voice a package, they must investigate, learn, communicate and know their content. They know the who, when and where of a story. That is mission critical during certain stories.

A photographer is a skilled creative artist who knows lighting, audio, composition, and how to drive from Kaena Point to Makapuu in the shortest amount of time. They know the what and how to make a good story come alive through a Canon lens.

I am not saying all OMBs are bad, but it does take a very special talent to do both and turn a terrific package. Not many reporters I know have the technical knowledge to shoot on Panasonic HPX-500s and edit non-linearly, and the same goes for photographers who might not know how to sweet talk a victim's family to tell their dead daughter's story on camera in their own home.

If somehow they had a 1 to 1 ratio of OMBs to reporters, maybe. So maybe 5 OMBs and 5 real reporters, but please don't make Brooks, Minna, Lisa, Stephanie, Darin, and George OMBs. The ultimate sacrifice will be quality, then viewers, and then more ad revenue.

I am saddened this merger has happened, seeing the number of friends losing jobs, and hope it is not the beginning of the end of all three stations.

Good luck!

[NewsCamera9]

Bryan & 7-11- Thanks for the support. I imagine there must be thread-loads of internet commentary on the anti-OMB issue. My "sources" however have simply been from scuttlebutt and daily chit-chat out on the street over the years. The threat that looms over people's heads seems to be that One-Man Bands will cheapen the final product and lessen our credibility.
I have made note that yes, television journalists who have mastered their craft already, should not be expected to suddenly produce well "shot" stories along the way. No one really expects that. The bean counters may be forcing the industry to do it for fiscal reasons but I don't think they expect "magic" overnight either. Yes, things will not be picture-perfect in the beginning.
My point, has been from the start, that this job - this TV news - this, find it/run it down/gather it/shoot it/write it/edit it, is for all intents and purposes, catered to a streamlined-engine mode of news gathering.
I think that we are in the middle of a painful transition amidst it's natural evolution. Even the OMB's may not be the "new way" what with every citizen out there already armed with video tools of there own.
I know, as it stands, it affects jobs and friends lives. I too am saddened, we all are. But do we throw in the towel, shout "unwarranted and unjustified" onto deaf ears and wished it never happened? Or do we simply take a new tack and go with the inevitable change?
I do think the "3 stations" will significantly transform themselves in the coming years. I won't however be quick to judge and claim it's foreordained demise. I simply think the system will contort itself into something new that will co-exist with what the internet, iPhones and reality show driven audiences will expect.

[Amani]

Hello..girl and Boys,I'm a poor french girl who miss your last show in Bordeaux modany (8/11/11)Paris tonight .The same !!! SUCH A SHAME .I'm very sad about it, because I descover your band last thuesday .(par hasard!!!)Wahouuuuuuuuuu life is beautiful !!!! I play the look every morning to be in the mood of the day!!!! Thanks for your imagination Ps : JOE your are so nice I would be glad to meet you one day maybe in another world your another place THANKS TO ALL OF US (the sun is shining every day!!!)KMS.