So, I started typing up an FAQ for this, but it was turning into Lizzy’s School of Broadcast Television vs a simple helpful guide that might address any questions you might have re: how all of this works.
What I’ve decided to do instead, is just write up a quick intro post with some very general statements about the station and if you have any further questions, feel free to ask!
First of all, I want to say that you don’t need to know all the details of your character’s job description to be able to be a part of this RP. Ultimately, this is kinda a workplace comedy RP and the station is just a backdrop/the thing that brings all of these people together.
Also, full disclaimer, is this heavily based on my experiences working at a low-budget tv station and it probably doesn’t reflect how things are done most places, but that’s all I know, haha. So with that in mind:
Okay, WAYN is located in Waynesboro, PA which is a real life small town near the PA/MD border. It broadcasts to areas within the four-state region (PA, MD, VA, and WV). The station is in an old hotel building downtown. It’s kinda falling apart and they probably could use some new facilities, but that’s not really something that upper management is looking to invest in now (or ever, probably). The studio itself is in what was once the ballroom ... but the floor is uneven and oftentimes the camera shots will make the news desk look like the end of the titanic.
Sales/upper management have excellent salaries, but everyone else is paid next to nothing.
PAs (Production Assistants) are all part-time employees. They make minimum wage. While being a PA, you start out learning camera and then prompter. After that, you move into audio and/or graphics. Once you’ve been trained to do all four, you are eligible for a full-time position as an audio engineer or graphics operator position. And once you’ve held that position for awhile, you can start training as a director.
Everyone else not in sales/upper management makes a little more than the PAs, but not by much. A lot of people may even have a part-time job on the side even if they are full-time just to pay the bills. The station paying next to nothing is a huge turn off, but what they offer in return is excellent training. But once you've gotten your experience, you leave to find a better paying job: so there’s a high turnover rate.
Anyway, I’m planning on posting a monthly “promotions” post when characters get moved up. Also, if you ever get tired of playing a character, we can say that they’ve left for a better job. (And if you decide you want them again, they can always come back).
If you are joining the news team: you start out as a reporter. Most reporters go out and do their stories by themselves: which means that they shoot the footage, conduct the interviews, edit their packages, type up the closed captioning and get it uploaded before the shows. Sometimes if it’s a big or dangerous story, they will get the EFP camera op to go with them, but mostly the reporters do a lot of the stuff themselves.
Reporters who do a good job, eventually get promoted to anchors and then producers.
Reporters and Anchors need to be careful with their social media accounts, even their private ones. Voicing any kind of political views makes them seem partial when they should remain neutral, and this can be a fireable offense.
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