At the third station I worked for, KFYR in Bismarck, North Dakota, the news department consisted of two people, plus an announcer or two and a couple of part-time photographers that we had to share with the sales department.
And we were supposed to provide for the needs of an AM radio station as well as the tv station.
Later an FM station was added to the mix.
So we "newsmen" were the voices of the many daily broadcasts, we wrote and produced the newscasts, we shot and edited the film, we covered meetings and events and the police stations and sheriff's departments.
But since we were in the state capitol, politics and government often made up the bulk of our work.
In this photo, I'm the film photographer in the middle of the group of three.
Our cameras are all focused on the governor, William L. "Bill" Guy, as he comes into the legislature to give his annual State of the State address.
I find it interesting that three "photographers" are using the same basic camera but we each have our own way of gripping the device.
In the upper right corner of this picture, my boss at the time, News Director Larry Mills, is doing a live broadcast on radio of the event.
The fellow with the headset sitting next to him was an engineer.
One other thing I learned in those early days was how to shoot film while walking backwards.
That's me on the far right with my camera focused on Vice-President Hubert H. Humphrey.
He's walking with the governor's wife while the governor, on the left, is accompanying Mrs. Humphrey, Muriel.
In the center is U.S. Senator Quentin Burdick.
In some ways it was a much simpler era.
In others it was vastly more complicated.
Great historical images. There is a bit of an irony at work now, however. Many television stations are now using VJ's-video journalists. VJ's shoot, edit, write and report, of course the technology is digital, smaller and more rapid. Some schools are teaching this as the new standard of journalism-with the product being sent to the internet and social media as well as for broadcast. Were I a young man starting in the business today I'd love that opportunity, though I know many of our generation lament the passing of the old school-reporters, writers, producers, photographers and editors all doing their own work.
ReplyDeleteLove the historical view.
ReplyDeleteSteve
Did you do windows also?
ReplyDeleteInteresting stuff.
Whoa... that was a real N.D. flashback. My dad took us to D.C. see Quentin when he was a senator. I was just a kid who could care less about politics and have no clue how my dad knew the guy.
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