As JR gives credit to the Roanoke Times’ Timescast and gives blog space to Editor Mike Riley, I want to give some blog space to one of the guys behind the curtain who’s making it happen.
Seth Gitner, photographer, multimedia editor and spark behind their podcasts (listen to an interview on Podcast 411 here), has been working diligently behind the scenes to get the Timescast up and running.
I visited Roanoke a few weeks ago for another event, but took some time out to meet with Seth, who visited us during ConvergeSouth. He let me sit in in an editing session in a cramped dark room far away from their newsroom — a different floor even — where he sat among several thousands of dollars worth of video and computer equipment sprucing up one of their pre-release editions (the first shows only circulated within the Times building).
Months ago when I found out about Roanoke’s podcasts, I caught up with Seth. We’ve been exchanging ideas and stories ever since. At some point, we’ll even work together on a project when we both come up for air and can get all the pieces in place.
Roanoke owes much to him and to the other reporters and editors who are feeling their way through tough times in the newspaper industry by moving toward more audio and video, media that newspapers have had little experience with in the past.
When comments appear in the blogsphere deriding audio and video by newspapers, I bristle because I can honestly say I understand the hard work the people who produce, edit and post this “multimedia” — a crappy term — are putting into it. Is that work wasted? Well, if newspapers ever go out of business, at least some folks will have the skills to go into TV and radio.
The ones who are trying and shouldering the burden of learning something new in order to stay relevant despite myriad obstacles should be lauded. (Sidenote: I placed the word “myriad” in my Scrabble game with Susan tonight. Triple word score. Dang!)
Timescast is a different animal than Delaware Online’s video efforts (which I mentioned in a comment on JR’s blog) technically and philosophically. I’ve seen the resources that Roanoke has. I’ll see what Delaware has soon. I have an idea of the cost each paper has incurred both in human resources and in technical resources.
Is the N&R willing to bear those costs? I believe it if JR says it. He’s taller than I am.