Ron Fineman's ON THE RECORD

It got rowdy in Hollywood on Monday, after the fire marshal wouldn't let a rock group perform a free concert in a parking lot, because of overcrowding. People started throwing rocks and bottles, and the police came in to break up the crowd. I was going back and forth between KNBC and KABC at 6pm, and I have to say KNBC did the better job. One great advantage was their having Bob Pettee in the helicopter, while KABC didn't have a chopper reporter to go with their chopper pictures. (Again, this makes you wonder about the wisdom of not renewing Pettee's contract).

KNBC happened to have Beverly White co-anchoring with Chuck Henry. This turned out to be a perfect time to have a field reporter sitting in the anchor chair. For example, police shot either bean bags or rubber bullets to clear a street. A little later, we saw a live picture of a guy looking at police and pointing to his leg. Chuck suggested that the guy was taunting police. White suggested that maybe it wasn't taunting, but a guy just letting the cops know he was hit by them. I think it may've been her experience in the field which made her realize this guy was trying to tell police something. Even though it may've been crossing the line, I admit I liked it when Chuck Henry used the word "idiot" to describe someone who threw a portable traffic barricade at a police car. I also got a kick out of Pettee calling the troublemakers "hooligans." You just don't hear that word much these days...but it fit.

I give credit to both Henry and White when they talked live on the phone with a woman inside a building in the middle of all of this. She was obviously afraid, and said so. Henry told her there were lot of police around, and the situation would be over soon. Their efforts to keep the lady calm was certainly not a requirement of fact-gathering, but it was certainly the right thing to do. A funny moment came when they were interviewing a security guard over the phone. White asked him what went through his mind the crowd started to charge the stage. He answered "I was thinking, ah shit...." After he finished his answer, she reminded him "we want to keep it clean." And I might add that little incident was further proof you don't need a laugh track to laugh at something funny on TV while watching at home.

Some people will say you should always start your story with your best video. While the logic of that rule is obvious, I don't think that always makes sense. Depending on what you're doing, there may be a better place in your story for THE best shot. However, what does make sense is that you should always start your story with compelling video, if you happen to have it. That may well be your best video. What seems unbelievable to me, was the opening video that KTLA reporter Walter Richards used in his coverage of the near riot. If I was the news director watching at home, I would've been reaching for the coronary medicine. Because while Richards had video of people throwing things at the stage, and a rowdy fan throwing punches at a security guard on the stage, he didn't use that to start the story. No, to grab the viewers, he showed a music video of the group that was to perform. That's right. KTLA's lead story is this Hollywood near riot, and the first TEN seconds of his story was a music video! Who cares what these guys look like on a video? The story is the rowdy crowd! With three other stations probably doing the same story at the same time, you really want to lead off with strong video. I still can't believe Richards did that.

Over at KNBC at 11pm, Patrick Healy did a good comprehensive job, although for some reason, he used a short soundbite of a screaming rock fan that was so distorted, I have no idea what they were saying. But far more serious....when the newscast started, anchor Chuck Henry said that "nearly ten thousand fans turned violent." What nonsense! Even if there were ten thousand people there, I never heard any reporter suggest that most of them were violent, let alone nearly all of them. Come on. Only six arrests were made. The story was interesting enough and serious enough without having to sensationalize it. Too bad some tease writer at KNBC had to spoil what was otherwise very good and measured coverage.

This is an issue which Diane Thompson brought out in an email that appeared in our letters section yesterday. The story of the death of Deputy Jake Kuredjian has been around since Friday. Yet there is still NO consistency in the pronunciation of his last name. I saw a pronunciation guide on AP which said that the "edj" in his name sounds like "edge." That is also the way Sheriff Lee Baca pronounced his name last Friday, and when I called the Sheriff's Department Media Relations yesterday, they gave me that pronunciation too. Yet, I am also hearing the "edj" pronounced with a long "e", and I'm also hearing it pronounced with like "idj". Maybe the Sheriff's Department has given out different pronunciations at different times. But even if they have, why can't stations and reporters be consistent with whatever they are saying. For example, last night KTLA's Warren Wilson used the "edge" pronunciation, but anchor Hal Fishman used a different one. On Monday Night, KCOP reporter Hal Eisner used the "idj" pronunciation, but anchor Lauren Sanchez used the long "e." Yesterday, I heard Josh Rubenstein on KCAL use both the long "e" and the "idj" in the same story. So WHY is it so tough for everyone to get this man's name right? Your name shouldn't have to be Smith or Jones in order to be guaranteed the correct pronunciation. Is it really THAT difficult?

THAT'S THE WAY TO DO IT

How many times have you seen the camera on one anchor, while the other is starting to read a story? Often you'll see the one anchor sitting there, while hearing the other one read. This will go on until another camera gets in position to get the reading anchor. Recently on KCAL, Jane Velez Mitchell solved this problem in a much quicker and less awkward way. The camera was on co-anchor Jaime Garza as she started to read the story. As soon as she realized that, she stopped and said to Jaime "why don't you tell it?" For all I know, maybe the credit really goes to the producer or director, who may've made the call. At least it appeared that an unselfish anchor showed some very good instincts. Good for Jane.

Look, I've never been one to speak the King's English. Almost all of the ranting I do here is about non-conversational language used by broadcasters, which I call broadcasteze. But certainly, there must be some standards when it comes to proper English. Yet, much to my disgust, the LA County Fair has adopted the slogan "Kinder. Simple. Funner." Funner? Since when is that a word? Who in the world is their target audience? Even in Kern County, where too many people speak some of the worst English I've heard, I've never seen such a disregard for decent English when it comes to slogans. Not to over dramatize a bonehead slogan...but as LA schools struggle to teach their students, do you really want "funner" as part of a County Fair slogan?

It was reported last week that some teenagers took a car which belonged to a missing woman for a joy ride. After hearing that, I got to thinking. Doesn't "joy ride" sound like it belongs in the 1950s. Back in the 50s, doing that may've actually brought "joy" to some kids. Somehow, I have a feeling it's a different experience today. After these teenagers admitted taking the SUV for a ride, do you suppose they said, "yeah, we took it for a joy ride?" No, I don't have a better term. But I wouldn't be surprised if there is one out there.

I figure I should urge some enterprising TV reporter to expose the myth about Blue Bird Liquors in Hawthorne being a lucky place to buy a ticket. I went into some detail on the facts not too long ago, so I won't bother with that again. But as long as people are actually waiting hours in line for no reason, it remain a story which someone should do.

I guess most viewers are used to people making fools of themselves when they see a TV camera nearby. But it was pretty embarrassing during a live shot last week by KCOP's Peter Thorne. He was covering a candle light vigil for Aliyah. As he's looking into the camera describing the sadness of the event, behind him are guys making faces, hand gestures, smiling....one guy started to move like he was going to dance. It was just a handful of people, but you have to wonder how much respect they have for Aliyah, if that's the way they behave, just because there is a camera there.

After a while, you have to wonder why so many reporters still seem to have so much trouble with "alleged." Maybe it's an uphill battle....but we can't give up, can we? During the shootout last week, KABC's Leo Stallworth said "the alleged gunman opened fire." Hmmm.....so in other words, this guy opened fire, but we're not sure he used a gun to do it? Okay, let's be serious. For all of you broadcasting students out there, if a "gunman" opened fire, there is no reason to put the alleged qualifier on it. If you want to say James Beck opened fire, the easiest way would be to say, "The Sheriff's Department says James Beck opened fire." But if you're not going to attribute that Beck started shooting, then you could say "James Beck allegedly opened fire." If you are naming names, I think the attribution sounds better....since the viewer should be told who is saying that it is Beck doing the shooting.

Last night on KCAL, Andre Moreau said "prosecutors say after Sanchez allegedly murdered Megan Barroso".... Well, if they're prosecuting him, I think it's fair and accurate to say that prosecutors say Sanchez killed. Who needs allegedly?

A well known anchor comments on Nancy Bauer Gonzales, a former KCALer offers some thoughts about that station's interim news director...and more. Just head to the Inside LA TV section on the menu.

I've heard Mindy Burbano say "songstress" before, and I figured that bad writing was just another one of her problems. But last week, with Burbano off, Romero was reading entertainment. Suddenly there was that word again. So apparently, it must be someone behinds the scenes who insists on using a word that no else has used in normal conversation in the last 40 years. Maybe the writer should be a disc jockey in the Music of Your Life format.

Put your hand on the monitor and count to three....one, two, three....HEAL!!

They are always welcome. You can reach me at BRUIN74@aol.com. Unless you say otherwise, I will assume your comments are for publication.

Ron's disclaimer: Like all reporters I have opinions. I do the best I can to make sure that nothing I say here has any effect on my objectivity in covering stories.

OTR's main page IS PUBLISHED MONDAY, WEDNESDAY AND FRIDAY. Letters are added Tuesday - Friday.