Must be important if TV shows up

Here’s a truth: Nothing elevates someone’s cause more than getting TV news involved.

Local TV news is the Holy Grail of coverage. The biggest newspapers on the planet could show up in your backyard, but they all get pushed aside for the TV camera.

That’s the way it is. Us print journalists always resented the attention those guys receive, but we can’t ignore their presence.

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So, it sure was interesting the other day when Just Wright Citrus made its local TV news debut.

WFTS-Channel 28 in Tampa, and its reporter Chad Mills, is the only media outlet outside of yours truly giving much attention to Inverness Villages 4. Chad has covered the issue extensively, and fairly in my opinion.

On one hand, IV 4 is the perfect TV news story for the visuals alone. How can you go wrong with video of a firetruck stuck in the sandy roads?

On the other hand, it’s extremely complicated. The problem didn’t happen overnight, and answers are elusive. IV 4 hasn’t attracted attention from Channel 28’s competitors.

The IV 4 folks are pretty good about sending out emails with links to news coverage. Chad picked up on my most recent IV 4 blog where I suggested four possible scenarios to get out of this mess.

He wanted to do a Zoom interview for a segment prior to Tuesday’s County Commission meeting. Well, that sounded pretty darn cool to me, so we set it up for Monday.

As you see from the split screen, Chad has done this thing before and is situated in a well-lit room that displays some of his well-earned hardware. I, on the other hand, have the appearance of someone who just emerged from a mountain cave.

(Though, be honest: Isn’t that EXACTLY how you’d expect a lone blogger to look? We don’t dress for success.)

We talked for about 10 minutes. Chad was pleasant and we had an easy interaction. The stuff he used reflected the interview fairly well. It was a thrill to see Just Wright Citrus on the TV news (in a good way).

My impression of local TV news has changed significantly in the past four years. Once removed from a competitive newsroom, I began to see the value of spreading certain messages well beyond the local scribes.

Take IV 4. Yeah, a true mess. Seemingly, no solution. Here’s the thing, though: It’s worse if no one knows. I don’t score points with most readers when writing about IV 4. Many outside of the community don’t understand the fuss at all. But when IV 4 attracts Channel 28, that gets folks’ attention.

Citizens and politicians are extremely aware of what others think of us. Those opinions are often formed in the news. Crystal River, for example, has a ton of great exposure as a tourist destination. 

Every time IV 4 gets a segment on Channel 28, the collective spirit of the community cringes a little bit. Do we really want to be known as the county that allows citizens to live on unpaved sugar sand “public” streets where emergency vehicles get stuck? 

Reporter Chad Mills, in his pleasant affable way, keeps convincing the bosses that IV 4 is worth the stations' time. That’s pretty significant in a business that’s literally presented in segments. Time is gold to these people.

I don’t know if Channel 28’s presence on the IV 4 story will help. It can’t hurt. 

And Chad, if you’re reading this, I sat Wednesday morning with Steph the Barber who did her usual best. I’m now presentable to your viewers.

Have a great Thursday, friends.

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