The Historical Legacy of WSB-TV Production

After pondering the despicable act by despicable people of attempting to suppress the black vote in the year 2014, in Georgia of all places, take a media moment with me as I say something nice about a Cox product: WSB-TV.

The above (click the pic of Junior Farmer to get to the video) is excellent news reporting and packaging of a complex issue breaking that day (yesterday 9/17/14). As it gets immediately to the heart of a complex and historical matter, the key players, the SOTs, and the visuals.

This type of deft political production work, by WSB-TV’s political reporter Lori Geary and her production team, could not have been done without a longstanding, working knowledge of the issues on deck for the day’s news coming down – to be able to turn around this kind of comprehensive media that fast. In other words, sit back and watch professionals do their thing, cub reporting wannabees.

Knowing exactly who to get to, in a precise and time-thrifty way, and who to focus on and zoom to in the contemporary Georgia/Atlanta political arena, is editorial and production tandem work sourced from a unique and historic talent base that exists almost exclusively in WSB-TV’s deep-benched, legacy production crew. It’s hard to duplicate that level of precision political packaging elsewhere, in other words.

And it’s something we see often with WSB-TV’s political reporting. Not just yesterday’s. They know their civil rights history and legends behind the scenes there, as their production crews have lived, worked and played around Atlanta for a very long time. If one loses a career cameraman or director of 40-years at a place like WSB-TV, they take a lifetime of some mighty historical production expertise with them. And that’s simply not replaceable with an iPhone and an intern.

Tip of the hat indeed, as TV political reporting tends to take a back seat to the more easily social-shared written word. And folk who take politics and media seriously are dismissive of Cox-derived TV news, so tainted they are by a self-directed reputation founded from featuring senseless violence, self-promotion, and roadkill carnage over more civic-minded news.

It’s important to remember that visuals and sound working together, as opposed to radio/print/static screens, are also important to a highly nuanced political story, particularly a voter fraud/voter suppression story from the south. Especially in a state with a mighty history of dubious political legacies, ghosts and legends.

Don’t miss it.

Get On Board The GPB Programming Theft Train!

 

In a rigid environment stripped of anything remotely representing a “two way street,” GPB’s Bill Nigut babbled non-freely away recently (Thursday, July 3, 2014) to AJC’s Rodney Ho about not one but two upcoming WRAS shows he’s stolen carved-out for himself. One being called, snort, “Two Way Street.”

Given that no one’s the least bit interested in organic Nigut dung radio product, but rather far more interested in the outrageous public relations heap GPB’s laid in the wake of their mindless decision to raid WRAS, Ho dutifully attempted to steer his Nigut chat time toward media issues people actually want to hear about. Only to be shut-down by a free speech wrangler named Mandy. From Ho’s Radio & TV Talk blog:

When I mentioned that some WRAS fans are making him the bogeyman, he shrugged. “As a guy who covers politics,” Nigut said, “I know people decide to assign a motive and give you an agenda. It has nothing to do with reality or who you are.” Twice while I was on this subject, GPB spokeswoman Mandy Wilson interrupted me to say, “We’re here to talk about Bill’s radio shows.” I wasn’t expecting Nigut to saying anything except positive things about the deal and he didn’t appear to mind talking about the deal. But with a publicist in the room clearly uncomfortable with me probing that subject, I backed off.

Because what Atlanta really wants is to consume news from news farms where the news product is locally-sourced by obstructionist publicists named “Mandy.”

But wait! There’s more! More Bill Nigut in our futures! Of course Bill Nigut just had to have another politics show all for himself, in the way a toddler hoards all the red and green trucks, now that he’s playing with his stolen programming booty there at GPB.

Roaming Through Georgia Primary Results

Republican candidate Ed Lindsey did poorly in the U.S. Representative, District 11 race – finishing 4th place in Tuesday’s primary voting by garnering a mere 8,389 votes out of 56,584 cast. Or about 15% of the total votes cast for a District 11 Republican. He “got spanked,” as the kids would say.

So let’s break it down: a sizable TV ad budget from his campaign garnered just over 8K votes?! Talk about bad returns on one’s investment. Some money obviously went for an email campaign, as my Inbox filled with plenty of those. However, as of today, Lindsey managed only 700+ Twitter followers, and barely 7K Facebook followers. And a paltry under 2K views to the one video (a duplicate of a TV ad) on the campaign’s YouTube channel. The campaign was a huge failure-to-launch in social.

This is why I’m not a political consultant, as I really did believe Lindsey could attract a better, moderate Republican turnout. I should have known it was all over from the get-go, for a moderate Republican candidate such as Lindsey, when a seasoned, and occasionally astute, political observer blurted out at the Gold Dome during the past legislative session, “Poor Ed Lindsey. Such a smart man, reduced to abject pandering.”

That’s the thing about hiding one’s smarts and light under a canopy of political pandering with ideological sloganeering about hating on “Obamacare.”

Smart voters know a repeal of the ACA is never going to happen (and I suspect they don’t really want it repealed, if they were waterboarded on the matter), and the dumber ones are attracted to politicians who don’t have to pander, such as former state Sen. Barry Loudermilk, as those candidates can preach from their manufactured pulpits with a genuine zeal and conviction, making them far more appetizing ideologues for voters who need a dash of ideological Purell before touching their ballot screens.

Heck, Loudermilk may even genuinely believe he can march up to Washington and personally overthrow the ACA! I couldn’t see Lindsey ever leading that particular charge, so I wish he’d never even brought the ridiculous matter up at all.

Perhaps I should just surrender my old fashion notion of moderate, reasonable Republicans still roaming around in Georgia. Clearly, as the District 11 race data show, they’ve gone extinct.

Drive-By Georgia Political Journalism

Listen, Georgia media kiddies. No one really cares what Charles Bullock (of UGA) thinks about Georgia politics. Name one person who does. Thus, can we stop with the tired, sad media (print, TV, blogs, etc.) formula of:

a.) Go call-up same ‘ole same ‘ole SOT from Bullock or Merle Black (of Emory).

b.) Bang a keyboard for an hour or so.

c.) Call it journalism and a day.

Those two haven’t said much fresh or insightful since 1988. Jeez.

Reason I like Lori Geary of WSB-TV on Georgia politics is she always goes for something slightly different for her Georgia politics perspectives and insights, rather than merely cooking-up the go-to box of mac ‘n cheese news formula in her kitchen. Not that she wouldn’t go for a Merle or Charles SOT here and there, but only if she felt it was absolutely necessary.

Hell, I used to get shuffled out the door and on over to Emory about 2X a day (during political season) to go sweep-up Merle Black SOTs when I was in my 20’s. And that was a while ago.

So, you’ve got less than a year until the 2014 primaries. Can you, our clearly fearful Georgia media leaders and deciders, take a day or three to think-up just one teensy tiny innovative way to cover politics in Georgia?

I think what I’m wishing for is a “summit” focused on nothing but brainstorming new ideas for media-izing Georgia politics. And before 2014 shows up on our doorstep.

Georgia Politics Continue To Inspire Georgia Media To Heights Of Status Quo

I am concerned about Michelle Nunn’s campaign for U.S. Senate already. And not because of her qualifications as a candidate to represent us here in Georgia. (Those seem just fine. Far better than most, come to think about it.)

But rather, what concerns …me is that, IN LESS THAN 24 HOURS, this candidate for U.S. Senate has already done two Georgia media-related things that annoy me something awful:

1.) Given Karen Handel yet another reason to NOT shut up and go away.

2.) Inspired Georgia’s usual-suspects-posse of mostly white male political writers to even greater heights of their predictable copy/keyboard pounding.

Perhaps my favorite example, thus far, is the AJC’s Jim Galloway attempting some Pat Conroy-like (gooey) prose in his “exclusive” interview with candidate Nunn, whilst sitting at Thumbs Up diner, of all non-interesting settings to announce one’s senatorial aspirations:

… a last name that bespeaks Georgia centrism.

Wake me up when anyone in Georgia political media ever does anything remotely innovative, disruptive, or interesting.

Skewed Georgia Political Journalism On Most All Georgia Media Farms

There is a good bit of chatter (on Facebook) about Nikema Williams’ excellent decision to open-up the process of electing a new Democratic Party of Georgia (DPG) chair to more than white male-only candidates.

A little background… seems there was something in the DPG’s by-laws about if a white male (or black woman presumably, or whatever was the most matchy-match) was serving as chair of the party and left that post early, then the person to fill the chair/leadership void would have to share not just a similar but also an identical demographic. Such as also being a white male, as was Mike Berlon, of course, who recently and unceremoniously left the chairpersonship of the DPG.

So Ms. Williams has changed the chairpersonship rules up a bit, in her interim, between-chairs-role and duty. And that’s ok, ‘far as I’m concerned.

But what concerns me as a writer/editorialist, and also as a pan-media and prolific content provider (of more than mere text, in other words), much more than the fate of DPG leadership, is the dearth, lack, and scarcity of women or minority writers at the The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on issues and matters pertaining to Georgia-based politics. And other media outlets too, but let’s start with the most influencial.

DPG rules can change all they care to, and that’s fine. But there are some other unwritten “rules” around this town that need to change too, if you ask me. Which of course no one did.

Oh, but they should. Ask me.

Redistricting Georgia

Wave Your Magic Media Legitimizing Wand

I sleep like a baby at night, knowing I always bust MY butt to be the best illegitimate media source I can be. And there are plenty of others in Atlanta/Georgia who go at their illegitimate media efforts like bunnies, too.

Recent good examples are Todd Rehm at Peach Pundit and Matthew Cardinale at Atlanta Progressive News. Heck, Cardinale takes illegitimate media to a whole new magical level; suing the crap outta the Atlanta City Council for violating Open Meetings/Open Records law. And winning too.

I don’t want to re-cap that long and very winding issue right here. The Daily Report, Atlanta’s legal community daily, just did a good cover story on the messy matter of Mr. Cardinale. Alas, they’re big honkin’ capitalist pigs over there at the Daily Report, and they lock-up their legitimate media behind a firewall. New media curses on them.

Of course anyone with an Internet connection and a Facebook account has already copied and pasted the Daily Report’s story about Matthew Cardinale, and is merrily circulating it that way amongst Atlanta’s media and political cognoscenti. I’ll leave you on your own to find your, er, unique way to it.

But Peach Pundit, for a bunch of boisterous, loud conservatives (with fun, boozy happy hours too!), is very good at keeping information free and flowing to us lowly masses. So there’s an ongoing updating of the Atlanta City Council open meetings/records saga there. Seek away.

And please… do your part. Always be the illegitimate media YOU wish to see. You never know who will be the one to legitimize you with their magic, media-legitimizing wand.

I know I stash several, top shelf Media Legitimizers around my palace. Now if I could just figure-out where I put the damn things…

Live Events for Georgia Sine Die

It’s the very last day of the Georgia General Assembly. Or Sine Die (*Without Day*) as it’s commonly referred to. Lots of live action online for you to follow along with. GPB’s Lawmakers, Georgia Public Broadcasting, provide live streams of the chambers. The House live cam/stream is here.

The best live blog for your participation (it takes in Tweets using the #GAsinedie and #GApol hashtags too) is here.

Also, there will be a 6pm rally at the Capitol today to protest HB87. The immigration bill that’s causing such a stink. It’s a gorgeous day out, and that rally will no doubt be very well attended.

Happy Sine Die! And a quickie video package I did for CBS-Atlanta for last year’s Sine Die is here.

Georgia New Media Notes March 31, 2011

Several new media things jump out today… Facebook is such an amazing tool for tracking legislation going through the legislative process. The Sunday Sales/Senate Bill 10 may or may not be before the Rules Committee today.  Advocates such as Rich Sullivan and co. are at the Georgia State Capitol now Tweeting and posting Facebook updates about this one bill’s progress.

Lobbyista, media, advocates and ordinary folk, take note! Could save tons on tasseled loafer polishing costs by not having to hoof it along the hallways of the Gold Dome. Watch and learn from the comfort of your connection.

Then again, just being at the Capitol on a busy day is exciting in itself. Go live and in person whenever you can. Just report back for us what is going on… as it happens. Social media tools make it very easy to do. (They’ve got great wi-fi at the Dome.)

Other quick note… when giving interviews to text-only outlets avoid passive language, such as Michael Bond’s here. While it’s earnest, and might work in a broadcast environment, it always prints bad.

Councilman Michael Julian Bond pointed out that Sandy Springs and DeKalb County have full government participation and the continual council snubs are “almost getting to the point where it is beginning to be offensive.”

Elsewhere, Bob Barr believes in the intended effects of mass media propaganda. The best money can buy. Cute, huh?

One more… from what I hear, bloggers are already revolting on donating free content to @11AliveNews/@gannett‘s Where U Live project. Must give back, news farms! Must. Think of better ways to give back to the blogger (on-air time comes to mind), and you might get more better content from ’em.

Today is the deadline to nominate your fave Georgia journo/blogger now for The Atlanta Press Club 2010 awards. It’s easy to do.

That’s it for the morning. Make it a great use of new media day!

Live Blog for GA General Assembly Crossover Day

Have at it here.

Calling Bullshit On Violence In Georgia

It was refreshing and surprising, sadly, to hear Dick Williams call-out a questioneer during a U.S. Representative Paul Broun gathering at the end of today’s Georgia Gang show as an example of negativity in Georgia news and politics.

Williams was refering to a deeply misguided person who asked *Who’s going to shoot Obama?* to Rep. Paul Broun at a Tuesday, February 22, 2011 townhall meeting at the Oglethorpe County Commission chamber.

Whether in public or within family gatherings and conversation, violence-laced claptrap and rhetoric should not be tolerated, especially here in a state where it’s been allowed to flourish, without pushback, for far too long. Let’s hope the Secret Service is making that jackass squirm now.

Rep. Paul Broun is so deeply out of it that the offensive question did not register as deeply wrong, immediately, within him. Or else he, Broun, would have called it out right then and there, live as it happened, at the town hall meeting. He did not do that. He said merely, *Next question.* To laughs. Pitiful.

It took Blake Aued going back and clarifying a question he could barely hear (and a follow-up one too), and writing about it on his blog. Aued’s name, for doing so, has gone nationwide over the weekend. See Twitter for a quick example of the power of Aued’s blog post on the matter.

And these are just the folk who could manage to spell his name right.

Georgia’s Jobs Creation Project Thwarted By Tea Party Binge Drinking

Georgia’s in a bit of a sticky-wicket, eh? The Georgia GOP has been railroaded by the Tea Party Kool-Aid their teenagers were passing around in a patriot-drag party earlier this year. And, like bummer, the reality police have since raided the place.

Well, this rhetorical hangover is sure gonna be a bitch now! Because Savannah area congressional Rep. Jack Kingston got swept back to where he always was (Georgia Congressional District 1) in a I Hate Pork! frenzy, yet is somehow entirely dependent on congressional pork scraps from Obama’s table (otherwise known as earmarks) to fund the Army Corps of Engineers’ ga-zillion dollar project to dredge (deeper) the Savannah harbor.

Remember kiddies, the Army Corps is the bumbling group of engineers who will oversea the Savannah dredging op; the Army Corps’ bumbling engineering projects are funded entirely by earmarks. And talk about another real bummer, Kingston didn’t get appointed head of House Appropriations either. From Politico:

Rep. Jack Kingston (R-Ga.), a tea party favorite who lost out on his bid to chair the House Appropriations Committee, thinks his party may have overreached.

“Let’s look at transportation,” he said Wednesday. “How do you handle that without earmarks, since that’s a heavily earmarked bill? How do you handle a Corps of Engineers project? I think, right now, we go through a period where we have gone one step further than we meant to go, and there are some unintended consequences.”

Among some members — including Kingston and Simpson, both appropriators — there’s a feeling of giving Congress some tough love until it realizes what it’s thrown away.

The suits, especially the ones at the Georgia Ports Authority (GPA), love ’em some federal pork so much that, let’s be honest here folks, they can’t really exist without it. They sure can’t come up with the billions needed to dredge the Savannah harbor all on their own, with just our pittance of state-of-Georgia taxpayers’ money.

But who will they need to call-on and make nice-nice with (soon) to get the pork they indeed DO need to fund lots of stuff the Big Business suits in Georgia, such as Frank Blake of Home Depot, want? Why that Muslim Kenyan in the White House! The kid they’ve kicked around the playground for a couple of years now. Kinda like that gubernatorial candidate, pathetic as he was, that the Georgia bloggers kicked around for a year or so who now has sued their flamer-butts for slander and libel. *gulp* But let’s not diverge under the rock of the Georgia political blogosphere…

So, in this laughable manuever they think the Georgia press won’t tell on ’em about (and knowing the Georgia press they very well may not) the GPA and GOP suits and Frank Blake and his lobbying minions are going to send Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed to pow-wow with, you know, the brother. The one in the White House. Save face with the holy and righteous constituents back home, because it’s not like the white folk GOP leadership in Georgia’s can be seen asking Obama, of all people, for a handout.

I mean, they’d have to stand there, cap in hand, and look the dude they’ve been calling names all this time straight in in the eye and say, *Yes Sir, Mr. President. Whatever YOU say, Mr. President. We know we owe you BIG TIME if you give us Savannah Port earmarks now.*

Hell, if I was Obama I’d make ’em crawl in to the Oval Office on their knees. While wearing those silly hats and breeches the Tea Party drag queens love so much. But I’m sure POTUS is a lot more forgiving than I am.

Don’t the white folk who need Big Federal Money back home in the woods just crack you up? It’s *jobs for Georgia* now though, so it’s all good. Right?

Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed On Dredging Savannah Harbor

From the Georgia Ports Authority forum on December 2, 2010. Mayor Reed addresses the impact the proposed (pending receipt of many earmarks) dredging, of the Savannah harbor to allow for bigger ships, will have on the metro Atlanta area.

GA House Bill 277, referenced by Mayor Reed, is here: http://www.legis.state.ga.us/legis/2009_10/sum/hb277.htm

Media by WaySouth Media, Inc.

Carol Porter Is So Kim Kardashian

No, Carol Porter has no signature fragrance. I doubt she’s worn much bling out on the relentless, red-clay Georgia campaign trail for Lt. Governor, either. However, she is doing something just the way Kim Kardashian does it – Carol Porter is synching her real-time social media seamlessly into her online campaign presence.

Go to CarolPorter4GA and you are immediately connected to Porter herself – not to a static, processed appeal for donations as most campaign websites tend to present. Porter’s Facebook updates are presented as fresh, updated content on the homepage.

Porter works her Facebook updates very seriously, posting info and news of her day ahead by 6am that morning. You’ve got to be a seriously early riser to keep-up with Carol Porter, whether in social media or out on the grueling campaign trail. There are busy women; then there’s Carol Porter.

Mad Men, Mad Money, North Georgia

Oh victimhood. It sure doesn’t look pretty on our menfolk, eh? Worn like a hairshirt on our men of bigtime capitalist action plans? On our Georgia Republican leadership? Stuff just ain’t purty, any way you examine it. If you must.

Bernie Marcus popped-up on CNBC recently. In a bizarre, aging-capitalist ramble of a rant against the Obama Administration. The whole weirdness led… absolutely nowhere. And had nothing to do with the hardly-suffering Marcus himself, but was rather on behalf of a few whining, broke cronies. See here.

Yes, Bernie Marcus made a lot of people money. (I am one who stashed away a little of Bernie’s money myself… to see me through a divorce and single parenthood times. I am grateful to have had it, too.)

But the Home Depot folk who made the most money, the serious big bucks made by a handful of working class Joes who busted their butts right on up to a C suite at Depot, I Sarah Palin-betcha plenty of those people live in North Georgia right now. However, these far tougher times reveal that only a precious few could hold on to or manage their wealth… up there in North Georgia.

Been to North Georgia lately, folks? Someone called it PVC Nation. The entire landscape is moreorless bankrupt. Looks just like in the photo above. Nathan Deal is the human equivalent; now the North Georgia Wasteland poster child of greed and speculation, in boom times, gone wild.

This has absolutely nothing to do with the Obama Administration or Tim Geithner or Nancy Pelosi or stimulus money or keeping hope alive. But it has everything to do with bad business practices much of North Georgia over-indulged in during the housing bubble of the mid-2000’s, like some crazed Big Mac bender.

Delighting and drooling in the boom housing times they willingly, gleefully lavished on themselves in a doomed river of (no doubt perceived as highly deserving) easy money. A mad, bank-driven, get-even-richer scheme of land speculation blessings – as if boom times and wacky lenders like the Community Bank (see link at bottom for more on Community Bank) were a prayed-for gift from Jesus Himself.

And dig me when I tell you kiddies, any money people made while working for Home Depot did not come easy;  it came from long years of hard work. But I diverge.

No one owes any of these whining types who are now whining to the heavens over their cash flow issues, such as Proxy Man Marcus, a guarantee of boom times and rivers of cash from any bank on any corner. (Again, Marcus is hardly suffering, but rather whining like a nutter on behalf of a few buddies he flew around in his Gulfstream last week. Go figure.)

See Bernie whine on their behalf.

What I want to know is where in the world did they ever get off thinking a wild profit and forever-good times were a right they were granted for the sheer good luck of having been born a white businessman in America? Huh? That one just makes me scratch my head in bewilderment.

Stick with ’em long enough though, and eventually they all get around to blaming their white men-woes not just on the Obama Administration but also on that tried and true evil – The Media. Nathan Deal’s already launched that worn-out whine.

More on the matter of North Georgia repercussions here. It is the stuff novels are born from.

Thank You For Choosing Political Service

To my many friends and social media aquaintances who were running for public office yesterday to serve the state of Georgia…

I am honored and impressed to know so many of you. Good character and good values cross all partisan lines. And I saw plenty of those from the people I know who chose to set themselves up for the scrutiny of our political process… as I also saw their names on my ballot.

Instead of going out to the victory parties or viewing the results at Manuel’s, as I like to do, I ended-up staying home and watching the documentary about the death of Neda in Iran… a story I’ve followed since seeing and hearing it all play out in front of my eyes and ears on Twitter and YouTube and Facebook and MSM… just over a year ago.

The documentary, Death in Tehran, was a perfect affirmation of our unique political process. There was not a moment that was lost to me, in a documentary about the tragedy and horror of political repression, of how blazingly fortunate and free we are in America – when we choose to be so.

And while there is gross apathy, ignorance and contempt for our gift of political freedoms in America I am fortunate and grateful that, for the most part, the people I know and associate with are fortunate and grateful and respectful of a political process we should never take for granted.

You set an example for others in every action, small or large, you do every day. With the greatest example being your belief and participation in a political system you chose to embrace with a great appreciation affirmation of the process we are astonishingly gifted with.

With absolutely nothing to do with a win or a loss, your example of expectant participation and service is a unique and valued treasure in itself.

Thank you.

What Would You Pay To Go Full Multimedia?

I recently completed a 4-month long project during the course of the Georgia General Assembly’s 2010 session; from opening day to Sine Die (last day)… give or take a week or two off here and there when the legislators had to excuse themselves to, like, go figure stuff out.

This online video project was taken on with veteran southern politics newsman, Tom Baxter, at the behest of CBS-Atlanta, WGCL. You can review some of the 30 videos created and promoted here.

CBS-Atlanta had no designated political reporter at the onset of the project, that began in January of 2010. They needed to supplement their broadcast product with targeted, specialized online media. Not more “Tough Questions” ambush-style product (Saltzman is perfectly capable of THAT gig all by her scowling self), but with more feature-type of media offerings from a seasoned reporter who understands Georgia politics.

Baxter delivered the goods. At times it seemed as if there wasn’t a single person, of the daily hordes walking up the gorgeous marble staircases of the State Capitol, that he didn’t have a full bio on… stored in his usually-in-need-of-combing head. In four months of activity, I saw only one politician refuse an interview request with Baxter, and that was a pol who had just been demoted by the House Majority (or Senate, I forget) leadership, so the pol had to go off and lick his wounds, thus brushing-off Mr. B. in his haste to process all that new-bad karma.

So well regarded was Mr. B in the long history of work he’s done in southern political (print) journalism that powerful people seek him out to have a moment with him. Hell, the dude could just stand in the hall with a mic turned on (as I rolled media card) and every single person in the Capitol would come by to say their piece – and be delighted to be doing so. It makes ’em feel special.

Baxter doesn’t deal in rumor and innuendo. Nor commando-style microphone shoving into faces whilst yelling ridiculous questions. All you’re ever going to get from a bizarre method like that is decades of resentment. You’re certainly not going to forge relationships. More like you’re just banishing yourself into the political wilderness, for no apparent reason, where you’ll be left alone with no one to go on the record for you when you might need them, say ten years down the road of your mutual careers in politics and/or journalism.

That or either you’re in it for your personal careerism, perhaps thinking you are getting yourself off to that mythical place that no longer exists called “the networks.” Like anyone wants to go THERE nowadays. It’d would be the journalistic equivalent of being shipped to Siberia if you ask me, which of course no one did.

Politics is local. Anything you do at the national level is just pack mentality pointlessness of rote meme recitation to mass media consuming drones. For a bigger paycheck and a whopping mortgage in Arlington, VA, with Ivy League to pay out the ass for bratty kids who should be sent to community college anyway.

For the most part, other than a wild flame-out or two here and there, politics is a long haul endeavor. And if you don’t cover it with that in mind you’ll get nothing. Nada. (Just ask Dale Russell.) If you don’t ask nicely, you’ve just made yourself a career-long enemy… if you are young, unwise, and think that is how news must be churned – with impolite, disrespectful behaviors as a motivator. And you can go back to your newsroom and call it news if you wish. Or a report. But trust me, it will not be journalism.

Baxter is a genuine journalist. The news he writes and the stories he tells come from the people in power and elsewhere who are willing to go on the record and talk openly and with transparency about the political process. And there are never just two sides of a story. Rather, especially in politics, it’s more like there are 10-15 sides of a story. Baxter lets ’em all whisper their various POVs in his ear, weighs all the chatter with his years of experience in the game, and then he writes. Or in our multimedia case, talks out perfectly crafted sentences off the top of his head – no script, no rehearsal. Dude was a born TV broadcaster and never knew it!

Anyway… getting to the point of this blog post, which was supposed to be about money and budgets, but if you’re going to entertain a thought towards southern politics Baxter will get your attentions. So, on to the point… here’s the gear list and pricing (retail) for what amounted to a series, an archive really, of about 30 videos. 30 videos,  most in the 3-minute range, that incorporate what will be Georgia’s 2010 political history. And yes, I wish news orgs would see themselves more as archivists and librarians who also exist to serve the greater historical good, but that’s a whole other discussion, eh?

• Camera, Kodak Zi8: $170. on sale at Target
• Tripod, some cheap crap off of eBay – $30. (will not last longer than a few weeks without breaking, but if you’re going cheap you work with what you got, right?)
• 8-gig memory card – about $40.
• Adobe Premier editing software package – about $100.
• Audio-Technica Pro 24 external mic – $100.

So there. For under $500. you too can get yourself a multimedia broadcast production facility. Moreorless. Of course that’s just the gear. You must then determine just how much time and cost you are going to invest in your multimedia online endeavor. What is worth the multimedia online treatment in your shop? And what is it worth to you in this social media, online world we’re all creating and growing day by day?

You tell me. Or better yet… let WaySouth Media tell you.

Georgia Libertarians Had A Good Night Out In The ATL

Longtime Georgia political, Libertarian blogger Jason Pye didn’t win the category (Online/Multimedia) he was nominated for tonight at the Atlanta Press Club 2009 Awards of Excellence and Journalist of the Year. Veteran journalist Jim Walls did. Congrats to Jim!

Bob Barr, Daniel Adams and other prominent Libertarian Party of Georgia folk were there tonight at the awards ceremony to support Jason too. See pic.

However, Jason being represented is a huge step forward for the Georgia political blogosphere. Having a blogger as a finalist in the The Atlanta Press Club Awards of Excellence race is a good thing, and the culmination of hard, mostly thankless work on the part of Jason Pye.

It’s a big step, and I’m so freakin’ proud of Jase and all the other Georgia bloggers that I could hug ’em all. They’re doing good work and moving forward, and next year I want to see many more Georgia bloggers represented in the APC annual journalism awards.

And many congrats to the very deserving Dale Russell who won Journalist of the Year tonight from the Atlanta Press Club. Russell won for his team’s hard work in, quite literally, bringing down the (GA) House… the whole Glenn Richardson, er, affair. (Of which I will not recount here.)

I’m tickled pink that I have so many nominees as Facebook friends. It’s an online world now, kiddies. Good journalism and friends are always worth sharing. 🙂

Georgia Legislature’s Final Day – Sine Die 2010.

Whew! I made it through.