On Wednesday night (9/21) there were several live streams from Charolotte, NC by my local news affiliates on Facebook. At the protest, there were tear gas and arrests. One person was shot and killed.
One of the news stations had the following copy, “WARNING: This video is LIVE and UNEDITED.” This was from Tampa Bay area ABC affiliate, WFTS. When I watched, there were more than 2,000 other live viewers, and shares at more than 300. The other one I watched was from Tampa Bay area NBC affiliate, WFLA and had more than 1.4 thousand viewers while I was watching.
Both stations filmed in the same style. Mostly just showing the crowd instead of talking. When they have said things, it’s more under their breath and talking to their crew. You can hear things like, “I’m not getting arrested tonight,” and “I’m kind of busy right now,” from the reporters showing that they are completely submerged in real life.
They are showing what is happening, unfiltered and without saying or explaining much – just letting the viewers see for themselves. For WFLA, you can also hear a reporter from their office remind the on-site reporter that they are live. WFTS does have their official logo on the feed and details of the breaking news. They also encourage followers to follow them on Twitter for live updates.
In all honesty, this was scary to watch. Not to say that, that should be a reason for them not to live stream. It is just that I know that this is live and that they cannot control what happens. The live stream is uncensored.
WFLA does not have a logo bug on the video stream. It feels less like a news report than the other channel. They also are less involved in explaining what is going on in the feed and even got up close and personal where protesters and police officers were facing each other.
Both live streams are extremely shaky. Like Cloverfield or Blair Witch Project. This is something that we notice with breaking news as the reporter is less worried about the quality of the video, but instead capturing the live news in real time. This is a different subject than reporters sharing less threatening news, but also is a good example of the pros and cons of live streaming. The value of this video is that viewers can see this news, live, from their mobile device – they do not need to be near a TV. Comments and shares are also soaring. So they can connect and engage with friends, family and even strangers on what is happening.
The intensity of this situation has also made it so that reporters are solely watching and recording their surroundings and are not on the live feed monitoring comments and questions. With other types of stories, it is encouraged and recommended that the reporters talk about the comments and questions, they would need a calmer environment.
At one point, WFLA even set down their camera and you can see sidewalk and just hear voices. That was something you would not typically see from the news. You can also hear things like a reporter giving their phone number to a contact. Something they may not even be thinking about. The live streaming has left the reporters transparent. Things are happening as they happen – no filters allowed.
The last thing I heard from the live streams was two reporters on two different stations talking through the events. You can then hear another reporter say, “I’m doing a live stream.”
ashleighostermann 