You've been seeing a lot of the phrase "Working for You" in our newscasts lately. I want to share with you, our CTV News community, what this means to us.
"Working For You" is a news philosophy and a promise to our audiences. It's a framework for the way we approach our journalism and storytelling at CTV British Columbia.
Simply put, as journalists we choose our stories based on broad public interest and we look for opportunities to benefit the viewer.
What does this mean in practice? It means -- for example -- that we prefer to use our resources to investigate a major health, transit or consumer issue than to delve into the latest outbreak of low level gang violence. It means that we have a checklist when we assign our newscasts: what's the issue here? Is there broad public impact? Who's accountable? And what can WE do with our journalism to enhance the quality of life in our communities? That's the essence of Working For You.
The core of this philosophy is the search for accountability from decision makers. We will ask the tough questions and we will go to the wall to get answers.
I'm fortunate to work with a wonderful team of like-minded people here at CTV. Some time ago we held a newsroom summit to define what distinguishes our newscasts. Our staff told US that they felt we could and should make two promises to our audiences. The first is that we will do everything possible to deliver the first and best breaking news in the marketplace. With Chopper 9 and our army of live trucks, we have the tools and the dedicated staff to do so.
Our local website, http://www.ctvbc.ca, has quickly become the "go to" destination for breaking stories and photos of B.C.'s biggest events. In fact, the site took home an Edward R Murrow award for best news website last year. We want you to make the site your home for breaking news and to stay with us through our newscasts as those stories develop.
The second great piece of advice we got from our staff is that there was a real opening in the marketplace for a TV newscast that would aggressively hold public officials accountable for their action or inaction. That does not mean we have a political point of view. It does not mean we abandon our responsibility to be balanced and accurate. It is in the finest traditions of our profession and is what the best journalism has always done.
And while you are now hearing and seeing the phrase "Working For You" a lot on our station now, it's not a new thing for us. Segments like Olsen On Your Side and Dr Rhonda Low's Your Health have delivered content with high viewer benefit for years.
In recent months our "CTV Investigates" unit with Mi-Jung Lee has taken on some of the biggest public policy issues of the day with series on everything from gambling to garbage to an in-depth look at why young boys are falling behind at school.
The legendary B.C. broadcaster Jack Webster (one of my early mentors in the business) used to say "I'm just a reporter on duty for the public". I've always thought Jack's wise words were a great way to think about the important job we do as journalists. This newsroom believes that we have a responsibility not only to witness and record events, but also to make our communities better, healthier, safer and more compassionate places.
At CTV British Columbia, we think -- because you've told us -- that many of you feel there is too much low level crime and celebrity gossip on television newscasts. Many of you have told us that you often find the news too depressing and that the endless parade of misery on many newscasts makes you want to "tune out".
We believe that many of you are looking for meaning and perspective from a newscast. We want to give you the first and best coverage of the day's events, but we also want you to find real benefit, as well as hope and inspiration in our newscasts.
We invite you to weigh in on our news philosophy. Tell us what you think. And please -- if we're falling down on the job of Working For You -- don't be afraid to hold us to our promises. I hope to hear from you.
News Director
