TV team strive to put the bite in news
TV team strive to put the bite in news
By Edith Hartanto
JAKARTA (JP): Television journalism is a relatively new
profession here, essentially ushered in with the advent of five
private TV stations since 1989. While print media employees often
needle TV crews and say they have lot less to worry about with
only a few minutes devoted to news items, behind-the-screen
anecdotes reveal the hectic reality.
Those few minutes of reporting must be backed by engaging
pictures, valid sources and objectivity. Reporters tell of the
hard but elementary lessons in learning the ropes.
Hakim Poerba of Indosiar, 37, admits he was at first typical
of those starting their careers from print media: He was used to
working alone.
One day he was covering the lawsuit of ousted Indonesian
Democratic Party leader Megawati Soekarnoputri against her rival
Soerjadi at the Central Jakarta District Court.
"I met my old friends. I was busy gathering materials and at
noon I realized I had lost my cameraman." Back at the office,
colleagues laughed at him. "From then on, I learned that, like it
or not, the reporter and the cameraman are a team."
Others describe how a TV reporter is only as good as his
equipment.
Bob Wardhana of SCTV forgot his mike when he was hurrying to
cover a preview of Schlinder's List at the Teater Utan Kayu in
East Jakarta.
Once, when Bob was scheduled to do a story on PAM Jaya, the
city-owned water company, he arrived to find the cameraman had
forgotten the video tape.
"The official said he only had five minutes. It was impossible
for us to go back to the office to get the tape. At the end, we
missed the story. That's what distinguishes TV from print media.
TV needs the moment. If you miss it, you lose it."
Once a source has agreed to be on television, he or she is
probably aware that the footage will be substantially edited.
But there are times when extenuating circumstances mean the
material will never make it to the small screen.
Eko Saputra, an ANteve cameraman, was recording an interview
when suddenly the battery ran out. "I signaled to the reporter.
But we kept on pretending to record it as we did not want to
upset the source."
Waiting with the heavy camera is the lousiest part of the job,
he said. "It has to stick with me like glue."
But the flip side is worse. Recently, a very unfortunate
cameraman who left his equipment for a minute in his car returned
to find it had vanished.
Chickenpox
And, yes, looks are important. Makroen Sanjaya, chief editor
of SCTV's crime and legal news department, said he thought his
career was over when he suffered from a bout of chicken pox for
four months.
"I went from doctors to healers to get rid of the pockmarks
left all over my body, especially my face. Well, I was scolded by
my doctor because I kept on working and refused to get some
rest."
TV van drivers play their own essential role in getting the
crew to the story on time.
The then national police chief Gen. Dibyo Widodo frequently
teased TV journalists, saying that SCTV and ANteve crews had
among the highest number of traffic violations in the city.
"Well, we can't help it, sometimes we have to beat congestion
to reach the scene on time," quipped Irwansyah from SCTV.
Deden Kuswondo of RCTI cites a memorable experience when
covering a story in 1994 about the Marines' trip to Pantai
Swarangan, South Kalimantan.
"Yaskur (the cameraman) and I had sailed in the Teluk Banten
armored ship for eight days. We ate vegetables every day... and
the strange thing was that the meal was always bland."
Curious, Deden looked for the kitchen. "When I opened the
door, I saw a group of muscular privates chopping the vegetables
with machetes on planks of wood.
"They were surprised to see me and I was also stunned. A few
moments later they barked 'Get lost!', and scared me off, waving
the machetes. Well, no wonder the meal was tasteless."
Despite the stress and snafus, TV crews say the job is
thrilling. "At least in this profession we're always young at
heart," said Poerba.