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Thursday, July 15, 2010

TV anchors/reporter fired over parody video





The story about a group of KARK employees in Little Rock, Arkansas being fired for making profanity filled TV news parody videos at work is making the Internet rounds. [Watch videos here - NSFW]

First let me say there are two ways to look at this. Sure TV crews have been making parody videos at work for years. These people have access to all of the equipment and there's bound to be some aspiring filmmakers and performers working in local TV stations.

The twist in this scheme is YouTube and possible world wide distribution. In the past these videos probably were seen by a handful of people and never distributed past someone's desk drawer.

That being said, kids be careful what you put on video sharing sites.

On the other side of the coin, what a well thought out/put together set of videos. Sure there was too much cussing, but these disgruntled TV station staffers really know how to put out a biting piece of commentary on modern day news departments. No wonder KARK owner Nexstar Broadcasting is so angry.

These videos sting. Ouch.

They tackle what many have been thinking for a long time but only mention in shadowy corners and dark hallways...not to the whole world. Notice the use of current industry jargon and practices - not in a favorable way either. Don't call them news stories anymore, everything now is "content." LOL. But naturally I love the videos. They make a great blog post!

Those let go over the video range from anchors, a reporter and a photographer. Others involved were punished but not fired. Two of those let go, KARK anchor Courtney Collins and reporter Pete Thompson, are already famous for a live television marriage proposal. WATCH THAT HERE You can even read about how they fell in love.

- In YouTube Video Shot In Newsroom, KARK Reporters Spoof News Business
- Video: 'Report This!!!' YouTube Videos Featuring KARK Reporters [NSFW]
- UPDATE: Four KARK Employees Fired In Video Aftermath; Nexstar VP Apologizes CONTACT: Leave me a Houston or Texas media news tip | COMMENT: Click to leave your thoughts on this post here