How TV news rolls in a time of national lockdown
TV networks have made subtle changes to their prime-time news shows to ensure none of your favourite presenters get sick. Chris Schulz reports.
News networks are taking drastic measures to keep their biggest shows on air and avoid contamination of presenters as the country deals with the level four lockdown.
Some of those changes made to limit the spread of Covid-19 are already visible on screen – Simon Dallow is hosting 1 News on his own and
Newshub’s lead duo of Mike McRoberts and Sam Hayes are keeping their distance by presenting from separate sides of the studio.
Hilary Barry is spearheading TVNZ’s 7pm current affairs show Seven Sharp from an Auckland studio as co-host Jeremy Wells beams in live from home via Skype.
On The Project, Mediaworks’ prime-time competition is cancelling all guest hosts as mainstays Kanoa Lloyd, Jesse Mulligan and Jeremy Corbett practise social distancing and spread out across their news desk.
On all news shows, live crosses from reporters stationed outside overwhelmed supermarkets adhere to strict social distancing rules, with no face-to-face interviews or contact with the public.
The changes come as networks attempt to meet an increasing demand for news as the country ratchets up its reaction to the worldwide spread of Covid-19.
Newshub has aired five straight hours of live news and rolling updates on Covid-19 before its 6pm news bulletin.
While all non-essential businesses in New Zealand are being forced to close for the next four weeks, newsrooms will continue to operate.
‘‘News is considered an essential service, so newsrooms will continue to run over the coming weeks,’’ confirms Rachel Howard, TVNZ’s general manager of corporate communications. ‘‘TVNZ is a lifeline utility and we take that seriously.’’
To ensure Breakfast, Midday, Te Karere, 1 News at Six, Seven Sharp and Tonight have enough reporters and presenters to air on schedule should someone become infected, TVNZ’s newsroom has been split into separate teams.
‘‘1 News has split into two teams to ensure we can keep going should one of our reporters, producers, presenters or crew become ill with a suspected case of Covid-19,’’ says Howard.
‘‘If this were to happen, close contacts would need to move into self-isolation. To mitigate this occurring across the entire newsroom and impacting full teams, we’ve split the newsroom into two.’’
That means 1 News at Six’s presenters Simon Dallow and Wendy Petrie are taking turns hosting the show on their own. They won’t come into contact with each other over the next four weeks.
‘‘The newsroom split applies to our presenting teams, too,’’ says Howard. ‘‘They’re breaking up temporarily, with other presenters joining them to ensure some continuity on screen while also protecting our people.’’
The same thing has happened on Breakfast. Fair Go presenters Pippa Wetzell and Haydn Jones have been drafted in to help bolster the morning news show’s separate teams.
‘‘Pippa has joined Breakfast as a fill-in presenter on one team . . . Hadyn will also be on Breakfast.
He’s on the opposing team from Pippa and viewers will be able to enjoy seeing him on screen in the morning, too,’’ says Howard. Fair Go is taking a hiatus during the lockdown.
Seven Sharp also has a different look. Wells moved himself into self-isolation and reported live from his dining room table at home after conducting an interview with a Bachelorette NZ
contestant who was showing signs of Covid-19.
That test turned out to be negative, but Wells has remained at home as Barry checks in with him from time to time.
Wells says he feels ‘‘100 per cent fine, never felt better’’ and Howard says he’ll return to fulltime hosting duties shortly.
Other initiatives being taken by TVNZ include all guest interviews being conducted over the phone and Skype, extra cleaning and hygiene
‘‘We’re able to do stuff that news can’t do. We’re able to do extended interviews, bring humour to something, talk about ‘the feels’ a bit more. That’s a really important thing at this time.’’ Jon Bridges
Executive producer, The Project, Three
measures being implemented, and reporters adhering to strict social distancing guidelines.
The majority of TVNZ staff are working remotely, says Howard. TVNZ 2’s flagship show Shortland Street has dropped to three episodes a week, and Howard warns ‘‘there will be a number of changes at the network over the coming weeks’’.
As Dallow said as he signed off 1 News at Six, ‘‘You may have noticed we’ve got some new
working arrangements. Wendy will be with you tomorrow on 1 News, and I’ll be with you on Friday.’’
Similar changes have been made to Newshub Live at 6pm. Its flagship hosts Hayes and McRoberts are separated on camera and behind the scenes.
‘‘We have split our Newshub teams to separate floors to ensure that if one team were wiped out, the second team could still ensure bulletins got to air,’’ says a spokesperson.
‘‘It’s a bit tough because our team are close friends so we are using video calls to stay in touch and keep the vibe going.’’
Detailed guidelines are being followed by camera crews and reporters to ensure everyone stays safe, and all cars and equipment are ‘‘extensively sanitised’’.
Interviews are being conducted online, where possible, or in car parks or other remote locations, says the spokesperson.
Drastic measures have also been taken on The Project, Three’s 7pm current affairs show, which will also continue to run over the next four weeks.
Some staff are working from home, but those required in the office to make the show each day have been split into ‘‘silos’’ and are social distancing, using separate office space and toilets.
Those silos of people don’t come into contact with one another, says executive producer Jon Bridges, and it’s a completely different way of working for the team.
‘‘Every day if you watch a normal production of this show happening, you would see people running around in here like a little beehive, everyone buzzing around, chatting to each other, different groups and teams, all day, getting really close, having a massive amount of face-to-face communication, from eight in the morning to eight at night.’’
Instead, in-studio guests have been canned, as has the regular appearance of a fourth guest host, and staff meetings are conducted over the phone or online.
Staff are getting used to the changes. ‘‘Yesterday was a bit easier, and today is a bit easier again,’’ Bridges admits.
Should the worst happen and a host tests positive for Covid-19, Bridges says a back-up team of presenters is ready to step in.
‘‘We have excellent broadcasters who’ve done the show before, [including] Nadine Higgins, Alison Mau and Patrick Gower.’’
But Bridges believes the show plays an important part in the face of a worldwide pandemic: it’s keeping viewers informed, but helping to lighten the mood.
‘‘We’re able to do stuff that news can’t do,’’ he says.
‘‘We’re able to do extended interviews, bring humour to something, talk about the feels a bit more. That’s a really important thing at this time, to show people that we can retain our sense of humour, we don’t have to panic.’’
Sky says its news shows, including Prime News – First at 5.30, will also continue to run during the lockdown period, with essential staff ‘‘working under strict safety controls and supported by the wider group of Sky crew working from home’’.
‘‘Keeping New Zealanders up to date with accurate news is incredibly important right now, so we’ve made Sky News Australia available to all Sky customers for the next three months,’’ says Sky CEO Martin Stewart.
‘‘This move will help Kiwis stay up to date with global developments, as well as all the news from Australia, where many New Zealanders have family and friends.’’
Other changes on the pay TV network include Prime playing more family-friendly content during the day, digging into the entertainment and sport archives to keep lineups ‘‘fresh and interesting’’ and the launch of a new sports quiz called Believe It Or Not.