ACT NOW:  TAB News Producing Workshop With Al Tompkins Nov. 17-18

posted on 10.10.2023

- Registration, Hotel Discounts End Soon!

Broadcasters need to act now to save on registration fees and hotel rates for next month’s TAB News Producing Workshop featuring Poynter veteran Al Tompkins Nov. 17 and 18 at the TAB building in downtown Austin.

Registration fees increase after Oct. 15 and hotel rates jump after Oct. 16.

Member station staff and students can register now for just $55 per person which includes continental breakfast, all-day beverages, and lunch.

The Hyatt House Austin/Downtown is offering a special TAB rate of $182 a night plus taxes through Oct. 16.  

The same workshop will be presented on Friday, Nov. 17, and Saturday, Nov. 18, so newsrooms will have two options to choose what best fits the staff schedule.

Al Tompkins, TAB’s longtime friend and newsroom trainer who recently retired from the venerable Poynter Institute for Media Studies, will lead each day’s training.

In 25 years at Poynter, Tompkins trained thousands of producers keen on improving their professional skills and developing their newsroom leadership capabilities.

Tompkins’ teaching is practical, specific, and loaded with real examples that arm attendees with techniques to use on the next shift.

Registrants should expect lots of interaction and introspection as they take time away from the daily newscast grind to focus on their unique role in the newsroom.

This session is perfect for producers, associate producers, and newsroom leaders who want to grow the station’s newscast producing team.

TAB is also seeking serious college students for the workshop who want to become television newscast producers.

The Workshop Agenda

The workshop will begin with an examination of what producers strive for in the newscasts they create and manage.

Next up is a session on power writing that makes for memorable newscasts and retains audiences.

The first post lunch session focuses on a producer’s leadership role in the newsroom by reviewing principles to guide story choices and make ethical decisions on daily deadlines.

Tompkins will address the ongoing struggle newsrooms have with staff stress and burnout in the next module.

Our industry loses good staff every year because of it.

Attendees will learn proven techniques of self-care to aid in today’s newsroom environment and workload.

This session will also examine ways to best interact and lead other staff contributing to the newscast, as well as “managing up” with bosses and other newsroom managers.

After a short break, producers will explore their vital role in fact-checking and truth-testing by learning the new threats from artificial intelligence, spotting disinformation, and avoiding unproven claims that undermine viewer trust.

Tompkins will conclude the day’s training by reviewing how attendees can implement the main takeaways from the day in their next newscast.

Questions? Contact TAB’s Michael Schneider or call (512) 322-9944.

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