The Story Behind the Story: FFA District Competition

There is something exciting about finding a story and telling it well when competing stations don't even cover it. Often called "scooping the competition," I believe what makes it such a coveted experience is the satisfaction of knowing you have enterprised a story no one else knew about. It is a personal evaluation instead of the usual group evaluation through ratings that you are a good journalist, that you are connected with your audience, and cover what they are interested in.

I was really excited when I found this story idea. None of our competing stations covered this, and it was a major even that affected hundreds of local students and teachers. Seventeen hundred students came from all across Northeast and Central Missouri to prove their skills and compete against one another. I found the idea while I was searching through community calendars.

One thing I learned from this story is just how valuable pre-planning stories can be. I called a day before to evaluate just how many people would be affected by it. I got most of the who, what, when, where, and why answered before I even pitched the idea in our assignment meeting the next day. I was able to think through how I would tell the story and what I would need. Pre-planning helped me get just what I needed and when I headed back the the station I was ahead of schedule. There is great value in pre-planning. I learned that from this FFA District competition story.

Here is the story if you want to watch.