Eric Fenstermaker- Weekly Story Idea No. 7
The Axle: I want to do a story on the current job market and work situations/ opportunities in Pennsylvania. I want to examine three main areas when talking about work in Pennsylvania: the jobless rates, the current situation of the labor force and the changes in payroll. A lot of new information was released recently about these topics, and I would want to use this data to really solidify how COVID-19 has impacted workers’ lives in addition to what this could mean for the future. I think this story will be powerful because it really focuses on people directly, and this package has people at its heart.
The Riders: I would want to speak to a couple different people for this package. First, I would want to speak to a government official. I would want to know what changes and impacts they have seen and what they have done to try and rectify some of these losses. I would also want to see what they are trying to do in the future to keep the deficits low. Additionally, I would want to talk to business owners. Since many businesses have had to either increase or decrease staffing sizes, I want to know what these changes have meant for overall production. Additionally, I want to ask about wages and what the pandemic has done to impact the pay workers take home. For example, some industries are raising pay dramatically just to get workers in the door. Lastly, I want to drive home the message with individual workers. I’d prefer to get the perspective of someone who has maintained a job during the pandemic, and I would like to examine he/she compared to someone who is struggling or even lost their job. I think this will really bring it all together.
Spokes: My footage would come from the businesses that I interview. I want to get footage of people working and interacting with customers, and I want to capture what work in the pandemic looks like. I think closer shots of the workers and people I interview will really bring people back to the heart of the message and strengthen its value. I believe that my standup will really depend on the information I learn throughout my research and interviews, but I know that I want it to feature a visual demonstration that will really get the point across.
The Rim:
- Beginning- I would want to start broadly and give an overview of how people have been impacted by the pandemic. I would then get into more specifics, and I think starting with the first government official would drive home the accuracy of my facts/ impact of my message. From there, I would want to focus in on individual people and businesses to really be able to highlight the impact on the communities that will be watching the package.
- Middle- I would move into the impact on a particular business and its workers. I really want to work and find people in the community of my audience so that the idea resonates with them. I think showing how the business has been impacted will show the direct impact on labor, and this will give me another source that has a position of power and knows a great deal from the leader perspective.
- End- Lastly, I want to end with individual workers. This is my ending because it really is the most powerful part. I want to really get people connected to the package by using these workers to tell a unique story. These workers have felt the impact of the pandemic and will be able to provide powerful SOT that will really get people thinking. These people will humanize the story and make it worthwhile for the audience to view. I would end with my standup that includes the visual demonstration.