JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Reporters and photographers aren’t afraid to get their feet wet or their hands dirty. They’re go-getters, so they’ll jump through hurdles to get the facts and share compelling stories.
But 2020 has brought challenges they’ve never seen before.
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The COVID-19 pandemic means traditional interviews have gone out the window. It’s been a new experience for reporter Jennifer Ready and photographer Tommy Garcia.
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“It’s changed a lot, you know,” Ready said. “We’ve been in hospitals a few times this week, and you’re going in with masks or your temperature checked. You don’t have access to the type of video, so your workflow changes in that sense that you’re trying to write to video that you don’t have.”
Ready only comes into the News4JAX newsroom on weekends when she anchors The Morning Show.
During the week, she starts her days from home, calling into a virtual morning editorial meeting with producers and managers through Zoom, a teleconferencing platform. That’s how she pitches stories and finds out what her daily assignments will be.
“That’s really the only time I see anybody inside the station all day,” Ready said.
From there, Ready and Garcia could travel to anywhere in the Jacksonville viewing area, which includes Northeast Florida and Southeast Georgia.
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“I feel sometimes disconnected,” she said. “Yeah, because you're seeing people either in the parking lot or some people that are inside the station we haven't seen in weeks, minus via Zoom.”
She said the new workflow gives her more time to send emails and make calls on her stories.
Garcia, a longtime photographer for WJXT, never enters the newsroom. He keeps his gear in a station vehicle and regroups with Ready in the employee parking lot. But he still has access to a few rooms in the station where he can upload and download video.
His daily gear includes cameras, an extended boom microphone to keep reporters a safe distance from their subjects and a bonded cellular “backpack," which allows crews to transmit live reports from anywhere with an internet signal.
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The different workflow was evident when the crew covered an RV resort and the crowded coast along Jacksonville Beach. Instead of using a lavalier microphone and handheld mic with the News4JAX logo, Ready held a boom mic attached to a long pole, which helps maintain a safe distance from subjects.
“I kind of like being further apart from people in general,” Ready said.
As Ready interviewed Jacksonville Beach Ocean Rescue Capt. Rob Emahiser, she stood at least six feet away. It was the same story as she interviewed beachgoers who descended on Duval County’s beaches after local officials made the decision to reopen the beaches.
Ready’s not the only reporter who has had to make changes to her workflow. Veteran reporter Jim Piggott visited City Hall daily before novel coronavirus was found in Florida. Now, he finds himself interviewing the same officials but through Zoom calls and video chats.
While Piggott said it’s convenient, it’s not the same experience as an in-person interview where he can ask follow-up questions and gauge officials’ reactions in person. He said it gives city leaders and officials more leeway to provide less information.
“I’m used to the gaggle of reporters around and you kind of feed off that,” Piggott said. “I think that has an effect on what’s going on. It makes our job more challenging. I think we’re missing a lot when it comes to getting that gut feeling. I don’t think you’re getting a true picture of what’s happening."
He said virtual news conferences, for better or worse, will likely be the wave of the future. While he understands the need for health and safety measures, he misses the old way of doing things.
Piggott has attended some news conferences in person with Mayor Lenny Curry and Gov. Ron DeSantis. He and his photographer, Randy Sell, wear their face masks and keep their distance from other crews.
“We’re exposed, and we’ve got to be careful,” said Piggott, who spent weeks at Jacksonville’s testing sites, monitoring the operations there.
Piggott and Ready acknowledged there are frustrations with the new workflow. But for the most part, they feel safe continuing to do their jobs as essential workers. They know it’s important to be on the front lines and recognize that cannot be done while working remotely.
“It kind of feels like, when is this going to end, or is it ever going to be normal again?” Ready wondered. “Or will we adjust to some of these things more permanently?”