Return to Ideas Home page

Serial Storytelling  TV News Ideas Part 1

I begin with this idea because it has the potential to help turn your newscasts, and web videos, into appointment viewing.

The first step is to re-think the old ways of producing a series.  The ‘sweeps’ approach of several pieces on a related topic is a long time favorite among producers.  These pieces are often slick and exciting, and contain useful information.   But if a series does not provide an emotion-based neural path memory, and a suspense-response, then it is a missed opportunity to help build a lasting relationship with viewers.   Here’s my concept of how you can do that.

Some of this copy is taken from my main home page.

What   True ‘Serial Storytelling’ is episodic videos of individuals who are caught up in real life dramas related to news issues.   The episodes connect to one another in several specific way, and carry the story forward.

Just ask the producers of multi-million dollar blockbuster TV dramas about the pulling power of suspenseful episodic storytelling.  And as a TV or video news producer you also have a storytelling powerful tool; non-staged real life drama, with embedded suspense and emotional pull.   But knowing that rather obvious fact is not enough.  Storytellers, reporters and writers, need to understand to extract and use natural drama.  And by that I do not mean just throw in your most sensational shot or sound bite.  There is more to it.

Uniqueness    Most online storytelling is one-off, even within a lot of so-called series.  We might be informed, but we have nothing else to look forward to.  One text piece, or one video, is not enough to create habit.  And you want to own the habits.  Serial Storytelling gives you a unique set of ways to influence news habits/

Why Serial Stories Work   We are hard-wired to understand life through stories that offer drama, emotion, intrigue, suspense, struggle, resolution and new beginnings.    And with good Serial Storytelling, viewers have time enough to become emotionally involved.  Each episode also has built-in news value, thus encourages habits.  The more episodes viewers watch a well constructed series, the more involved they become.   Those emotional ties induce strong audience loyalty and memory.  Emotional involvement induces better learning.   Memory is your friend.  (more on this in future emails).

How Serials Works   Each real life episode of an effective serial story is told like a mini three act play, beginning with ‘previously in this series.’  Then that episode moves the story forward with the latest circumstances affecting your individuals, including struggle or suspense, and ending with a new development that sets up and teases to the next episode.   I will devote other emails to the issues of suspense, curiosity, emotional investment, neural pathway viewing habits, and continuity of an issue covered by serials.

Three Acts  Yes, we all know about beginning, middle and end.  Unfortunately a lot of stories I see do not connect those elements in ways that make viewers lean in to see the next few seconds.   We live our lives in dozens, if not hundreds, of three act dramas every day.   For example, you are driving along in your automobile (apologies to Chuck Berry), nothing unusual.  Suddenly the status quo is broken by a new development.  You see that the light has turned yellow.  A new crisis.  That 10 seconds or so is Act One.  In Act Two you struggle with the crisis.  Decisions are weighed.  Danger builds. Cars are headed at you.  Your life flashes in front of you.  What will you do?   Action is taken. As you push down on the pedal and squeeze through the intersection.  In the climax you make it across in one piece.  Act three is the ending.  Your heart is pounding.  You promise yourself not to do that again (thus a new status quo is established).

My point is that most news stories can be framed as three act dramas.  You don’t label them as acts.  You just tell a real life news story in the way that we humans best absorb and remember information, in three stages.  (more on that later)

Summary  Serial Storytelling has :  1) the built in news-value of fresh developments in each episode,  2) the trustworthy content of real life stories of people whose dramas shed new light on issues, 3)  Emotional involvement with individuals whose stories you follow from one episode to another,  4) The suspense of what will happen in the next installment,  6) Journalistic integrity, and 7) New neural memory-pathways based upon emotional connection and empathy with individuals in your narrative.

 

 

Email: mikeleenews@mac.com