By Napoleon Ato Kittoe
Proponents of multitasking in media operations may have a case. Their call is clearly hinged on man-made or artificial obstacles within the fold. The all-in-one operational module abates or skips some of the frustrations.
The character of media operations is a division of labour. Operators are trained specialists who handle segments of the production chain.
This takes the form of the production process in product manufacturing companies. A unit finishes its job, and passes it on to the other units to handle the subsequent phases of production until it is finalized.
There are various steps to be taken towards completion in media production. For instance, in television operations, the conventional style has been the deployment of the quartet made up of the camera operator, the sound technician, the lighting person, and the news reporter. They are the crew members who go to the field to fish for stories.
The reporter would write the story, after which the script is voiced, but video editing to be done by another person trained for that role. It is at the editing bench that the voice and the footage are merged, having filtered the material to supposedly acceptable standards.
All the activities that take place after the material are gathered by the field crew, are labelled as post-production. It extends to the studio controls and the actual newscasting, forming the outlets for television content.
These rules are true in other media platforms such as radio and online. Radio broadcasts are managed by sound technicians in the studios, and IT support is required in the online business, like in other allied fields.
Now the problem is this. There are green-eyed suspicions within the fold concerning which material was assembled for others to work upon. If those who are not the primary sources guess it could be an ice-breaker or treasure trove for the source, they drag their feet or could well sabotage the process. Countless items have either been delayed or gone missing on deliberate actions or inactions.
The part that generates more barricades is specialization. Others in the chain activity more often than not assume there is something juicy in the project which the producer had failed to disclose, hence the extraordinary interest in a subject area, personality or organization. The others then constitute themselves into a stumbling block to scuttle it and cause embarrassment to the producer.
Those who think the other side of the wall is greener, nobody is stopping them from jumping to the other side of the fence to take their imaginary claims. Everybody is at liberty to switch roles through some training, at which point flying figments could be put to rest. It doesn’t help to remain in the duct as a blockade whilst playing a traditional role in the composition.
In all production chains, the whole chain is as weak as its weakest point. It is a nagging and upsetting obstacle within media operations which requires constant monitoring by management of media houses and external clientele.
