Facebook Live poses new challenges for reporters

In a cool meeting room crowded with senior agricultural officials discussing the national rice plan, a 23-year-old reporter was trying his best to live-stream the event from his tablet. With one shaky hand counterweighing the bulky tablet as he jotted down the key points of the meeting, Tanpisit Lerdbamrungchai was hesitant whether to stop broadcasting or put the pen down.
Obviously, pressure had been placed on him. Reporters are using Facebook Live to stream videos online with the hope of grabbing their followers’ attention and enticing them to follow up reports on the TV news programmes. “We want social media users to watch TV more,” said Tanpisit, who works for Nation TV.
He has used the “live” feature for months when required to do so by his employer. He said the footage is used like a movie trailer to promote news bulletins. “I have tried to make them compelling trailers, a brief and quick news brief to attract people to further explore stories far more in-depth on TV programmes I host,” he said.
After viewers watch the streaming videos, Tanpisit hopes they are eager to know more about the story. The challenge here, he added, is attracting people to tune in to the live Facebook broadcasts and look forward to seeing his next live video.
One thing he has noticed since using Facebook Live is that people like controversial issues to be further unfolded.
Tanpisit is among more and more reporters who are using Facebook Live. This, however, has presented a challenge.
They have to do more multi-tasking, while having to maintain the quality of their news report. “This is a big question for all reporters,” said prominent veteran journalist and news editor Nattha Komolvadhin from the Thai Public Broadcasting Service.
Despite the high technology on offer, reporters still need to carefully choose and creatively craft content, Nattha said. She said stories should not end with just a short video and in-depth information should be provided on TV so people can watch more complete stories.
“The reporters have to extend content while keeping the live videos concise,” said Nattha. Mana Treelayapewat, dean of the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce’s Faculty of Mass Communications, said with new technology available people prefer brief information and tend to absorb sketchy stories.
In light of the changing behaviour of news consumers, broadcasters have to consider the attractiveness, rapidity, accuracy, and legitimacy of content, said Mana. For attractiveness, reporters have to find the right content that swiftly catches people’s attention, he said, or run the risk of presenting boring or dated information.
He said that like almost every other emerging technology, Facebook Live is a double-edge sword. Though in-the-moment updates provide viewers with exclusive experiences, it could harm broadcasters if they present stories that viewers dislike and don’t follow up on TV. It is the task of broadcasters to study what their viewers like and dislike in a bid to keep them tuning in. Along with attractive news, reporters must also be aware of accuracy, Mana said. When covering live events, there are no editors overseeing reporters in the filtering of information and getting to the crux of matters. The reporters must make fast decisions in evaluating the appropriateness of content. Some content is too sensitive to be on the air, he said, while other content might be dodgy.
“Interviewees may allege or curse another people and it could result in a defamation lawsuit. The reporters should quickly assess whether to broadcast that kind of content,” he remarked.
He said that reporters also had to consider the legitimacy of a story. Prior to broadcasting something, a reporter should get permission from their source(s) to stream a video online.
“It is the right of the news sources to decide whether or not they will be recorded.”
Before clicking the live icon, especially for their first video, reporters must be very careful, the academic added. He said to shed light on the first video’s potential impact on a broadcaster’s reputation, think of whether someone would follow a page if they are annoyed by the first report they see on it. If they are not impressed, the possibility that they will follow that page is reduced.
In addition to content, viewer feedback is also worth considering, he said. “It [a live video] is good, has high definition vision and a clear voice,” said Akradej Chakjinda, a follower of Tanpisit, in a comment on one of his live videos.
To produce videos of good quality, the Internet connection plays a very essential role. High-speed Internet promotes the popularity of Facebook Live, Mana said, while a poor Internet connection could block its growth. With a poor Internet infrastructure, he said the live video feature is unlikely to prove more popular than conventional TV.
Although the online live video platform has not yet dominated the TV industry, like the academic said, there is no guarantee it will not eventually if the TV industry does not improve its content and production quality.