Can Quadcopters facilitate the Salvation of TV New

Helicopter Crash Scene Courtesy of KOMO-TV Seattle, WA

Seattle, WA—Tragedy struck this morning as a TV news helicopter crashed near the landmark Space Needle.  At least two people are reported dead and another is listed in critical condition at a local hospital.  At least three cars have been set on fire as result of the crash.

TV news helicopters have a relatively good safety record, but every few years somewhere, these horrible accidents are repeated.  

Over the years I’ve lost friends in crashes in Phoenix, AZ and Denver, CO that lost their lives covering news from the air.  Trust me, it always hurts.

Aerial news coverage is necessary but can be a little risky.  It is also the single most expensive cost of most TV news organizations. 

TV news has lost a major portion of its audience and revenue and many news organizations have curtailed or eliminated helicopter coverage altogether.

Technology has brought us something far lass risky or expensive, the camera armed, Unmanned Aerial Vehicle.  These devices are very light, inexpensive, safe and perfect for gathering and broadcasting news video.  

The little drones can cost at little at $1000.00 with the popular high definition GoPro cameras or as much as $15,000 with a larger camera such as the Canon 5D DSLR with live broadcasting capability.   Either way it’s only a fraction of the cost of operating a helicopter.

The upside is that accidents with quadcopters are nearly always free from damage or injury.  They are so light that should they fall from the sky there is little or no damage in most cases.  The size of the quadcopters range from a small to an extra large pizza.

Medium and small market TV stations can keep several of these quadcopters in their broadcast arsenals at little cost.  They are also much quicker to deploy for a news story than those helicopters they now rely upon 

They can operate as long as 25 minutes before they are brought down for a quick battery change.

Those sensational and famous Los Angeles freeway chases are not currently suitable for the quadcopters because they often go on for hours and many miles. 

In riots helicopters are often shot at from the ground. That’s dangerous to say the least.  Quadcopters are a much smaller moving target and lives are not at risk should they be hit by gunfire.

A Denver federal judge has just reversed the FAA ban on commercial use of these drones.  Use of drones by hobbyists was always allowed but now news organizations are free to employ these devices.

I know for sure that employing drones will slow down the steady downpour of pink slips in newsrooms because they are so incredibly cost effective.

I can predict the immediate hiring of quadcopter multimedia journalist-pilots that can also edit the raw video into news packages on laptops in their vehicles at various news events. 

In the long run the use of drones will bring more use or aerial video than the helicopters simply because of the ease and reduced cost involved.

Another advantage is the drones can easily operate at much lower altitudes.  In fact the FAA wants them no higher than 400 feet.  Aerial video from just 30 to 75 feet is truly amazing.

The drones can be effectively flown and operated after only a few hours of practice.  News organizations cannot afford, not to employ these gee whizz gizmos if they are serious about their mission and financial survival. 

Below is my first video flight of my Blade 350 quadcopter and GoPro Hero3+ camera.  The cost of this bare bones package was about $1000.00.  I was able to do this with only about an hour’s instruction and practice.  I edited this video on a laptop with Final Cut pro X software. 


Here is some exceptional night video over Los Angeles with a DJI Phantom II with a GoPro:

Protecting Local TV News Crews From Armed Robbery and Mayhem

Los Angeles, CA—Aside from being a licensed private investigator I’m also a freelance investigative TV news field producer.  I was drafted into TV news because of my investigative skills and advanced knowledge of courts, cops and public records.  

I’m proud to say I never failed to hose the competition on the various news stories I worked on over the years.  That’s all changed now because the shrinking budgets have greatly reduced ability news directors have to hire freelancers.  Todays local TV news is no longer competitive and it has be reduced to sending a two person crew out to cut a mediocre one minute, 30 second package or slap together a quick broadcast live shot. 

By accident I had a second role with my TV clients and that was dealing with security matters.  For example I would be assigned to deal with some of the more aggressive stalkers that pursued some of the more popular anchors and reporters.  I served lots of restraining orders on the offenders and even arrested a couple of them.   Of course this kind of function must be discreetly handled so that neither my clients nor I attract attention for others in the news business.

In the past couple of years there has been a new and dangerous problem.   Armed robberies of news crews primarily targeting expensive cameras, laptops, cellphones along with cash and jewelry are in vogue.   This has been a huge problem in Oakland California and news coverage has been significantly reduced there as a result. 

TV journalists no longer have to wait till they’re sent to a war zone to experience raw fear because it’s here now too.  Perhaps it’s the result of the economy, mass early release of prison inmates or both.  It’s only a matter of time until some reporter or photographer is killed while covering local news. 

Often there are plenty of cops around where news happens but just as the lonely shot above shows my friend, TV reporter and anchor Robert Kovacik all alone without a cop in sight. 

Incidentally Kovacik was doing a live shot one morning, covering a murder when he was actually interrupted during his standup by the actual killer!  Kovacik never missed a beat as he grabbed an exclusive interview before the suspect surrendered to the police.

In Oakland they actually hired some uniformed and armed security guards for their news crews.   However, recently a reported robbery netted not only the TV news gathering gear but also the guard’s gun! 

Guard services generally employ slow-witted and poorly trained people for even armed duty because security work is rarely financially rewarding.  A warm body with a gun and a snappy uniform is hardly more than a distraction. 

The best kind of security is invisible and of course there is safety in numbers.  What the newsrooms need are a few hybrid types like me.  Highly trained former cops that can discreetly carry a firearm as a last resort, that also really functions as a news crew member helping with equipment and news gathering.  An extra crew member can help set up and tear down the broadcast equipment reducing the time that valuable news assets are exposed to danger.

Because if my presence with news crews I have defused many sticky situations where people became angry that they were suddenly news worthy.  It is not as easy to push a photographer around or assault him or the reporter if there is a fellow crew member running interference. 

News crews must learn how to evaluate risky locations and have a viable safety plan worked out between them.  Securing cameras and high dollar equipment that is not actually in actual use is necessary. 

At night using normal TV lighting, as a way to blind potential opportunistic criminals is a great deterrent.  Robbers can often become discouraged if they are simply momentarily blinded and can’t even see what they want to steal.

Insurance may cover the cost cameras but that is always a slow process.  The emotional damage to even physically uninjured reporters can create a significant disruption to any news department.  

There are a lot of honorably retired and well-educated and trained cops that can add significant news gathering ability to newsrooms and they are allowed by law to carry firearms.  Firearms do save lives in the right hands.  A field producer/security agent must know how to use his brain more than a gun.  The absolute goal is to keep security invisible while protecting lives and property.

I’d love to get some time these days with a night side news crew covering crime stories if only they could afford me.  I’m also well qualified to audit any news department’s security program.   At the end of the day the news station owners need to provide a safe workplace for their crews with minimum risk of liability.

I’ve not seen my job description on any news department’s recruiting materials.  I think that will be changing soon.