WLUV Box Set: Ignited, Consumed, Burned Read Online Free PDF Page A

wrong with
her?  She needed this job, which meant she needed to repress her lusty little
inner voice and the things stirring up in her. She deliberately trained her
eyes on her surroundings.
    First off, this news director’s office was a clear
indication that this station’s trouble came from the top down. The place was a
mess, and not the organized chaos of a hard worker, but a neglected, disarrayed
space. She pulled open a large lower drawer and a bottle of Straight Shot
Bourbon rolled forward. No surprise there. News Director Pat Walters was a
problem that would need to be addressed. But since he wasn’t there, she’d work around
it.
    She set up a laptop at the conference table and called
Bernie into the office.
    “Bernie, sit down. You’re the E.P. Tell me, how do we miss a
double fatal traffic tie-up like that? Both our competitors led with it tonight
at six, live from the scene, and we were showing file video of a city council
meeting from what, last week? Gordon did the story.”
    “Macy, I heard about that accident on the police scanner and
I told the kids – you know, everyone in the bullpen – I told them about it. But
they’re locked in on their rundowns and they’re afraid to change things at the
last minute, so nothing was done.” Bernie shook his head, frustrated. “They
have no idea how to adapt once they’ve stacked their shows with whatever they
came up with in the morning. And Gordon isn’t going live on the highway. He’ll
be the first to let you know.” He rolled his eyes as he said it.
    “Well then some of these newbies can do it. We need to make
sure the ones who are green and hungry do the stuff Gordon says he’s too good
for.” Macy knew how to work the personalities in a newsroom.
    She studied Bernie for a moment. It made no sense for him to
be an Executive Producer, chained to a computer. He could translate the police
scanner. She’d called a few people he used to work with and they all said that
he had “scanner ear.” If it was breaking news, fire calls, bodies found, and
beat checks; Bernie was on top of it. This station couldn’t afford to miss
breaking news anymore. It needed someone in authority to quickly dispatch
crews.
    “Here’s what I want to do. I want you to move to assignment
editor. Don’t worry— I’ll see that you stay at the same pay rate. I’ll find
some kid with OCD to handle the Executive Producer job or even just leave it
open for a while. But the youngsters in the newsroom need someone who
understands the police scanner and knows how to dispatch crews. I know you know
how to get them where they need to be, and fast. I need you to get crews to
breaking news. If we can win there, we’ll win viewers. What do you think?”
    “Sounds good, Miss Green. You’ll never miss a double-bagger
again if I’m on the assignment desk.” An assignment editor job was much more
stimulating than crossing T's and dotting I's of on-air graphics, his main job
as an executive producer. Bernie seemed to relish the idea, even if everyone
hated the assignment editor at one point or another because, well, they
assigned the work. Like it or not, when the assignment editor says go, then
it’s time to go. But Macy bet that Bernie wouldn’t blink at their grousing when
he interrupted their cushy city council stories and sent them on breaking news
runs.
     “Great. I’ll deal with the producers. They’ll know how to
put live breaking news on the air by the end of the week. I just need you to
get me that news.”
    Macy felt good about the first change. The next problem was
the current twenty-something assignment editor. The veteran reporters dismissed
the young girl when she tried to tell them what they needed to cover. Macy’s
second change would be putting her to another task. “And send little Shelby
Virtue in here.  I’m going to rock her world.”
    “I hope she’s not too disappointed that I’m going to take
her job.” Bernie winked and walked into the