Clueless anchors ruining copy

My answer to a recent question on TV Spy: How do you handle anchors who change your topical copy?

You can't change them. It has to come from the ND or the GM.

The station hired you. The CSD liked your tape, and you probably had some topicals on there, I am guessing. So, talk to your bos first. Tell him/her, my spots don't have the punch I want because the anchors aren't selling it. Don't concentrate on just "they aren't reading it the way I wrote it," angle. It sounds whiney.

Instead, concentrate on how the sell is less effective overall because of delivery, which then leads to, reading copy the way it is written. Many times, just adding an "AND" between lines ruins the copy. Unless you have a ND with a marketing sense, they will never get this.

If your station has a news consultant, try to get hold of them and get them involved because I guarantee they buy into this. Now, all this leads to one thing.

A big meeting.

At that meeting, you will probably find the ND and the anchors KNOW what they are doing pisses you off, but its their way of resisting "selling out." Show them what you are trying to do, use examples from other markets, use your own tape if its better than what you are doing now. In the end, you will find a middle ground.

One concession you should consider is discussing copy with the anchors BEFORE they cut it. I always read mine to the whole damn afternoon news meeting. If all this seems daunting well, it is. And if your boss won't help you then, they suck and you shouldn't have taken the job.