TMZ / HSMPTE Meeting

Tuesday April 22, 2008

On Tuesday April 22, the Hollywood section of SMPTE was invited by Warner Bros. to tour the production facilities at TMZ.  TMZ is a Syndicated TV program currently airing on FOX affiliates across the country.  This TV show is a prime example of the new generation of television newsgathering that is based highly on the internet culture.

Hosted by Spencer Stephens and Robert Moore, we were provided with details on a very new workflow for news acquisition, production, editing and distribution.  This TV program is produced in a very fast paced production environment, is tape-less and when the show airs, it is on TV as well as the web simultaneously.

The work-flow is vastly different from the way current news is gathered and produced, there is no host to cut back to if something does not work with a location reporter.  The news is timely and very current; they have the ability to update a segment or segments within minutes of airtime.  The workflow is all server based, all acquisition is shot on HD gear and down-converted for current broadcast, but TMZ has the ability to go full HD if needed. 

Overall the HSMPTE members were very impressed with workflow and the technology that is being utilized to get the content out.  No doubt, this is a model for news that will be duplicated around the globe.  For more detail on TMZ there is a great article in the February 08 edition of Broadcast Engineering, this will provide you with some great detail on the components being used.

HSMPTE would like to thank; Warner Bros. Chuck Dages, Wendy Aylsworth, Spencer Stephens and Robert Moore for a great evening.

Allan Schollnick – HSMPTE Section Manager