ABSTRACT
Tulsa television news reporter Scott Gordon’s series of feature stories on the Oklahoma Panhandle region told viewers about the isolation of the rugged people who live in the western-most portion of the state. His stories focused on the people there. His series of news packages — a pre-produced news segment complete with introduction by an anchor, soundbites, and close — succeeded on the strength of his interviews with many of these residents. Gordon, who works for KTUL-TV, Channel 8, in Tulsa, went to the Panhandle to interview the most interesting and typical residents of the area he could find. In Guymon, a tiny Oklahoma town where there are more animals than people, Gordon tells viewers that residents can drive for miles without seeing someone else. In Guymon, he interviewed the editor of the town’s newspaper. Gordon talked to an 82-year-old cowboy who called himself a loner. Other residents became a part of the series as he talked to as many people as he could to get the spirit of the region. The script of Gordon’s first installment of this series, which ran a long 2:37, is reprinted at the end of this chapter.
