Reflections on webcam etiquette
by Cathal Mac Coille
Our new webcam lets you see what goes on in studio, but should it change the behaviour of Morning Ireland presenters?
I’ve been reflecting on the camera’s potential effects since a London listener emailed me to ask me politely not to stretch my arms in studio, as I do several times each morning. I’ll try not to, I replied, but remember what the camera is for. It’s almost literally a window on the studio, nothing more. It doesn’t change Morning Ireland into a television programme.
That means you may or may not see me listening intently to an interview conducted by the other presenter. Sometimes, there’s too much else to do. Reading a reporter’s briefing notes, for example, or getting instructions from the editor on your earphones, or searching the web for a key fact, or just thinking. If things go well, we may look pleased. If badly, irritated.
You might even see a presenter tracing a finger questioningly across the neck, as the editor on the other side of the glass is asked silently whether it’s time to end an interview.
Another listener wondered why the body language between presenters varies, at least in her opinion. The answer, I suggest, is simple. If you’ve to conduct a heavy-duty interview on a serious topic in five minutes time, body language is the last thing on your mind.
On television, presenters have to sit up straight, look serious and not distract the viewer by strange movements. On radio, within limits, we’re free of all that.
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