Albany station updates set, adds ‘Alert Desk’

WTEN-TV, the Albany, N.Y., ABC affiliate, has updated and added on to its set.

The station, owned by Media General, installed a new anchor desk in its studio, along with a nine-panel video wall behind it.

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A new addition to the studio, meanwhile, is the “Alert Desk,” a working area of the studio that the station says will help it deliver breaking news faster.

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The center, which anchor Noel McLaren shows off here using her best Vanna White pose, includes a color changing wall, multiple wall mounted monitors and a row of workstations.

These types of areas are becoming increasingly common in newsrooms, though they don’t always have a formal name or even permanent home, as stations look for more ways to integrate realtime news and social media streams into their broadcasts.

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ABC Chicago adds ‘Alert Center,’ new WX venue

At some stations, the area might be the “Alert Desk” like a WLS-TV in Chicago, which simply brands various areas of its set under the banner, and uses it, essentially, for live in-studio reports.

When one ‘Alert Center’ isn’t enough…

The use of the word “Alert” in branding a part of a news set has taken some criticism since it can seem over-the-top and even a bit scary.

A prime example cited by many is what Sinclair did when it created the “Terrorism Alert Desk” for use across its stations.

Sinclair creates ‘Terrorism Alert Desk’