Viewer Spotlight: How we book the experts who appear on Scripps News

Every week, viewers call our toll-free hotline to offer their feedback and ask questions about our coverage. We look for themes in those calls and take them as an opportunity to have a conversation with you.

We've shared a lot about how Scripps News journalists work to independently find, verify and report the facts without spin. But as you know, they're not alone on our air as we sometimes invite guests to share their expertise or perspectives.

Some of you like what you're seeing, like Patrick in Oklahoma.

"Just wanted to say, thank goodness you guys finally found an economist who actually knows what they're talking about," Patrick said. "And it's not just playing into the fears and the headlines. Please keep Thomas Hoeing around."

Others see room for improvement.

"I'm just wondering if you guys just watch CNN and pick off all the looniest people that they have on there," said an anonymous caller. "Now I'm watching some kid that he's in his first election race, he looks like he's 12 years old, talking all the mainstream leftist talking points without anybody fact-checking him."

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Finding and inviting compelling, insightful guests for our programs is a full-time job. In fact, we have a team of booking specialists who do just that.

They're on the lookout for guests who have a deep and demonstrated knowledge of the topic they're speaking about; who can put a face to an issue by offering unique, firsthand insight on a story; who can credibly speak on behalf of a person or a group invested in a story; or some combination of those three. No group is a monolith, and no story has just one angle. That's why we aim to feature a variety of voices in our reporting.

Sometimes, that means finding a neutral expert who can explain a concept in simple terms. At other times, hearing what different groups think about the news can help us understand it and add depth and context to a story. We do our best to bring you these voices in a balanced way.

When we can't book multiple guests in a segment, we aim to balance stakeholder perspectives on a topic across our coverage.

Presenting the facts without spin means we have to place these voices in context. We try to disclose when a guest may only represent a single perspective – by providing relevant information about their affiliations with interest or advocacy groups.

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Sometimes things don’t work out with the guest we envisioned. To appear on Scripps News, a guest should not only be relevant and compelling, but they also have to be interested in appearing on air and be available at the time our show needs them. Sometimes that lines up and sometimes it doesn’t. Our goal is always to bring you the most valuable guest perspective available.

Most of our guests are not reporters but their perspectives give a story depth, texture and humanity.

If you have a comment about the words we use in our reporting or anything else, give us a call via the toll-free Scripps News Viewer Hotline at 1-833-4-SCRIPPS.