Bob Lilly: A storyteller following the family business

More than 30 years ago, Bob Lilly jump-started his news career by taking part in the launch of CNN, the first 24-hour, all-news channel in the United States. This year, Lilly took part in another major TV debut, as Al Jazeera America launched on August 20.

As a senior producer for Al Jazeera America's talk show, Consider This, Lilly views himself as a "creative problem-solver and team player." Each day, Lilly helps select the best stories to tell on the air. Here, he shares some insight into his decision-making and the lessons he has learned throughout his career.  

Q. What inspires your work as a senior producer?  

A. I've been fascinated by news, history and current affairs since I was a small boy, so it's a privilege for me to work in this field. Beyond that, I'm excited by the opportunity to tell the stories of people who otherwise might not be heard from and to present in-depth stories in an even-handed, balanced way.  

Q. What is a typical day for you working for Consider This?

A. A typical day starts the night before. I'm always looking for story ideas that could make a great segment for our program, and that includes going online in the time available between finishing my segment and the show's start, and going back online once the show ends and I'm on my commute home.

I pick it up again the following morning, when I pore through as many online sources as I can manage, looking for segment ideas as I keep up with the latest events. That runs into our editorial conference call, when the senior staff gathers with our host Antonio Mora, under [Senior Executive Producer] Aaron Volkman's direction, to decide on the stories of the day.

A second editorial meeting follows once the staff is in the office, and then the fun part begins. I go through our text sources and finish researching the story; look through our agency and network sources for video; and lay out graphic elements, including quotes and charts.

Once the guests are booked, I pre-interview them, making sure they can answer the questions Antonio plans to pose. Then I lay out the script, formalize the questions, and run them by Antonio and Aaron.

After more graphic elements are scripted, it's probably close to show time. [I go] down to the control room and watch the segment and contribute in any way I can to its success. 

Then rinse, repeat and do again!

Q. What led you to choose a career in journalism, and had you considered working in other fields? 

A. My parents had both worked as journalists, so when my undergraduate philosophy degree and science fiction short stories failed to provide a living, I turned to the family business. I started as a vacation fill-in gofer in local news but quickly became one of the original staffers that got CNN going in 1980. I haven't looked back. 

Q. You have a lot of experience working overseas, including two years serving as the Jerusalem bureau chief for Visnews (now Reuters TV). What lessons did you learn? 

A. I was in El Salvador and London during the '80s for Visnews, and I was in Albania in the '90s, during the Kosovo War, and I was in Mexico for MSNBC. I learned that I loved working in the field and that it's important for journalists to have that experience of being the person who reports the story themselves, rather than rely on wire copy, news websites, and all the other tools we have that allow us to discourse on events we haven't seen. I also learned to put myself in the shoes of the people whose stories I try to tell and appreciate their humanity, just as I hope they'll appreciate mine.  

Q. You have worked as a producer and senior producer with some famous anchors, including Keith Olbermann at MSNBC and Current, Chris Matthews and Matt Lauer at MSNBC, and now Antonio Mora at Al Jazeera America. What have you learned from working with these anchors? 

A. Most news anchors are models of professionalism and there's always something to learn there. I learned the most from Mary Alice Williams, who was both a CNN anchor and New York bureau chief and exemplified leadership and commitment — to her staff, the network, and the story. I also benefited greatly from working with sports anchor Marv Albert, another complete professional. 

As a producer, it's important that I get Antonio's voice right, both in the script and in the Q&A [with guests]. ... It's important that the segments reflect his qualities, within, of course, the context of Al Jazeera. 

Q. Speaking of which, what brought you to Al Jazeera America and what kind of stories do you like to cover on Consider This?

I was a Current TV employee when Al Jazeera made the move. I was thrilled from the start to be working for an organization that's all about growth, passionate about news and believes there's an audience out there for real information. I've been proud to do some "deep dives" on events in the Middle East, including Syria's war and the Iran nuclear crisis, as well as stories closer to home that explore deep divisions on issues that are so much a part of the landscape today. 

This interview has been condensed and edited.