If the writing and visual work are done, it's not planning, it's budget clarification. And if little of the reporting is done, it's not planning, it's guessing. In their zeal, some designers rope colleagues into planning weeks before the reporter knows what her story on charter schools will say. And unless the planners reconvene, they end up with images and headlines that only vaguely speak to the story . Shoot for 10, be happy with 20 and refuse to go beyond a half-hour.
Some newsrooms use timers.
Others stand up. Draggy planning sessions are a slow-acting poison. They'll kill a commitment to good packaging. In the AME's office. Standing in the hallway.