Chapter 12

 Producing a newscast  Includes planning every second of the broadcast ▪ News stories ▪ Weather ▪ Sports ▪ Commercials  Usually involves several editors and producers

 Logging the Tape  ENG (News photogs) ▪ Gather visual information ▪ Capture video ▪ Conduct interviews  Producers ▪ Watch videos ▪ Choose soundbites

 Planning a rundown  Rundown is a listing of the time for every story ▪ Includes length for each one ▪ Helps keep the show on time  Footage often exceeds allotted time ▪ 32 miuntes of footage from an event ▪ 1 min 30 sec of space for the story  Intro, story & Q&A all must fit into the time

 Assigning the Stories ▪ Assignment editor assigns stories  During morning meeting ▪ Has a file/list of possible stories ▪ Reporters also pitch stories  Editor also plans possible stories ▪ In case of mishaps ▪ If another story doesn’t pan out

 Tips for writing well  Clarity and brevity  Use of plain English  Avoid repetition ▪ Especially repetition between reporters writing and sound bite  Pick sound bites that have emotion ▪ Reporters can give facts ▪ Interviewees can provide emotion

 Writing Tips – Page 229  Why should I care  What is it all about  So What?  Attribution  A good lead  Write to the corners  Avoid jargon

 Broadcast vs Newspaper and Web Writing  Attribution ▪ Always first in broadcast  Active voice ▪ Who is doing what (necessary for broadcast)  Present tense ▪ Use when possible for broadcast  Update Leads ▪ Use the latest information

 Broadcast Script Format  Two columns ▪ Directions for technical crew on the left ▪ Story text on the right  Review sample script

 Web/Newspaper versions  Web allows for a variety of presentation methods ▪ Video ▪ Photo Galleries ▪ Slideshows w/sound  Newspaper ▪ More detailed and thorough ▪ Uses details not necessary for video

 Teasers & Lead Ins  Tease – ▪ Short blurb to entice viewers to stay tuned to a newscast ▪ Write a tease as though you telling a friend  Lead-in ▪ This should give the essence of the story and possibly the context for how it occured

 Writing for Radio  Radio newscast may be 90 seconds ▪ With 6-7 stories ▪ Typical stories may contain 100 words ▪ Should include only the most important details ▪ Should include word pictures ▪ Since there is no video

 Broadcast Style  Punctuation ▪ Avoid quotation marks ▪ If you must quote someone write the word “quote” in the script  Numbers ▪ Round off numbers when possible ▪ Also limit the use of numbers  Names and Titles ▪ Spell difficult words phonetically (Names, Places, etc)

 Broadcast Style  Use contractions with caution ▪ Write them out ▪ Let anchors decide to contract them  Omit needless words ▪ This will help with fitting content into time slot  Timing of copy

 Leads  Put a human face on the story whenever possible ▪ Impact Lead ▪ Uses your voice ▪ Mystery-teaser ▪ Creates anticipation  Ending - tags/wrap-ups  Summary, Future  Factual, Consumer

 Revising Stories  Important part of the writing process ▪ Read story aloud ▪ Check all your sources ▪ Names and titles for spelling ▪ Eliminate bureaucratic language/jargon ▪ Delete adjectives ▪ Let video show the scene ▪ Don’t repeat sound bites