C225 Ch. 11 Quiz

Sound Bite Time

"The goal is not to go over 15 seconds on your bites. If they can say it in a shorter bite, that's better."

Coaching Tips

-Update leads: Tell what is happening now. -Use a conversational style of writing. -Read your copy out loud before recording it or going on the air. -Use the active voice. -Use short sentences — one idea per sentence. -Use the present tense when possible. -Use subject-verb-object order: Who did what. -Give attribution first; tell who said what before telling what was said.

Middle

-Use, in most cases, no more than three to five points, which you prove visually. -Use strong natural sound to let the viewer experience what happened. -Use people engaged in compelling action that is visual. -Use surprises to keep viewers involved and lure uninterested viewers. -Use short sound bites.

Writing Tips

-Why should I care? In every story you write, think about the viewers. Why should they care about your story? -What's it all about? You should be able to state your focus with a simple sentence containing a subject, verb and object. Who is doing what to whom? -So what? Does your story meet the "so what" test? Does it address a larger issue? Did I learn anything new by watching the story? -Attribution: Who said what? If you are going to state anything but the most obvious fact, back it up with attribution. We don't use unnamed sources without the permission of the news director. -A good lead: Captures the viewer's attention Is conversational Uses active voice Moves the story forward -Guillotine the Gimmes: In the body of your story, get rid of the information that people already know. Focus on what they don't know. What's new? -Write to the corners: It still amazes me when reporters describe the video to me. "The suspect was visibly upset." No kidding. I can see the picture. Your words should complement the video, not describe it. -Bounce the babble: Don't write like a police report. People are caught, not apprehended. -Sound: Use it whenever you can. It takes the viewers out of the studio and puts them at the story. -Sound bites: Write to them. They shouldn't come out of nowhere, and they should not repeat what you said leading up to the bite. -The end: All good stories build to a strong finish. You can only finish strong if you know how you are going to finish in the field. Your story should leave the viewer feeling something. A successful story evokes an emotional response. Does your story close the circle? Sometimes you can end your story by returning to the start of the story, having answered the question you posed.

Ed Bennett's recommendations for writing well

-Write for clarity and brevity. -Use plain English. -Avoid repetition, especially between the reporter's writing and the sound bite. -Pick sound bites that have emotion. "A reporter can give you the facts," Bennett says. "I don't need people telling you what the facts are. A reporter can do that better and faster."

Different scripts in radio

30-Second Script, 15-Second Script

VOs

A VO is a voice-over, a story that the anchor reads over pictures but without any audio sound bites. A VOSOT (pronounced "VOH-SOT") is voice-over the anchor reads plus a sound bite — also called sound on tape. Both formats are usually brief — from 0:20 (20 seconds) to 0:45 (45 seconds). These two formats often comprise a majority of the stories on a broadcast. Because TV depends on images, both VOs and VOSOTs feature images while the anchor is reading the story. However, it is not always possible to time the visuals exactly to the text the anchor is reading, so it is best not to say "as on your screen" or to use other direct reference to the video.

advance the lead

A lead based on the next step in the story.

press conference

A meeting by officials or authorities to notify the media of news or information; AP Stylebook preferred term is "news conference."

Stand-up

A part of the story in which the reporter talks on camera at the scene; sometimes at the end of a story.

Actuality

A radio term for recorded comments from a news source. Same as a sound bite, the term used in television.

One-man-band

A reporter who conducts the interview, shoots the video and produces the story; someone who can do it all.

package

A reporter's story that includes the video, reporter's narration and sound bites.

Reader

A script that a newscaster reads without any background noise or comments from sources.

Voicer

A story a reporter reads; it may contain natural sound but does not include actualities.

Wrap

A story from a reporter that may include actualities.

Time Sequence (Organizing Broadcast Stories)

A story may lend itself to order by time. Because broadcast stories need immediacy, the time sequence is usually a reverse chronology that starts with the present action, goes to the past (background) and ends with a future element. Here is an example of reverse chronology

Brief

Abbreviated news story, from 10 to 20 seconds long.

PSA

Abbreviation for a public service announcement.

When

Almost all broadcast stories have a "today" element. Avoid using "a.m." or "p.m." If the specific time element is important, say something like "An earthquake struck Southern California at 7:15 this morning"; or "earlier today" is sufficient. Place your time element after the verb, which is a more natural, conversational order.

Natural sound

Also called "ambient" sound. This is background sound, the same term that's used in television news.

A teaser

Also called a "tease," is a short blurb to entice viewers to tune in or stay tuned to a newscast. It is broadcast during the day before the newscast or during the newscast before a commercial break. Don't tease the regular segments in general terms like weather and sports; tease something interesting or unique in your program that will affect the viewers. Write a tease as though you were telling a friend, "Guess what?" or "You won't want to miss this!" Teasers can include audio and video.

Leads

An anchor will introduce your story, but every story in a package needs its own lead. Max Utsler, a broadcast journalism professor at the University of Kansas, said the main consideration for a lead is that it must fit the pictures the viewer sees. "Good television writing is not the craftsmanship of words; it is the presentation of the words and pictures fitting together," he said. Once you have decided which images to use at the beginning of your package, you can decide whether the story needs a hard or soft lead. Feature stories may take softer leads; a breaking news story calls for a direct approach. In all cases, you must get to the focus — the nut graph — very quickly, generally by the second or third sentence.

VO-SOT (voice over sound on tape)

Anchor's voice over video and sound bite; same as VOB but more commonly used.

VOB (voice over bite)

Anchor's voice over video images with a sound bite from a source.

VO (voice over)

Anchor's voice over video images. Words and images should coincide.

teasers

Aniela Whah begins writing promotional briefs called "teasers," news briefs of about 20 to 25 seconds that will air a few times a day to encourage viewers to tune into the evening newscast. That's not always easy. A story might fall through, or breaking news may force a story to be canceled. Writing teasers is an art. "You have to keep it really short and not give too much away," says Tracy Holenport, the producer for the 6 p.m. newscast.

Mystery-Teaser Lead

Another effective soft-lead technique, as long as you don't keep the viewer wondering what the story is about for too long. You must get to the point within the first few sentences.

Body of the Story

As with all story structures, you must identify your focus first. Then jot down the order of your supporting points — facts or quotes from sources in sound bites. One point should follow another one naturally. You have little time for wasted words or redundant transitions that parrot what the source will say in a sound bite. If you need transitions from the present to the past in your story, you can start the sentence with the time element — "yesterday" or "earlier today," for example. Most of the basic news elements — who, what, when, where, how and so what — must be included in the story, but not all in the same paragraph. In broadcast writing, placement of points of emphasis for these elements differs from print.

major differences between print and broadcast writing (attribution)

Attribution: Always first in broadcast: The bird rescue center's director says one of the eagles died. First or last for print and the Web: One of the eagles died last night, said the director of the bird rescue center.

Punctuation

Avoid quotation marks. Generally, sound bites take the place of quotations. But if you want to quote someone, write out the word "quote" in this way: "She said ... quote ... this situation is impossible" or "and these are her exact words...." Don't end the quote by saying "unquote." The reader's emphasis should make the end of the quote clear. Limit punctuation to the comma, period, question mark and dash.

Who

Avoid using unfamiliar names in a lead and too many names in a story. When you have video sound bites, you may not even need the name in the story. The person can be identified by a superimposed title under his image in the taped segment. For delayed identification, follow the same guidelines as for print journalism. Identify the person by age, location, occupation or some other generic identifier. Then follow with the person's name. If you do have to identify a speaker, use his title before the name.

Natural Sound

Background sound that is intended to play while the reporter or anchor is speaking is called "natural" or "ambient" sound. It should enhance the story by giving the viewer a sense of being on the scene without distracting from the words the anchor or reporter is speaking. It could be the sound of wind, traffic noise, sizzling meat on a grill for a barbecue story, sirens or other sounds to enhance the story.

natural sound

Background sound that is intended to play while the reporter or anchor is speaking; also called "ambient sound."

Where

Because most radio and television stations reach such a broad audience, the location of a story is even more important in broadcast than in print. Broadcast reports can superimpose the name of the location on the screen, but you also need to say it in the story. If the story follows a series of other stories from different regions, you might start this way

focus sentence

Bob Dotson, an award-winning NBC correspondent, calls the focus sentence a "commitment" statement. It is still a one-sentence summary of the story, but it is centered more on visual impact — what you want the audience to take away from the report. Provide the commitment visually. In his book Make It Memorable, Dotson says, "You aren't ready to write a story until you can state in one sentence what you want the audience to learn from your report."

Broadcast Style

Broadcast scripts are meant to be read from a teleprompter. As a result, style rules are designed to make scripts easy for a reporter or announcer to read out loud and for a listener to understand.

Broadcast Script Format

Broadcast scripts are written in two columns, with directions for the technical crew on the left and the story text on the right. Most newsrooms use a computer program that automatically formats the scripts. The reporter's text is usually in capital letters, and the sound bites are in uppercase and lowercase letters. Sources for sound bites are identified by a machine called a "character generator," which produces titles that are superimposed under the video, to identify the speaker.

Timing of Copy

Broadcast scripts use 1:30 for 1 minute and 30 seconds; 2:00 for 2 minutes; and so on.

Ending

Build to a strong ending throughout the story, and make it visual. Make your viewers care about the story and the people.

Character generator

Computer-type machine that produces the letters, numbers or words superimposed on the screen to label a visual image, such as a person or place. Also called a "Chyron," the brand name of the machine that generates these titles.

Rip-and-read

Copy from the wire services that is read exactly as it was written instead of being rewritten.

Circle

Envision your story as a circle. The main point is the lead. All supporting points should relate to the focus in the lead. Unlike an inverted pyramid, where points are placed in descending order of importance, in a circular construction, each part of the story is equally important. Your ending can refer back to a point in the lead, as in this example about a water problem in a Kansas community

Backtiming

Exact time in the newscast that a segment will air. For example, a story that will air 12 minutes and 15 seconds into the newscast will be labeled 12:15. If the last segment in a 30-minute newscast is one minute, the backtiming will be 29, alerting the anchor that the segment must start at precisely that time or it will have to be cut.

Assigning the Stories

He creates an assignment sheet as a starting point for discussion at the morning planning meeting. Then he adds or changes the story list, depending on the discussion and story suggestions from the reporters, who are expected to come to the meeting with some story ideas based on their beats. "I try to have one or two stories every day set up and ready to shoot or in certain cases ready in the can for the air," Bennett says. He can count on some stories every week because the station airs regular features each day, and he listens to the police scanner for breaking news. "Some days it's completely slow; other days are just running and gunning from dawn to dusk, so it varies a lot," he says. He also assigns the photographers to pair with the reporters. "This is TV; the pictures often come first. The availability of a photographer determines when we go on a story or if we go on a story," Bennett says.

Web and TV news

He says the Web doesn't affect his job too much, but if a big story breaks, he makes sure the Web editor is aware of it. "The way you cover TV news is to go quickly, go now. It's a very nice marriage with the Web because the Web is also aimed at getting information out there as soon as it comes." But immediacy can pose problems. The Web editor might hear about a story on the police radio and want to post it, Bennett says. "Sometimes you have to wait for official confirmation. Standard journalism rules do apply to the Web and must be enforced," he says.

Editing Scripts

In addition to planning the news, Bennett edits scripts along with other newsroom managers. He looks for spelling, accuracy and completeness. He speaks emphatically when he talks about writing: "This is the thing that people don't understand: Good writing counts for more than anything else, at least in this television newsroom — period. I don't care how pretty you are; I don't care how good looking you are or how well you can chat on the air. The fundamental value around here is breaking news and reporting it well. Everything goes back to writing it well."

Endings

In broadcast writing, endings are called "tags" or "wrap-ups." Newspaper stories often end with a quote from a source, but in broadcast writing, the reporter has the last word in a package, followed by his name and the station identification. Often the only time the viewer sees the reporter is at the end of the story. However, many news directors now prefer using reporter stand-ups within the story rather than at the end. The most common endings: -Summary: A fact that reinforces the main idea without repeating previous points. -Future: The next step in some action. -Factual: A background statement or just another fact. -Consumer: Helpful items, such as where to call or go for additional information. If this information is important to the viewer, avoid giving it only one time. Warn the viewer that you will be repeating telephone numbers or locations later in the program. Plan to have phone numbers posted on the screen. You can also refer to your station's website for additional information.

IN

Indicates the first few words of the source's quote to start a sound bite and the time on the tape, used at stations that don't include the entire sound bite in the script.

OUT

Indicates the last few words of the source's quote, ending the sound bite.

Teaser

Introduction to a story on the next newscast, to tease viewers to tune in.

It's Showtime

It's time for the 5 p.m. show. News director John Tracy heads for the studio where he anchors the 5 p.m. show. Tracy reads from the teleprompter, a machine that contains the scripts, which scroll as he reads.

Know AP Style

Jennifer Zilko says students really need to know AP style even if they are going into broadcast and especially if they are planning to work in public relations.

Use Impact Leads

Lead with the effect on viewers as in the previous lead. Often uses the "you" voice.

Seg time

Length of time for a news segment. A brief may be 0:10, or 10 seconds; a reporter's package, including the lead-in by an anchor, may be 1:45 — one minute and 45 seconds.

Super

Letters, numbers or words produced by the character generator and superimposed over visual images; often used to identify the person appearing on the tape. At some stations, the letters CG — for character generator — are used to indicate the super.

Story Structure

Like a newspaper story, a broadcast story needs a clear focus, a lead, a body and an ending. Unlike newspaper writing, however, broadcast writing should be geared to audio and video.

character generator

Machine that produces titles superimposed under video to identify the speaker.

Use the 'You' Voice

Not all stories directly affect viewers' lives. But when possible, try to stress the impact within the first few sentences. Use an element that will make viewers care or understand why this story is important, unusual or of human interest. Don't be afraid to use the pronoun "you," especially in consumer stories, to heighten impact. Instead of writing a story about a drought in California that will cause lettuce prices to increase, try this approach

News director

Oversees all news operations at the station.

Producer

Plans the newscast and often writes teasers and some copy for the anchors.

Writing for Radio

Radio news writing follows many of the same principles as writing for television news, but the copy is shorter. Stories can be more like the TV teasers in length. A radio newscast may total about 90 seconds, with six or seven stories, unless it is NPR, which offers longer stories. A typical story might contain fewer than 100 words. And because you can't show video, you should create word pictures by describing the scene.

SOC (standard out cue)

Reporter's sign-off comments at the end of the story. For example, "This is Jennifer Zilko for KTUU Anchorage."

Package

Reporter's story that includes narration, visual images and sound bites from sources.

Numbers

Round off numbers when possible. Write out the numbers one through nine; use numerals for numbers over 10. Write out hundred, thousand, million, billion and trillion. Write numbers to be read as follows: 13-hundred, two-thousand, 14-thousand, one-million, 17-million. More complicated numbers would be written this way: 320-thousand, not 320,000; 15-million-230-thousand, not 15,230,000. Spell out fractions: one-half, three-quarters. For decimals, write out the word "point": "It comes to 17-point-two-million dollars." Write out the word "dollars" also, instead of using the symbol. There are some exceptions. Addresses, telephone numbers and time of day are written in numerals, even if the figures are lower than 10: "She lives at 5 Westbrooke Avenue"; "The accident occurred at 10:30 this morning" (avoid "a.m." and "p.m."); "The telephone number to call for information is 5-5-5-1-2-3-4" (separate the numerals with dashes so they are easier to read).

Planning a Rundown

Schedule for a newscast allocating the time for each story and segment, including advertisements.

Scheduling the stories

Scheduling the stories isn't easy either. Every story has to be timed to the second. "I would say that's the hardest part," Holenport says. If a story runs over the allotted time, she has to subtract time from another report such as weather or sports. The time allocated to news is especially limited. The 30-minute newscast at 5 p.m. has only 14 minutes and 9 seconds for news, and the hour-long newscast at 6 p.m. has 22 minutes for news. Weather runs eight minutes and sports runs six minutes. The rest of the time is allotted to teasers before the breaks and advertisements.

SOT (sound on tape)

Similar to a sound bite; indicated in copy along with the amount of time the taped comments will take. For example, SOT 0:15 means the comments on the tape will take 15 seconds.

Sound Bites

Sound bites, also called SOTs — sound on tape — are the equivalents of quotes in print and Web stories. The best ones are usually short — less than 10 seconds — and reflect emotion or information that is better coming from the source than from the reporter. Is it memorable? If you didn't have your notebook and you weren't listening to your tape, what comment do you remember the source saying? That's a clue for a good sound bite. Avoid quotes that repeat what the reporter explained, called "echo" quotes.

Names and Titles

Spell difficult pronunciations of names and locations phonetically. Some anchors prefer only the phonetic spelling instead of the real name followed by the phonetic pronunciation. John Blum would be written as it is pronounced — John Bloom. Identify a person's title before the name: "State Attorney General John Lawmaker is pleased with the results of a crackdown on fraudulent coal dust testing," not "John Lawmaker, state attorney general, is pleased with the results ..."

Reader

Story the anchor or radio announcer reads without visuals or sound bites.

Ethical Dilemma

The Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA) is the largest group for electronic journalists. Although many television stations have their own codes of ethics, the RTDNA code of ethics serves as a guide for the broadcast industry. Here are a few of the main principles: -Professional electronic journalists should pursue truth aggressively and present the news accurately, in context and as completely as possible. -Professional electronic journalists should present the news fairly and impartially, placing primary value on significance and relevance. -Professional electronic journalists should present the news with integrity and decency, avoiding real or perceived conflicts of interest, and respect the dignity and intelligence of the audience as well as the subjects of news. -Professional electronic journalists should defend the independence of all journalists from those seeking influence or control over news content.

Lead-Ins

The anchor reads a lead into a package by a reporter. The lead-in should give the essence of the story and sometimes the context for how it occurred. It should not repeat the reporter's lead.

Tag

The closing sentence for a TV or radio story or package.

tag

The closing sentence for a TV or radio story or package.

Actuality

The equivalent of a sound bite.

Problem/Solution (Organizing Broadcast Stories)

The most common structure starts with a statement of the problem, provides support in sound bites and facts, offers background and discusses the solutions if any exist. It often ends with the next step in the action.

Anchor

The person who reads the news on the set in the studio.

slug

The script should contain a slug (a one- or two-word title), which is usually assigned by the producers.

Limit the Use of Numbers

They can be numbing, especially to the ear. Use percentages to give comparisons when possible. If you must use numbers, round them off and reinforce them with a graphic. Say "320-million dollars," not "320-million-122-thousand-three-hundred-44 dollars." Whenever possible, use an analogy to help viewers visualize numbers, for example, "The world's largest oil tanker is 15-hundred feet, equivalent to five football fields."

Hourglass

This structure is a type of time sequence. However, you start with a hard-news summary lead and then rebuild the story chronologically.

Put a Human Face on the on the Story Whenever Possible

Try to find someone personally affected by the issue. You can start with the specific, using a person first, and then go to the nut graph

major differences between print and broadcast writing (Update Leads)

Use the latest information. This technique is recommended for all media, but especially for broadcast and the Web. Old news: Eighteen eagles were flown to the bird rescue center Saturday. Updated: Eighteen eagles are recovering at the bird rescue center, where they were flown Saturday.

major differences between print and broadcast writing (Present Tense)

Use when possible for broadcast; past tense is more common in print and the Web. Present: One eagle remains in critical condition. Past: One eagle remained in critical condition.

Sound bite

Video segment showing the source speaking.

Teleprompter

Video terminal that displays the script for the anchor to read. This term was previously a trademark, but AP style now considers it generic.

VOSOTs

Voice-over with sound bite; the anchor's voice over video and sound bite.

Logging the Tape

When Zilko returns from the eagle assignment, Nederbrock hands her his videotape, and she inserts it into a machine so she can watch the video and choose the sound bites she wants to use. This process is called "logging" the tape. She types the complete sound bite with the time listed on the tape. Some TV stations require scripts that just use the first few words and last few words of a sound bite, but at KTUU reporters type the entire sound bite so it can be read on the screen as closed captions for hearing-impaired viewers.

Revising Stories

When you write the ending for your story, you are not at the end of the writing process. Revision is an important part of writing your story. -Read your story aloud. Rewrite any sentences that sound strained. -Check all your sources' names and titles for spelling, accuracy and pronunciation. -Eliminate any bureaucratic language and replace it with simple, clear terms. -Delete adjectives. Let the video show the viewers the scene. -Make sure your transitions don't repeat the sound bites. -Look at the video without the sound; then listen to your story without the video.

major differences between print and broadcast writing (Active Voice)

Who is doing what, not what was done to whom. Active voice is preferable for print but even more necessary for broadcast. Active: Volunteers at the center washed the eagles with Dawn detergent. Passive: The eagles were washed with Dawn detergent by the volunteers at the center.

Omit Needless Words

Words like "that" and "which" aren't always needed.

Focus on a Person

Works as well in broadcast as in print, especially for a feature or a news story that the anchor introduces with a hard-news lead-in. Like The Wall Street Journal formula, this type of lead goes from the specific to the general. The person is one of many affected by the problem.

Use Contractions with Caution

Write them out. Let the anchors contract them if they want to. Avoid "can't." It may sound too much like "can."

Beginning

Write to your pictures first. Build your lead around a visual that foreshadows the story to come.

Producing a Newscast

Zilko's story is only one of 14 news stories to be squeezed into a 30-minute broadcast that also includes weather, sports and commercial breaks. The process of producing a newscast is complex. It involves several editors and producers who must plan every second of the broadcast and adapt to constant changes throughout the day as news breaks.

Scripts for radio

can be written in uppercase and lowercase letters instead of all capital letters, depending on the preference of the radio station

Robert Papper, four qualities for good sound bites

four qualities for good sound bites: Personal account — people telling what they saw, heard, felt, smelled or tasted Witness account Personal opinion Expert opinion

stand-up

which features the reporter on camera.

package

which is a story that includes an introduction by the anchor to the story that a reporter narrates with sound bites and pictures and sometimes a "stand-up," which features the reporter on camera. It usually ends with a "standard outcue," which is the reporter sign-off, such as "This is Jennifer Zilko for KTUU."

standard outcue

which is the reporter sign-off, such as "This is Jennifer Zilko for KTUU."