Week 12
Apr 3rd, 2013 by Maria Burns Ortiz
April 9: Audio vs. print vs. video, Writing scripts and broadcast ledes
Reading: Writing and Reporting the News: Chapter 27
Broadcast writing style tips
BROADCAST WRITING LANGUAGE TIPS & STYLE
BROADCAST NEWS WRITING BASICS
Listen to Friday’s Morning Edition on NPR. (Read the accompanying script/transcript.)
In-class: Broadcast writing exercise
Homework: Write a radio (audio) broadcast script off four stories from Tuesday and Wednesday’s NY Times – two stories from each day. (No actualities – 30 second to 1 minute). Bring the original stories with you to class. (Format ALL CAPS, numbers/acronyms, sentence structure.) Include how long it takes to read aloud – i.e. 37 seconds.
Powerpoint: Broadcast
April 11: Actualities & Ambient Sound
Complete the “Telling Stories with Sound” online course. Email your “Course Report” to me: maria_burnsortiz@emerson.edu.
In-Class: Actualities and ambient sound. Brainstorm stories for reporting assignment.
Homework:
Audio recording “package” – ambient sound (2-3 examples – or more if you think they are warranted in your story), two interviews, script for the story on your topic. (Total story should run 2-3:30 minutes.)
Bring the audio files to class (via USB, email, SD card – as long as you can access it – must be mp3 files.) We will go over how to upload these files at the beginning of class on April 16.
In your script, include where the ambient sound would go and note for how long (i.e. Sound – Crowd noise, five seconds) and note where the actualities from your interview would go.
As far as including the actualities, you have two options.
Option One
EDIT
– If you want to edit the audio, you can edit it just down to the sound bite you want to use and submit those edited down soundbites as your audio files. (You will learn how to do basic sound editing with Audacity in JR 103.)
– Note it in your script as: SOT: File Name
Option Two
TRANSCRIBE
– Transcribe the quote from the interview you would use as an actuality in your piece. Put it in the script where it would go. Also, note the EXACT timestamp in each audio file where the quote starts and ends.
– Note it in your script as: ACTUALITY: Blah, blah, blah. This is the transcribed quote. (File Name – 1:20-1:34)
Additional:
Watch a network news broadcast – local or national – on three different days. Email me to let me know what broadcast you are watching. Keep a list of the story rundown. Watch with a critical eye/ear toward writing and video storytelling techniques. [BRING A LIST WITH THE STORY RUNDOWN TO CLASS ON TUESDAY.]
Watch one hour of Fox News coverage. Watch one hour of MSNBC news coverage. [BRING A LIST WITH STORY RUNDOWN TO CLASS ON TUESDAY.]
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