Basic guidance for beginning broadcasters: Stick to the simple stuff.
An imperfect but straightforward piece of work may not be a thing of beauty;
but, an imperfect creative piece can be downright painful to watch.

---

Writing

Rule 1 - Tell the story

Who, What, When, Where, Why & How: These are required elements, not necessarily in that order. For a news person, "what" happened is generally more important than "who" ("whom," actually) it happened to; and "why" is the core of intelligent analysis. Any news reader can give the basic facts.

Active & Passive Voice - a layman's guide: Allow actors to act

If the subject of your sentence isn't doing what the verb says it should be, it may be time for a change.

• Bad: The award was given by the governor.
  • Subject: the award
  • Verb: was given
  • Clue: "was" - Forms of the verb "to be" are red flags in news writing.
• OK: The governor gave the award.
  • Subject: the governor
  • verb: gave
• Better: Find the person who earned the award and put that person in the sentence, too.

The myth of the verb "to be"

Using forms of "to be" isn't always bad, just much of the time. Some will argue that verb choice is a matter of personal style. Others will argue that novice reporters haven't earned the "right" to a personal style.

Those novice reporters should avoid the problem altogether and use active verbs as often as possible.

Time, Manner, Place

A grade school teacher taught me this one.  It's guidance for ordering elements in a sentence.  It works fine in essays, but don't rely on it in broadcast copy.

Stories

• Strikes/Picket Lines:

  If a group makes a public demand for more money, I want to know what they get paid now and what they want in the future - and you'd better compare it to what others make for the same work.

  Tonight, a Syracuse (NY) station reported on a postal picket line. Carriers want more money. Unfortunately, the reporter failed to tell me what carriers get now and what more they want. As I will be footing part of the bill for any increase, I need to know more than I was told. I changed the channel. If you don't want to report well, flip burgers.

---

Attribution

What does a reporter know about what a person believes? Without research? Not much. A reporter can't know what a person thinks, feels or says - just what the person has said.

The rule of "Oh yeah, how do you know?"

• Bad:
  • "The Governor feels she is innocent." Oh yeah, how do you know how she really feels?
  • "The Governor thinks she is innocent." Oh yeah, how do you know what she really thinks?
  • "The Governor says she is innocent." Oh yeah, how do you know what she's saying right now?
• OK: "The governor said she is innocent. I was there. I have it on tape."
• Better: "The governor pled 'not guilty' today - to charges of X, Y and Z."

But she said she felt/thought/hoped/expected she was innocent!

Fine. So say "The Governor said she felt/thought/hoped/expected she was innocent."
And try not to believe everything people say.

There are no legitimate shortcuts to proper attribution - unless the reporter is a certified mind reader.

---

Pronunciation Guide

Note

Voice of America has an excellent pronunciation guide/search engine for names.

eh v. ay

Heard recently on a local news station: "Saddam sails on the West Bank." It was meant to promo a story about Saddam Hussain t-shirts and other paraphernalia. The unfortunate anchor was unable to correctly pronounce "sells."

eh v. ih

"Pen" and "pin" should not sound the same. "Content," meaning "satisfied," should sound like canvas military housing, not a form of shading.

I have been told this confusion stems from a normal southwestern accent. I still recommend differentiating between the "eh" and "ih" sounds.

February

Please note the "r" following the "Feb." It prefers not to remain silent.

Iran

/ɪ'rαn/; I-'ran

Webster's entry and audio

"ihrahn"

It doesn't begin with an "eye" and doesn't end "ran."

Iraq

/ɪ'rαk/; I-'rak

Webster's entry and audio

"ihrahk"

It doesn't begin with an "eye."

news:

"Nooz," not "noose"

Nagano:

Na-ga-noh (3 equally stressed syllables), not NOG-ih-noh or Ni-GA-noh (Apologies to GMA).

I'm taking the Asian American Journalists Association's word for this one.

often:

The "t" is silent.

the:

"Thee" before vowel sounds. "Thuh" before consonant sounds.

With acronyms, The choice of "thee" or "thuh" should be based on the sound of the pronounced acronym, not the sound of the first word in the acronym.

vehicle:

The "h" is silent.

---

Editing

Dirty video tails

At the end of any produced piece, don't use cuts, dissolves or any sort of video change in the last moments of - or following - the lockout.  It will air as a flash-frame - a long one, but still a flash.

For rolling video, try to time it out for the anchor's pacing, then fill the last few seconds - and several after - with one long shot.  This will prevent on-the-fly flash-frames.

Mixed Microphone/Camera Audio

OK, so you've wired the podium and captured perfect audio from the remote and the camera microphone.  You lay them both down, for that perfect mix of crystal-clear verbiage and nat/background sound.  Nice try.  Now your crystal audio has gone hollow.

The lesson: If you must mix nat sound under your sound bites (and it sometimes works remarkably well), use nat sound from some other piece of tape.  Directors can be downright nasty about this mistake.

180-Degree Rule

Sticking to this rule is about maintaining your subjects' relative positions throughout a production.

Try to imagine a battlefield - with Liberals in the West and Conservatives in the East.  If the videographer is shooting from the South, the Liberals appear to be on the left and the Conservatives appear to be on the right (not too difficult to imagine).  Now, cut to a shot of a missile, flying from left to right.  It's a Liberal missile, heading towards the Conservatives, right?  Only if the videographer didn't head North and violate the 180-degree rule.

Here's how it works.  Draw an imaginary line between the opposing/facing subjects.  The subjects could be opposing teams, pitcher and catcher, performer and audience, Kasparov and Karpov, Liberal and Conservative.  Don't cross the line.  This will keep the Liberals on the left, the Conservatives on the right, and the audience comfortable.

---

Structure

The Pregnant "I"

Bear with me on this explanation and engage your imagination so I don't need to insert any graphics (It helps keep the download time down). Imagine a capital "I" as the structure of a journalist's story. It's got a beginning (the top line), middle (the stem), and end (the bottom line). Imagine a slender "I" to represent the structure of a personal story (Meet Bob - Bob is sick - Bob used this technique to get well - Bob is well). If told well, this story might grab your attention, but would you learn anything useful? No. Now imagine a fat "I" to represent the structure of a more information-laden story (Millions of people have a disease - This disease is bad - Here is a possible cure). If told well, this story might teach you about a disease, but where's the personal angle? What's going to grab my attention? Enter, "The Pregnant 'I'" to represent the general structure of most newsmagazine stories (Meet Bob - Bob is sick - Millions of people have the same problem as Bob - Here is a possible cure - Bob tried it and is recovering). Structurally, take the personal story and add some of the meat from the less personal story. Imagine it as an "I" with a bulge in the middle, a "pregnant 'I'" - and thanks for using your imagination.

Standuppers

Don't insert a standupper in a package for its own sake - or to fake a live shot. Why lie to your viewers? On a similar topic, has anyone figured out why we go "live" to the newsroom for a secondary reporter intro?

Do use a standupper as a transition, or to illustrate a point you believe is best made "in person." You can also use one to replace non-existent video. Hey, 15 seconds of black doesn't impress anyone.

---

Words

Words that confuse - and get confused with each other

a v. an

The indefinite article "a" precedes words beginning in consonant sounds (a cow).

The indefinite article "an" precedes words beginning in vowel sounds (an owl).

With acronyms, The choice of "a" or "an" should be based on the sound of the pronounced acronym, not the sound of the first word in the acronym.

and

Do not use "and" in numbers. 256 is read, "two hundred fifty-six," not, "two hundred and fifty-six."

communist v. communistic

"Communist" is a word. Any further guidance would be redundant.

family members v. family, families

The expression "family members" is often used in military journalism. Avoid it.

"Family" refers to the same people, but with less jargon.

further v. farther

"Further" refers to degree and time (further along in progress, further back in time).

"Farther" refers to distance (farther away in space).

more than v. over

"More than" refers to quantity or degree (more than $10-million).

"Over" refers to height (over the top).

personnel v. just about anything

Pretend "personnel" isn't even a word.

pole v. poll

A pole is a stick.

A Pole is a person of Polish [pronounced pole-ish] extraction.

A poll is a survey.

Sports people note: in racing, it's "pole position," not "poll position" - unless by some quirk you're surveying drivers.

P.O.V. v. just about anything

P.O.V. (P-O-V) isn't a word. It means "personally owned vehicle."

Try "vehicle" or "car."

Instead of "P-O-V accidents," try "traffic accidents."

sex v. gender

sex:gender::male/female:masculine/feminine

Sex and gender are not the same. Writers too timid to use the word "sex" often replace it with the seemingly politer "gender." Weakness is no excuse. Pick up a dictionary and learn the correct word for your purpose.

• Bad: The groom chose a best person of the female gender.
  • Problem: female gender
  • Solution: female sex
  • Disclaimer: The author doesn't care who your best person is.
• OK: The groom chose a best person of the female sex.
• Not OK: The groom chose a best person of the feminine gender.

• Explanation: People are not of a gender. People can be masculine or feminine, but they are of a sex. Male and female are like clubs with extremely low, but equally rigid, standards. A man is a member of the male sex, whether or not he is masculine. Women have never been members of the weaker gender. They're not members of a gender at all. People are members of sexes.

slightly

It doesn't mean "just."

This example came from a local New York TV station's web site:

• Barge breaks loose on the Hudson
  This morning on the Hudson River, a barge broke loose. The barge was carrying two tons of scrap metal when it broke free from the moorings in Troy. The barge was roped in by a tug, before slightly missing the supports for the Troy Menands Bridge.
  (Emphasis added)

A barge can't "slightly miss." It didn't "mostly hit," did it? It either misses or it doesn't. However, it can"just miss," in which case it misses by just a bit.

unique

Not "somewhat unique," "very unique," "extremely unique" or any other kind of unique.

Check Banned for Life or a dictionary.

use to v. used to

"Used to," but why use it? "Used to" is a strange but conversational pair of words easily replaced by various forms of "was," "had," or "accustomed to." Never use "used to" in any print medium - not even on the web.
This example came from a Greenville, NC, TV station's web site:

• Hospital`s Unique Expecting Mother
  Pitt County Memorial Hospital is use to taking care of families... The staff is use to seeing ducks in the nearby pond, but not this close to traffic.
  (Emphasis added)

It works in speech, even with the use/used grammar error, but in print? No. Never. Perhaps Pitt County Memorial Hospital is accustomed to taking care of families.

---

Anchor guide - rules to follow until you learn to break them well

And...

Don't open with "And." It's a crutch - "And we're back" (a double-crutch). Anchors with background in radio will know better. Those without - probably wonder what I'm on about.

You - the "friendly" crutch

A warning for "readers," especially word-by-word readers: don't do it.

Anchors often use the word "you" in intros and readers to "bond" with the audience. This doesn't always work, and may backfire. If the viewers (the "you") don't think you're actually talking to them, you'll seem stilted and scripted. Beginning anchors, those who read word-by-word and lack any vestige of Jennings-esque smoothness, should avoid "you" like the plague.

Present-tense leads - for past-tense subjects

Networks don't do it. Why should affiliates? We all know the language, and it isn't used like this.

They're not conversational. They only serve to annoy. I'm not referring to segment-opening teasers with video. The examples below are real anchor-in-the-headlights leads - with occasional words changed to protect anonymity.

Vitriol aside, present-tense leads are intended to add immediacy to the story. This would be fine, provided no one had come up with the present perfect.

• OK: Security is/has been beefed up tonight for the opening of one the area's biggest holiday light shows. (OK because security is still beefed up.)

• Bad: Fire destroys an entire neighborhood in Columbus. Six people are killed.
  • Reality: The fire occurred much earlier in the day.
  • What the anchor may have done: Learned not to trust the production/writing/editing staff - and that would be a shame.
• Better:
  • Six people were killed today as a fire destroyed their neighborhood in Columbus.
  • Fire destroyed a neighborhood in Columbus today, killing six people.

Voice-overs (A.K.A. VOs, VOSOTs, VOSBs & VSBs)

They're a staple of the job, and easy to deal with - unless the anchor is also the shooter/producer. The anchor's voice should come from the anchor desk, not off-camera. Off-camera prompting of an interviewee by an on-site anchor/reporter should not be heard.

---

Weather guide

Agreement of number

• Bad: ...and highs of 41 degrees.
  Yes, Virginia, there are weather people who get this wrong.
• OK: ...and highs in the low 40s.
• Also OK: ...and a high of 41 degrees.

---

On Air

Special thanks to Chhayal Parikh for this section -- noting its absence and doing something about it.

Here are simple suggestions and reminders to help you make a good impression, whether your interview is from the U.S. News BureauCam or a Capitol Hill. No need to be nervous. Remember, you are the professional!

Appearance

• What not to wear: Avoid regular patterns or thick pinstripes. Try not to wear black, white or red. For women, avoid flashy or oversized jewelry.
  • Why no regular patterns? Houndstooth, pinstripes and various plaids can produce moiré effects on-camera. These effects are generally distracting to viewers and keep them from listening to your message.
  • Why no black? Cameras work by detecting reflected light. Black, by its nature, doesn't do much reflecting. So, if you'd like the texture of your clothing to appear on TV, try another dark color. On a broadcast set, this isn't so important. Professional camera gear can generally pull details out of the darkest fabric. It becomes more important with prosumer or lower quality gear. The fashionistas here would like me to mention that on a news set, straight black can be a bit morbid. Why take the chance, when there are plenty of dark blues and browns available off the rack?
  • Why no white? Cameras still work by detecting reflected light. White, by its nature, reflects lots of it. This can be a problem, especially if there are other, more muted, tones on the set. The iris of the camera may require adjustment to cope with the relative brightness of a white jacket, which could appear to darken the rest of the set (or, more likely, the white will lose detail). White is especially problematic for folks with darker skin. Many cameras will have trouble simultaneously "seeing" detail in both a white jacket and dark skin. A skilled videographer will adjust the camera to pick up skin detail -- losing detail from the clothing. A less skilled videographer might not make such an adjustment, which could result in loss of facial detail.
  • Why no red? On older TVs, red tends to "bleed" horizontally across the screen. With luck, we'll be able to forget this rule some day -- but not yet.
• This one is mostly for the guys: Wear a shirt that fits and fit your tie to the collar, not the neck it's wrapped around. Button it to the neck and keep the tie snug, unless you're sure you can pull off the unkempt look.
• Fix your hair: Before the interview, check to make sure your hair is neat and out of your face. Folks in TV generally figure that other folks in TV know what they're doing on TV, which means they sometimes figure that you know what you look like and want to go on TV that way.
• Stay relatively still. Don't rock or spin in your chair.
• Eye contact:
  • In an in-person interview, look at the interviewer.
  • In a remote interview, look straight at the camera lens. Pretend it is the host, and address your answers there. Resist the temptation to look up, around the room or at the TV monitors. Never, ever, watch yourself in a studio TV monitor during an interview. It guarantees you'll be looking off-camera.
  • When addressing an audience as a field reporter, look at the camera, unless you've got a good reason not to.
• Hand motion: It can work, but it might be best to keep relatively still until you get comfortable with what body motion looks like on camera.
• Relax and enjoy the opportunity: Smile and convey enthusiasm. You are happy to be there. There's an exception, of course. Smiling enthusiasm isn't good for talking about tragedy. Just ask the Air Force spokesperson who first appeared to talk about a certain on-base shooting incident a few years ago. Oh, how happy the spokesperson was to speak with Katie Couric, live on TV. The young public affairs officer was quickly replaced by a senior enlisted spokesman.

Interview Messaging

• Before the interview: Take a few minutes to craft a strong opening statement so you start the interview assertively. In addition, think of one or two additional points you want to make. Try to anticipate what questions you might be asked, and be prepared to get your messages out.
• Just before the interview: Make sure you can hear the host. Double-check that the ear piece is firmly planted (and comfortable) in your ear.
• You do own your own ear piece, right? If not, it's called an IFB and any hearing aid shop can set you up with one, probably for less than $50. It's a custom-fitted device, so get one now, not at the last minute. There's generally no same-day service for IFBs.
• Making your points: Keep answers concise. Start out strong, support your statement (examples are good), and finish with a strong (short) message.
• Be very clear and avoid jargon: Speak as if you were talking about the issue with your grandmother, not people you know from work.
• Stay confident and relaxed: They want to make you -- the expert -- shine. It's not a test, but a conversation.

---