"In seeking truth you have to get both sides of a story."
- Walter Cronkite, CBS News
TV News Production Vocabulary
A-Roll – Main footage, interviews
B-Roll – Secondary footage, video of subject or story
VO – Voice Over, narration
VOT – Video on Tape, another word for both A-Roll and B-Roll
SOT – Sound on Tape, any sound without video
VSOT – Video & Sound on Tape, another name for packages or finished stories
Line Input - Audio from a cable that’s more than 50 feet, higher audio frequency
Mic input - Audio from a cable less than 50 feet, lower audio frequency
Producer – Handles all pre-production planning
Director – Directs show from in the control room
Technical Director – Switches between cameras, packages, sound, etc
Audio Technician – Mixes sound from studio and packages
Teleprompter Operator – Operates teleprompter
Graphic Engineer – Creates graphics for shows, including lower thirds
Studio Director/Floor Director – Directs show from studio
Camera Operator – Operates cameras
Anchor – Reads stories on camera from behind desk
Reporter – Reads stories on camera while standing in set, not behind desk
B-Roll – Secondary footage, video of subject or story
VO – Voice Over, narration
VOT – Video on Tape, another word for both A-Roll and B-Roll
SOT – Sound on Tape, any sound without video
VSOT – Video & Sound on Tape, another name for packages or finished stories
Line Input - Audio from a cable that’s more than 50 feet, higher audio frequency
Mic input - Audio from a cable less than 50 feet, lower audio frequency
Producer – Handles all pre-production planning
Director – Directs show from in the control room
Technical Director – Switches between cameras, packages, sound, etc
Audio Technician – Mixes sound from studio and packages
Teleprompter Operator – Operates teleprompter
Graphic Engineer – Creates graphics for shows, including lower thirds
Studio Director/Floor Director – Directs show from studio
Camera Operator – Operates cameras
Anchor – Reads stories on camera from behind desk
Reporter – Reads stories on camera while standing in set, not behind desk
What is News?
Web Definition: A news program, news programme, news show, or newscast is a regularly scheduled radio or television program that reports current events. News is typically reported in a series of individual stories that are presented by one or more anchors. A news program can include live or recorded interviews by field reporters, expert opinions, opinion poll results, and occasional editorial content.
Types of News
World News: News from across the globe. Also can be called international news.
National News: News from a particular country. National for this course will be USA based.
Local News: Can be from a particular town, county, state, or region. Broadest category. News from where you live.
Breaking News: Happening right now. Immediate. News story that is unfolding as it is being reported on. Commonly confused with a Developing Story.
National News: News from a particular country. National for this course will be USA based.
Local News: Can be from a particular town, county, state, or region. Broadest category. News from where you live.
Breaking News: Happening right now. Immediate. News story that is unfolding as it is being reported on. Commonly confused with a Developing Story.
News Carriers
Network News: Produced by one of the major networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, or PBS). Broadcast across the entire affiliated network. Uses a national perspective.
Local Affiliates: News where you live. Usually on a regional or state-wide perspective. (WCVB, WHDH, WBZ, etc.)
Cable News: Usually 24-Hours in nature. Strictly devoted to the ongoing coverage of live news and events. Lots of talk formats and editorializing from a national perspective. (CNN, FOX News, MSNBC, ESPNNEWS, CNBC, etc.)
Local Affiliates: News where you live. Usually on a regional or state-wide perspective. (WCVB, WHDH, WBZ, etc.)
Cable News: Usually 24-Hours in nature. Strictly devoted to the ongoing coverage of live news and events. Lots of talk formats and editorializing from a national perspective. (CNN, FOX News, MSNBC, ESPNNEWS, CNBC, etc.)
|
|
|
|
|
What makes a story Newsworthy?
What makes a story newsworthy?
Timing: The word news means exactly that - things which are new. Topics which are current are good news. Consumers are used to receiving the latest updates, and there is so much news about that old news is quickly discarded. A story with only average interest needs to be told quickly if it is to be told at all. If it happened today, it's news. If the same thing happened last week, it's no longer interesting.
Significance: The number of people affected by the story is important. A plane crash in which hundreds of people died is more significant than a crash killing a dozen.
Proximity: Stories which happen near to us have more significance. The closer the story to home, the more newsworthy it is. For someone living in France, a major plane crash in the USA has a similar news value to a small plane crash near Paris. Note that proximity doesn't have to mean geographical distance. Stories from countries with which we have a particular bond or similarity have the same effect. For example, Australians would be expected to relate more to a story from a distant Western nation than a story from a much closer Asian country.
Prominence: Famous people get more coverage just because they are famous. If you break your arm it won't make the news, but if the Queen of England breaks her arm it's big news.
Human Interest: Human interest stories are a bit of a special case. They often disregard the main rules of newsworthiness; for example, they don't date as quickly, they need not affect a large number of people, and it may not matter where in the world the story takes place. Human interest stories appeal to emotion. They aim to evoke responses such as amusement or sadness. Television news programs often place a humorous or quirky story at the end of the show to finish on a feel-good note. Newspapers often have a dedicated area for offbeat or interesting items.
Timing: The word news means exactly that - things which are new. Topics which are current are good news. Consumers are used to receiving the latest updates, and there is so much news about that old news is quickly discarded. A story with only average interest needs to be told quickly if it is to be told at all. If it happened today, it's news. If the same thing happened last week, it's no longer interesting.
Significance: The number of people affected by the story is important. A plane crash in which hundreds of people died is more significant than a crash killing a dozen.
Proximity: Stories which happen near to us have more significance. The closer the story to home, the more newsworthy it is. For someone living in France, a major plane crash in the USA has a similar news value to a small plane crash near Paris. Note that proximity doesn't have to mean geographical distance. Stories from countries with which we have a particular bond or similarity have the same effect. For example, Australians would be expected to relate more to a story from a distant Western nation than a story from a much closer Asian country.
Prominence: Famous people get more coverage just because they are famous. If you break your arm it won't make the news, but if the Queen of England breaks her arm it's big news.
Human Interest: Human interest stories are a bit of a special case. They often disregard the main rules of newsworthiness; for example, they don't date as quickly, they need not affect a large number of people, and it may not matter where in the world the story takes place. Human interest stories appeal to emotion. They aim to evoke responses such as amusement or sadness. Television news programs often place a humorous or quirky story at the end of the show to finish on a feel-good note. Newspapers often have a dedicated area for offbeat or interesting items.
|
|
|
|
TV News History: The Advent of the Network News Anchor
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
TV News History: The "Big 3" Era
|
|
|
|
|
Mr. Robbins, Digital Media & Communications, Watertown High School, 50 Columbia Street, Watertown, MA 02472