REPORTING:ORDER OF REPORTING, REPORTERâ€™S QUALITIES, Well informed

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Radio News, Reporting and Production MCM515

LESSON 16

REPORTING

Reporter

Reporter is the person who finds and/ or covers a news story for the news organization he/she is working

for. Every news organization, whether print or electronic, has a systematic network of reporters who are

deputed in different cities and places throughout the world. The bigger the organization, the vaster the

network of reporters is.

Report

In the realm of journalism, a report is a written or spoken account of an event, to be published in

newspaper or broadcast on radio or television.

Reporting

News coverage and then writing the news for newspaper, radio, or television is called reporting.

TYPES OF REPORTING IN TERMS OF CONTENT:

Types of reporting in detail will be touched upon in the following lesson. Here a brief introduction of every

type is given.

Broadly speaking there are three types of reporting which are:

a) Factual Reporting

b) Interpretative Reporting

c) Investigative Reporting

a) Factual Reporting

The factual reporting is actually the reporting of any incident immediately after it takes place. It is basically

to break the news and it covers the basic questions of news building that are what, when, where and who.

The news is on the channel as a part of the news bulletin for the very first time. Even if it is not the time of

bulletin the usual transmission is halted and the breaking news is put on air. But it depends on the

newsworthiness of the event that has been reported and is to be given as breaking news.

b) Interpretative Reporting

It is a kind of reporting in which the reporter seeks for the details and other aspects of the news story. The

questions how and why are focused upon while doing interpretative reporting. To interpret means, to

explain or describe something in detail. Interpretative report is normally treated as special report about any

news story.

c) Investigative Reporting

It is a kind of reporting in which the reporter attempts to uncover the hidden truths of a news story. The

facts which are tried to keep secret by some people, the reporter noses those facts, finds them out and then

brings them on the surface to show the listeners the real picture of the story.

TYPES OF REPORTING IN TERMS OF NATURE:

a) Diary Assignment

News room diary has already been discussed in detail. It is reporter's duty to look up that diary and see if

there is any function to be covered and reported. In this case the source of information for the reporter is

the newsroom diary that is maintained with the help of the news releases that land in the newsroom through

different sources like by post, internet or fax.

b) Instant Reaction Callouts

Normally diary assignments are there in the knowledge of a reporter before time, sometimes even days

Radio News, Reporting and Production MCM515

before. But instant reaction callouts a reporter does not know about until the incident takes place. In this

case he is called up and informed somehow or the other to cover the story. It is therefore said that a radio

reporter is incomplete indeed without his kit that carries a tape recorder in working condition, set of

batteries, good quality microphone, a note book and a couple of cassettes.

ORDER OF REPORTING

Normally different types of reporting come in the following order:

Factual Reporting

Interpretative Reporting

Investigative Reporting

It shows that immediately after an incident takes place the type of reporting is needed first is factual one.

The reason behind is, the foremost responsibility of a news channel is to inform its listeners about the

happening of the incident as early as possible. In first news presentation it is neither necessary nor possible

to provide the listeners with rest of the details of the news item. So the rest part, that is the details and other

aspects of the news story are covered after the breaking news has gone on air.

While carrying out interpretative reporting a reporter may smell something wrong on the happening of an

incident and that suspicion leads him to investigative reporting

But not always, not all stories run to be investigative stories.

Every story, by and large, demands interpretative reporting as well.

REPORTER'S QUALITIES:

Reporter, obviously, is a journalist and must get proper formal education that is a prerequisite for getting

into this field. Despite being furnished with formal education there are certain other qualities as well that

make an ace reporter.

Nosy/ curious

A good reporter needs to be very nosy and curious about things. Unless he takes extra interest in any

apparently routine matter, he cannot hunt news. He goes beyond the things. He looks for what is behind

the curtain. He peeps into the slits to find out what is truth. He gets behind the masks to uncover the faces.

But to perform all these acts he needs to be very careful and within the law boundaries otherwise he may

have to face the music.

Sharp Observation

Unless a reporter casts searching look on anything he is unable to find out something newsworthy. He has

to be a good observer of things, happenings and incidents. Good observation power is something by which

a reporter gets successful in finding news.

Public Relations

A good reporter always tries to cultivate good relations with others. He has friends in almost every

important department and walk of life. At time of need he does not find any difficulty while getting

information about anything.

Active/ dynamic

A successful reporter is not idle or lethargic kind of person. Rather he is active and dynamic; always ready to

take up assignment and go on with given tasks. Never gets late. To be an early bird, though not considered

well but this is not the case with a reporter. A good reporter has to be an early bird. Being exactly in time or

getting late he may get place on the last chairs in a press conference or the person he has planned to contact

to may have caught the flight.

Well informed

One who is not updated can be anything on earth but can never be a reporter. Reporting requires a great

deal of knowledge and information about ever changing scenario of the world. Lacking fresh information

Radio News, Reporting and Production MCM515

definitely leads a reporter to cut a sorry figure at occasions.

Tactful

Reporter needs to be tactful and shrewd to have persons telling him what he wants. Tactfully and

intelligently, sometimes he is able to get what he needs without letting his source get alarmed. This is what a

reporter is.

Telling about a good reporter, Simon Ellis, News Editor, BBC, goes in these words:

"The qualities I look for in a radio reporter are:

a determination to ferret out the details despite the obstacles, an interest in , and genuine

awareness of current news and issues, a lively imaginative mind, and a sense of humour."

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