A SUCCESSFUL RADIO REPORTER:Briefing, Reporterâ€™s Ammunition, Meeting Deadline

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Radio News, Reporting and Production MCM515

LESSON 17

A SUCCESSFUL RADIO REPORTER

To work for radio as reporter is bit different from working for print journalism. Radio is a kind of medium

the news can not be delayed and is to be put on air as early as the incident takes place. Owing to this limited

and challenging time margin, the radio reporter needs to be very active, sharp, and prepared before hand.

Briefing

Before a reporter leaves for the coverage he has to do sufficient homework. He must know the nature and

the importance of the event. The participants, the chief guest, what the event is about, the background of

the event, all these points must be concentrated.

He must complete the file of previous stories if the present one is a sequel of any old news story.

For instance, reporter is deputed to cover SAARC countries' presidential conference; he must have a

complete knowledge of the following points:

The names of the member countries.

The names of the heads of the respective governments.

Information about the countries.

Previous meetings in other countries and important progress on different matters like games, trade,

students' exchange program.

Reporter's Ammunition

A good reporter's kit always contains the following essentials which are actually the ammunition of a

reporter.

Tape recorder

Digital tape recorders

Battery cells

Cassettes

Microphones

Note book

Ball pens

Fixing ahead

In case of Diary Assignment a reporter must arrive at the venue pretty before the actual function is to

begin. He has to perform number of tasks before time. He has to fix microphone/s. He has to locate power

supply point. He has to arrange power leads. He has to mange a suitable place for himself. He has to check

the installation of the equipment with the aid of which he will record the proceedings of the function. He

has to check if the tape recorder is recording properly. To do all these things a reporter has to be before

time failing to which he may face any unexpected problem.

In case of instant reaction callout, reporter leaves for the place immediately.

In case of live coverage, complete OB van must be with reporter.

Meeting Deadline

As it has been said repeatedly, the radio's most important and significant feature that stands this medium

out of all others is its promptness. Delayed news goes waste, however important it may be. To meet

deadline a reporter has to follow the following points:

· News caster must be present in the newsroom at least 5 minutes before the bulletin.

· Can be told news on mobile.

· If voice clip is important to be broadcast, through mobile it can be recorded in the radio

studio.

Radio News, Reporting and Production MCM515

BASS'S DOUBLE ACTION MODEL OF INTERNAL NEWS FLOW:

Bass (1969) suggested the way news is processed from news gathering to news presentation of the

gatekeeper theory. The process, according to Bass, can be divided in two stages given below.

Stage 1

Stage 2

Completed product

Raw news

News gatherers

News processors

News copy

Reporters

Editors

News gathering and news processing are separate aspects of the news production as shown in the Bass's

double action model of internal news flow.

The first step occurs when the news gatherers make `raw news'- events, speeches, news conferences etc. in

to `news copy' or news items. The second step occurs when the news processors modify and unify the items

into the `completed product'- a newspaper or a news broadcast- that is delivered to the public.

Factual Reporting

As it has already been mentioned that in factual reporting the answers to basic questions, i.e., what, when,

where, who, and why, are found out. Reporter goes to the concerned persons and authorities and interviews

them for the basic facts and figures about the event.

The order, however, will change according to the importance of the questions.

Factual reporting of Functions/ Seminars/ Workshops/ Exhibitions

Following information is obtained for the news story of above stated events:

What---the nature of the function

Where---venue

When---time, day and date

Who---the chief guest with designation or status in society

Why----the purpose of the function

Factual Reporting of Accidents/ Fire

What--- actually happened?

When---- the incident took place

Where----the incident took place

Who---- the number of victims

How---- much damage

Factual Reporting of Natural Calamities

What happened------- flood, earth quake, tornado, torrential rains, heavy wind, etc.

When happened-----time

Where happened-----place (city, state, country)

How many victims--------number of causalities and injured

The intensity of earth quake

The speed of the tornado

Factual Reporting of Crimes

What happened? ---------the crime's nature

When happened?

Where happened

Who did it? ---------- the culprit

Who were the victims?

Radio News, Reporting and Production MCM515

Why did it happen? ------ the reason of the crime

Factual Reporting of Illness of a Prominent Figure

Who----Name & identification of the invalid person

What-----nature of illness

Why-----the reason like food poisoning

When-----did he get the illness?

When-----did he get admitted to hospital?

Where-----home or hospital

Condition (fair, serious, or critical)

Members of family at bedside

Factual Reporting of Death Stories

Who-----Name and identification of deceased person, age at the time of death

Where----Place of death

When----date, time

What-- Why--How--Cause of death, survivors with relationships

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