RADIO BROADCAST

a presentation
for Capas, Tarlac 2014
by
Charito P. Palanca

Radio Broadcast VS Written Communication

Radio broadcast is oral communication. As
such, it has advantages over the written/ printed
communication. It has also its disadvantages.
Radio broadcast, just like any oral communication,
takes advantage of the faculties of speech voice,
intonation, pronunciation.
2. Radio can put across emotions through the use of
voice.
3. In radio broadcast, there is no chance to edit or
copyread on air the news.
4. The audience cannot reread the radio broadcast which
can be easily done with the print media.
1.

WRITING FOR BROADCAST:

Writing for broadcast requires the presence
of essential elements of broadcast news writing
style:
The importance of spelling, the use of
regular capitalization, making the copy more
readable and expressive through the use of
punctuation, emphasis, and pronunciation help for
difficult words; effective use of numbers, handling
lists of item, noting clearly the sources of
information, and editing broadcast copy so it can be
read easily on the air.

1.

SPELLING :

Correct spelling is essential to broadcast script.

Incorrect spelling distracts the newscaster
and may cause unnecessary and distracting
pauses, hesitations and stumbling on air.

Misspelling casts doubt on the quality and

accuracy of the information presented.

2.

CAPITALIZATION
Follow the generally accepted
rules for capitalization so that you can recognize the
beginnings of sentences, proper nouns, street
names, and so forth.

3.

MAKING THE COPY:

Broadcast news copy must be
clean, readable, and typed. Hand written news
stories are not acceptable.

Double space your copy. This allows the newscaster to

see the words clearly. It makes copyreading easier.

4. PUNCTUATION:

Punctuation gives the newscaster clues about

the meaning, emphasis and interpretation of
the copy. Correct use of punctuations avoids
ambiguity and adds clarity.
Semi-colons, exclamation points, brackets,
and parentheses are rarely used in broadcast
items.
Writers for broadcast must learn the proper use
of periods, commas, colons, apostrophes,
hyphens, double dashes, ellipses, and
quotation marks.

Period signals the end of a single thought and

Commas are used to separate words, phrases

or clauses in a sentence. It can be used to
create emphasis and to improve clarity .when
parenthetical phrase (thoughts that
supplement the main idea in a sentence ) are
used.
Double dashes consist of a single space on
either side of two consecutive hyphens (- -) .
The double dashes can help clarify qualify the
previous thought or denote an abrupt change in
the thought in the sentence.

Ex. The mayor presented his plan - - an

Ellipses consist of three consecutive dots. Ellipses

should be used in broadcast news copy to add a
brief phrase or clarifying thought to an already
complete sentence or idea or to signal the
newscaster to pause a moment and let vocal
inflection drop as the additional phrase is read.
Ex. Police officials declare that they will use force at
the nuclear power plant . . . unless the situation
improves overnight.
Ellipses should not be used to substitute for commas
or other standard punctuation marks.

5.

NUMBERS IN NEWS ITEMS:

Numbers Should be used sparingly in news
broadcast stories. The listeners have difficulty
remembering and appreciating the numbers used.

Guidelines in the use of numbers in broadcast

news stories:
Eliminate as many numbers as possible without affecting

the essence of the story.

Use essential numbers only, if possible.
Round off large numbers whenever possible. Remember
numbers are meant to be heard and not to be read by the
audience.
Write numbers clearly so that they can be easily read and
understood.
Write numbers in a consistent and functional manner,
Indicate the significance of the numbers used by relating
them to the audiences interest, concerns and lifestyle by
putting the numbers into a context that can be easily
understood.

ATTRIBUTION:
Attribution in a broadcast news story must be
presented in an honest, responsible and complete
manner.
Attribution must be used in the following situations:
An opinion is expressed in the news story.
Potentially inflammatory statement is used in the
story.
Facts may be suspect or questioned in the future.
Story information may be controversial
6.

EDITING
Provide news copies that are clean, clear and easy to
read. Copy must be retyped if too many corrections
are noted. Common copy readying symbols may be
used in editing for radio broadcast news stories.
7.

THE LANGUAGE OF BROADCAST

Broadcast Sentence Structure :

Broadcast news writing is supposed to sound like

everyday speech.
Keep it simple. The use of simple sentences
instead of compound or complex sentences is
best. Short sentences can be easily understood.
Listeners can easily connect the elements of the
news stories when written in simple, short
sentences.

Avoid your relatives. The use of relative pronouns,

adverbs and clauses tend to interrupt the flow of thought
of the sentence. Relative clauses must be avoided in
broadcast news stories.
Ex. Joseph Estrada, who played Asiong Aksaya in the
movies and was convicted of plunder, is now Manila
Mayor.
Joseph Estrada played Asiong Aksaya.
He was convicted of plunder.
He is Manila Mayor now
Be active. In radio broadcast news, the active voice must
be used. Use sentences with subjects doing things and
not just receiving things.

BROADCAST NEWS WRITING

BASICS:
1. WRITE CONVERSATIONALLY.

2. WRITE CONCISELY.
3. SIMPLIFY COMPLICATED IDEAS.
4. RESEARCH AND VERIFY ALL
5.
6.
7.
8.

INFORMATION.
AVOID NEWSPAPER CONSTRUCTION.
DONT GIVE ORDERS.
DONT BURY A STRONG VERB IN A NOUN
DONY CHARACTERIZE THE NEWS AS
GOOD, BAD, INTERSTING, OR SHOCKING.
Let the readers decide what is good or bad.

9.

10.
11.
12.

13.
14.

DONT START A SENTENCE WITH A PARTICIPLE OR

A PARTICIPIAL PHRASE.
(Needing a school bag, I bought John a new one.)
DONT START A STORY WITH THERE IS, THERE
ARE, OR IT IS.
DONT START A STORY WITH THE NAME OF THE
UNKNOWN OR UNFAMILIAR PERSON.
DONT START A SENTENCE WITH YESTERDAY OR
CONTINUES. Yesterday is old news. Continues means
theres nothing new.
DONT START A STORY WITH ANOTHER OR
MORE OR ONCE MORE.
DONT LOSE OR FAIL TO REACH YOUR LISTENERS.
TALK TO THEM NOT AT THEM.

FIVE CS OF RADIO BROADCAST

NEWS:
1. CURRENT

2. CONCISE
3. CONVERSATIONAL
4. CORRECT

5. CLEAR

Voice for Radio

Tips for Broadcasting:
1. Broadcasting is not shouting.
2. Use your natural speaking voice.
3. Talk to your audience.
4. Speak clearly
5. Never insult your listeners.
6. Dont scold your listeners.
7. Dont moralize.