Apr 07 2010
Radio Homework
The story was told in a research style by an announcer, Joanne Silberner. The report came from National Public Radio’s website so the report was not a live broadcast. There was an ad that introduced the report and an ad that followed the report. The report started with an introduction to the topic by one of NPR’s host reporters. A brief background of who, what, when and why was used as an introduction to attract the listeners attention. Next there is an explanation of where the information came from, which was from the Journal of the American Medical Association. A connection was then made to the other topic that is going to be discussed in the story. The host introduces the announcer that will cover the news story in-depth. The announcer immediately starts her story without an introduction of her background. The announcer then introduces her first expert and background of expert. There is a ten second sound bite of the first expert speaker that continues the announcer’s story. Once the sound bite is finished the announcer goes into more detail about what the expert said and how it relates to her story. Then there is another ten second sound bite of the same expert. The announcer then gives possible answers to what the expert is researching. Then the announcer uses a two second sound bite of a second expert. The speaker discusses the topic more and asks a question that leads into another sound bite of the second expert which answers the question the announcer purposed. The speaker does a good job in briefly explaining the new health care bill and how it relates to the topic of the report. There is a third expert introduced and a seven second sound bite used. The announcer further discusses her findings. The announcer then signs off by saying her name and the name of the company news organization where she works. A 31 second sound bite of jazz music follows up the report and then an ad for Progressive insurance.
The most important information was delivered right away with supporting information to follow. There were three sound bites used to support the announcers report. It was different from print journalist because there were ads that were announced at the beginning and the end of the report. Another difference is the ability to emphasize certain elements with the volume of the announcer’s voice. The broadcast did not closely follow the inverted pyramid style. Experts are used in both print and broadcast but the ability to hear the sound bites of the expert’s voice placed emphasis on what they had to say. If the broadcast was written by a print journalist the end information about the over findings would have been presented much earlier.
Further information:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=125627307
Surgery May Not Be The Answer To An Aching Back
All Things Considered
April 6, 2010
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