Sound Reporting

by Kern, Jonathan

• ISBN13: 9780226431772
• ISBN10: 0226431770
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2008-07-01
• Publisher: Univ of Chicago Pr

Summary

Perhaps you've always wondered how public radio gets that smooth, well-crafted sound. Maybe you're thinking about starting a podcast, and want some tips from the pros. Or maybe storytelling has always been a passion of yours, and you want to learn to do it more effectively. Whatever the casewhether you're an avid NPR listener or you aspire to create your own audio, or bothSound Reporting: The NPR Guide to Audio Journalism and Productionwill give you a rare tour of the world of a professional broadcaster. Jonathan Kern, who has trained NPR's on-air staff for years, is a gifted guide, able to narrate a day in the life of a host and lay out the nuts and bolts of production with equal wit and warmth. Along the way, he explains the importance of writing the way you speak, reveals how NPR books guests ranging from world leaders to neighborhood newsmakers, and gives sage advice on everything from proposing stories to editors to maintaining balance and objectivity. Best of allbecause NPR wouldn't be NPR without its array of distinctive voiceslively examples from popular shows and colorful anecdotes from favorite personalities animate each chapter. As public radio's audience of millions can attest, NPR's unique guiding principles and technical expertise combine to connect with listeners like no other medium can. With today's technologies allowing more people to turn their home computers into broadcast studios,Sound Reportingcouldn't have arrived at a better moment to reveal the secrets behind the story of NPR's success.

Author Biography

Jonathan Kern is the executive producer for training at NPR. He has worked in almost every position in radio news, including executive producer of All Things Considered.

Table of Contents

Foreword	p. ix
Preface	p. xv
Sound and Stories	p. 1
Fairness	p. 8
Fair, Accurate, Complete, and Honest	p. 9
The Echo Chamber	p. 10
Verifying Assertions	p. 16
Getting Both Sides	p. 21
Avoiding Loaded Language	p. 23
Writing for Broadcast	p. 25
Write the Way You Speak	p. 27
How to Sound Like a Real Person	p. 29
Other Newswriting Tips	p. 33
Reporting	p. 39
The Reporter's Personality and Skills	p. 40
Developing News Sources	p. 42
Other Sources of Original Stories	p. 45
Getting People on Tape	p. 48
Getting Great Actualities	p. 51
Working on Tight Deadlines	p. 56
Beyond Acts and Tracks	p. 60
A Storytelling Sampler	p. 64
Field Producing	p. 73
Getting Started	p. 74
In the Field	p. 77
Finding Sound and Scenes	p. 80
Putting the Story Together	p. 83
Filing from the Field	p. 86
Taking Responsibility	p. 90
Story Editing	p. 92
The Editor's Role	p. 92
The Ingredients of a Story	p. 93
Structuring the Story	p. 97
Editing by Ear	p. 99
The Intro	p. 102
The First Track	p. 105
Copyediting	p. 108
The Ending	p. 112
When to Stop Editing	p. 113
Finding New Approaches to Old Stories	p. 115
The Reporter-Host Two-Way	p. 120
The Problem with Scripted Two-Ways	p. 121
Going Scriptless	p. 126
Two-Way Tips	p. 129
Reading on the Air	p. 132
Sounding Conversational	p. 133
Marking Up a Script	p. 135
Getting Physical	p. 137
The Need for Feedback	p. 138
Hosting	p. 141
The Host's Day	p. 142
The Host Interview	p. 146
Reading Scripts Other People Write	p. 161
Hosting Live Programming	p. 163
Newscasting	p. 171
What Is News?	p. 171
Public Radio Newscast Values and Principles	p. 174
Composing the 'Cast	p. 176
Newscast Writing	p. 179
The NPR News Spot	p. 184
The Reporter Q&A	p. 189
On the Air	p. 192
Booking	p. 195
Booking Well-Known People	p. 196
Booking Everyday People	p. 200
The Booker as Detective	p. 202
The Pre-interview	p. 204
Final Steps	p. 207
Producing	p. 210
Finding and Pitching Stories	p. 211
Producing Interviews	p. 216
Editing Interviews	p. 219
Mixing Reporter Pieces	p. 223
Producing Music Pieces	p. 228
Production Ethics	p. 232
The Unkindest Cuts	p. 233
Other Production Issues	p. 240
Program Producing	p. 248
The Art of the News Program	p. 249
Creating the Lineup	p. 252
Producing Live Programs	p. 258
Program Editing	p. 266
Setting the News Agenda	p. 267
Error Checking	p. 270
Massaging the Script	p. 273
Sitting In on Interviews	p. 281
The Editor as Manager	p. 284
Commentaries	p. 287
Finding Commentators	p. 288
Topical Commentaries	p. 290
Personal Commentaries	p. 292
Editing Commentaries	p. 293
Coaching Commentators	p. 295
Commentary Intros	p. 297
To Comment or Not to Comment?	p. 298
Studio Directing	p. 300
The Director as Number Cruncher	p. 301
The Director as Conductor	p. 302
Directing Live Events	p. 309
The Joy of Directing	p. 311
Beyond Radio	p. 313
The Web-Radio Relationship	p. 314
The Manifold Media of the Web	p. 318
Podcasting	p. 324
Editorial Issues Online	p. 328
The Future	p. 331
Glossary	p. 335
Pronouncers	p. 355
Index	p. 359
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.