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When reviewing the news person’s tape, be sure to have a quiet setting, away from telephone and interruptions, so that you can devote total attention to the individual being critiqued. Here is a “baker’s dozen” of suggestions for news.
1. The call letters or station slogan should be showcased at the front of the news and mentioned again at the end of the news. When the personality and news person “chat” prior to the cast, there should be an obvious beginning of the news to indicate that the “happy talk” has ended and the news is starting. Call letters go with all elements.
2. Timechecks should appear at the beginning of the news, at the spot breaks, and prior to the final outro of the cast.
3. You should promote upcoming news items the same way the you promote ahead with upcoming music; i.e., “traffic and weather are next,” etc. Give the audience a reason to continue listening.
4. Keep the story count HIGH. The listener today wants to be informed a little about everything. This knowledge enables them to sound informed at “water cooler conversations.”
5. Use audio ONLY where it makes sense. Do not intro the audio by saying the same thing that the actuality will. Well-written copy should tell the story. Audio is used to add impact or paints a mental picture of the event.
6. Do not use the network’s outro on wired actualities. Let the audience assume a CBS reporter works for your station. When we air an actuality for a network reporter, he is working for your station.
7. Does the content of the news pass the “Who Cares” test? Will the target demographic truly care about the story?
8. Are stories written in the language of the audience? Do they read naturally and are they easy for the target to understand?
9. Does the content meet the McVay Media news policy of Heart/Purse/Health/Relaxation/Local/National?
10. The delivery of the newscaster should be natural and believable. He should sound warm, sincere, and conversational. The voices of DOOM are ineffective in today’s world of radio.
11. Weather forecasts should be prepromoted. Are the forecasts compact and easy to deliver? Do not give more information than the audience cares to know regarding weather; i.e., Monday through Thursday mornings tell today’s weather. Monday through Thursday afternoon, give tonight’s and tomorrow’s weather, Friday and Saturday should contain the forecast for the complete weekend. Sunday should be today, tonight and tomorrow.
12. Does the newscast include current temperatures? Forget Celsius: America had not accepted the metric system. Delivering Celsius and Fahrenheit will not educate the public. It only clutters the airwaves.
13. Does the position of the news within the format hour compete with your primary rival or is the news hidden? Hiding the news is not beneficial to your audience or to your radio station. Since deregulation, you would do better to eliminate news than to hide it. News is a primary service to the audience.
Finally, when you run the news, how often and which dayparts are dependent upon the priority of the news with your particular audience.
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