NewsTeam Class

  • Welcome
  • Spring 2018 Syllabus
  • Spring 2018 Timetable
  • Spring 2018 Positions
  • Deadlines
  • Grading
  • Workflow Recommendations
  • NewsTeam Jobs
  • Panasonic DVX200 Instructions
  • How to Submit Stories
  • Lower Thirds
  • Reporter Live Fronting
  • Exporting Video
  • Feature Stories
  • News Packages
  • Same-Day Stories
  • VOSOTS
  • Social Media
  • Posting Web Stories
  • Inception News
  • Research and Writing
  • Weather
  • Camera and Editing
  • CNN Newsource
  • Resume Reel Guidelines
  • NewsTeam Alums
  • Blooper Reels
  • TV Reporting Camera



 20 Tips for Producing Newscasts

 

  • Fill in the full name of the anchors on the top of the format.

  • What is the most important and/or interesting news of the day?  Choose a story that will affect and interest the most people.  If it is a national story, find a local angle. 

  • Group like stories together so that stories flow naturally from one to another. (This isn’t always possible.)

  • Start with harder news and get progressively softer throughout the newscast and throughout each Block.

  • Change anchors when you want to indicate a change in subjects.  Keep the same anchor when two stories are related. (You don’t want to play ping pong with the anchors.)  You can keep the same anchor for two short stories (usually readers or a reader and a VO).  You can add a camera turn for an anchor reading two dissimilar stories back to back.  That will help the audience transition between stories.  It’s a good idea to have an OTS graphic (Over The Shoulder) for one of the stories.

  • Alternate anchors for the lead story in each Block.

  • Vary the format of the stories.  Mix up packages, VO/SOTS, readers, etc. This will keep up the pace of the newscast.

  • Make the newscast as visual as possible.  If stories don’t have video, search the web to add visuals. You can use photos, videos or graphics that have a Creative Commons license.  Add a FSCG when you have info but no video.  Dress up readers with an OTS graphic.

  • OTS graphics are titled on the rundown with the name on the graphic. For example “Traffic” or “CU Buffs”.  You can use them for readers or other stories.  But you can’t use two OTS graphics back to back.

  • Hello/Goodbye.  Each anchor reads ½ of the Hello.  Whoever says the 2nd part of the Hello reads the first story.  The Goodbye begins with the anchor who did NOT read the last story. Sports toss.  Anchor 2 talks to sports (middle person on the desk). Assign the anchor who is the most comfortable with sports if possible.

  • Write to your video on your teases.  Leave out some intriguing bit of information so the audience will stick around to watch the story.

  • You backtime in a live TV show like news.  Start with your out time of 12:29:57 and subtract the time for each story until you get to the top.

  • Go in at least :30-:45 light.  NewsTeam eats up time!!!

  • The last story in the newscast should be something the anchors can talk about so they can show some personality and fill time if needed.

  • Before you go into the newscast decide what you will drop if you are over time. Always have at least two stories in the E-Block so you can drop one. 

  • If a story is on the edge of not making it in time for the newscast, have a backup plan and tell the director what that is.  (Usually you just go with the next story on the rundown.  But you will also need to decide where to insert the late story when it does come in.)

  • Be as prepared as you can be the night before.  See what is in the news the day before and what is happening on the day of the newscast. Communicate, communicate, communicate.  Make sure you tell anyone and everyone who is affected by changes or any other important information.

  • Keep an eye on the big picture.  Check in often with reporters, writers, editing and prompter. 


Back to Producer's Responsibilities      

  • News Manager (Producer)
  • Anchor
  • Weather Anchor/Producer
  • Sports Anchor Producer
  • Reporter-News
  • Reporter-Sports