Introduction to Television Reporting

8. Cue writing and your audience
(This is the Eight article in the Ten part series on 'Introduction to Television Reporting', this series is part of an online course taken by CBA)

What is a cue?

A cue is the script which the presenter reads before your news or feature story is broadcast. You might call a cue by a different name, such as an introduction to a story.

The cue can be written by the reporter, the programme editor or the presenter (anchor). But it is always best that whoever wrote the cue has actually seen the story which the cue introduces.

Because nothing will ruin your story quite like a cue that says everything in your story and gives you nothing to repeat!

Writing the cue

So as much as possible, always be involved in writing or suggesting the cue. However, sometimes this is taken out of your hands.

Usually the programme editor or presenter will be grateful that you have helped them by writing the cue yourself. They can always edit or change it. Remember to think of the cue as an extension of the script because that is how the viewer sees it!

The cue should "set up" the story and lead nicely into it. This means that a cue should never repeat the first line of a story. It should give the viewer additional information that will help them with background.

For example, here is a cue:

"Today the Agriculture Ministry announced a new policy for market liberalisation which will affect farmers throughout the country.

Mandar Phanse reports..."

First line of script:

"The crop is being harvested and Rajan Farmer is looking forward to better prices than last season. He's benefiting from the changes in how he can sell his wheat..."

You don't have to repeat that the new policy — or whatever was in the cue — has been announced. You just need to report on how it affects the story.

So the cue actually gives you more time to tell the story.

Your audience

As in all writing, the first rule is to think of your audience.

A cue is the signal to your audience about the content of the story. So imagine you are explaining your story to a friend who's not a journalist. What information would you tell them first?

Write the cue for them — not for your colleagues!

If you are writing a cue for an economic story being broadcast on your weekly business programme, you are addressing a very different audience than for a general news broadcast. You can assume they will have more background.

To put it another way: think of the cues that are often used to introduce a sports news item. If you don't follow cricket, for example, most of the cues for a cricket story are not user-friendly for a general audience.

Whether this is right or not is a matter for debate! But a cricket fan will understand the cue even if others in your audience do not.

Explaining a complicated story

There are some news stories where you must provide more context than usual. Sometimes these are stories in areas not familiar to most viewers, so you must think about your audience carefully.

So perhaps a map can be shown or some graphics can be used to provide further information. Again, using a cue like this allows you time in the script to deal with the human aspects of a story.

Cues as 'teasers'

For some stories that are not hard news, a cue can be used as a "tease". For example if you are covering the launching of the annual fashion show where designers are showing their new designs, you can have fun with the cue!

Cue:

"Have you thought about what you are going wear this weekend? If you are looking for some new ideas, Prerna Bandabe has been meeting some people who would love to offer some advice..."

First line:

"Short skirts, long dresses or jeans in a new high tech-fabric...the nation's young designers have put their new clothes on display at the annual fashion show..."

How long is a cue?

There is no single answer to the question of length. As in so many things, this can be set by the style of your broadcaster.

If a cue is a simple "read" with no diagrams or maps or graphic, 10 to 15 seconds would be average. But remember — a cue must be tailored to the news story.

If the cue is used for more information it will be longer. For example, if you are covering a hurricane or tropical storm in your country, the cue might also have information about the path of the storm. It might involve showing a map of the storm movements.

When the tsunami hit Thailand and other nations on the Indian Ocean, many cues would have the latest number of victims. They would often include a map showing the path of the tsunami as well.

A Few Tips

·         Always double check the cue before the news broadcast

·         Think about what additional information will make your story more effective to viewers

·         Never, ever repeat the opening line in the cue

·         Write the cue so the viewer wants to hear more!

Introduction to Television Reporting

3.Scripting

(This is the Third article in the Ten part series on 'Introduction to Television Reporting', this series is part of an online course taken by CBA)

The script is the most vital part of the reporter’s work in television news. But remember, television is about pictures and sound. So a well written script should highlight strong video and audio. A good script can also improve ordinary or weak video and audio. And all scripts should tell a story for the audience whether you are covering a dramatic life and death incident or a press conference.

How to write to pictures

Before you write a script you should view all your material with the video tape. Then the reporter and VT editor must decide the order of the video. Only then do you write the script. Journalists who simply write a script before viewing their video, then hand the script or the voice track to the VT editor will never use their pictures properly and will produce far less interesting and creative news.

Always remember—you are writing for television, not a newspaper. Never, ever write wall-to-wall commentary. Your words must draw attention and add to the video, not just describe it.

Less is More

The best scripts are often the shortest scripts because the audience is given time to watch the video and listen to the natural sound. The more powerful the pictures, the fewer words are needed. Bold use of sound pays off. Let the audience listen to natural sound which often can express more information than scripted words.

Short concise sentences work best for scripts. Small chunks are easier to swallow!

Tell a Single Story Clearly and Concisely

Find your focus before you start to write. Think carefully about what you want to tell your audience. This should always be a single story told clearly. But never take the background knowledge of your audience for granted. Brief explanations can add to the clarity of your script.

Opening & Closing Sentences

Always work hard on writing good sentences. This will set the tone and help you write a stronger script. A good opening sentence will also alert the viewer that they are about to watch a well crafted story.

A good closing sentence will leave the audience with an important thought and tone.

Examples

In 2007 there were many stories marking the 60th anniversary of the founding of modern India. One such story starting with video of the anniversary parade and Indian soldiers marching proudly. The opening line did not state the obvious, which might have been:

"Indian soldiers march proudly to celebrate the 60th anniversary of their country." Or

"A parade to celebrate the 60th anniversary was held in New Delhi today".

Those script lines would have been obvious and described what we were seeing. Instead the reporter used this as an opening line:

Natural sound of music and marching

"India in confident mood"

More natural sound from parade

This opening line added to the report and spoke directly to the audience.

Style

For every news story you must decide what it means for your audience and why it matters to them. Some reporters think about how they would tell the story to one particular person to develop their own style. Confidence is the key to your own style—there is no single way to script.

A Few Tips

·         Avoid clichés. They are only used by lazy writers. And that’s not a cliché!

·         Write into and out of soundbites and interviews clearly and creatively.

·         Beware loaded words such as “freedom fighter” or “terrorist”. Tell the facts and let the interviewees provide the comments and opinions.

·         Do not use jargon, abbreviations or acronyms unless you are absolutely sure that the audience understands. The audience may know what UN or CIA stands for, but what about G8, WTO, CHOGM, the OAU? If in any doubt, avoid it!

·         Finally, read your script out loud to yourself before you record your track.