RADIO ANNOUNCING

LEARNING OBJECTIVE: Identify the techniques used in radio announcing in terms of preparing and delivering copy, and the responsibilities of the announcer.

Some Navy broadcasters forget that their primary responsibility is to communicate. It is essential that you, the announcer, know what the stories are about before you try to read them on the air. Announcers who only read words are doing exactly that - reading words and not communicating. Remember - it is not the listener's responsibility to interpret what is read.

PREPARING RADIO COPY

There are certain aspects of preparing your radio copy that you must do before you go on the air. These include phrasing and marking your copy.

Phrasing

The bulk of the communication process centers on phrasing. People do not talk in words; they speak in phrases. The phrasing process is done during normal conversation, without thought. Beginning newscasters have some trouble transferring this natural process when delivering their copy. The best way to see if your broadcast copy is divided into phrases is to read the copy aloud. Identify whether the phrases answer one or more of the five Ws and H. If the phrase does not answer one of the five Ws and H, then it is not a complete thought

Marking Copy

Broadcasters use specific oral punctuation marks to divide their copy into phrases. There is disparity between written punctuation and oral punctuation. English teachers teach written punctuation and follow strict rules of usage. Oral punctuation adds accent and tells the announcer when to breathe, without disrupting the natural flow, phrasing and the importance of a sentence.

As stated earlier, most phrasing problems occur because announcers do not understand what they are reading. They are not breathing at the right time or not marking their copy properly. Most announcers adapt easily to the following system:

/ (The single slash mark means you are to pause and take a short breath.)

Use the single slash as an oral comma, just a short pause in the flow of words from your mouth - not a complete stop like a period.

// (The double slash mark means you are to stop reading and take a deep breath.)

The double slash is an oral period. This is a big stop and is the end of a sentence. This is the time to take a good breath for the next sentence.

/ / (The triple slash mark means you are to pause / for emphasis, but do not breathe.)

This mark has nothing to do with breathing. It is just a sign to you, and it means pause for emphasis. You might use it for difficult names, quotes or a number in the copy you know you want to emphasize.

An example of radio copy with oral punctuation marks is shown in figure 13-6.

Figure 13-6. - Radio copy with oral punctuation marks.

When you are marking copy, make sure you do not change the meaning or context of the story. However, most stories may be marked in more than one way without changing their meaning. How you mark them will depend on your personal style.

DELIVERY

The way you speak or imply the meaning of a word may change the whole context of that story. You, the announcer, are the most important element in the information process. The fewer barriers introduced in transmitting the information, the clearer the information is received and understood by the receiver or listener.

Variety

The announcer should have a voice that conforms easily to the spirit and intention of the assignment. No matter what the subject or script, the announcer must inform the listeners of his sincere belief in the content and the natural excitement (vitality) of the occasion. All meanings should be clear. Being bored should not detract from natural vitality. All the slight changes in mood and feeling, directed by the words and situation, have to occur as effortlessly as they do in speaking with a close friend. Discreet changes in the voice appear naturally when they are truly felt by the announcer.

The human voice is able to reflect all conceivable traces of mood and meaning. Subtle natural changes in vocal pitch, time, quality and force make this possible. Speech without thoughtful distinction tells only a shade of the full mood and meaning and may express monotony or give inaccurate information to the listener. The announcer should feel the mood and know word meaning if he is to show sincerity in his voice.

Articulation

In conversation, we naturally drop sounds and slur words. The reason for working on articulation is to make the sounds of words clear, so that the announcer may be understood.

Clean articulation is the most difficult aspect of voice and diction. Its intent is not to eliminate accents and regionalities, but to enable the announcer to communicate with everyone.

The following are a few drills and methods for dealing with some common articulation problems.

MUSHY SOUNDS. - If your speech sounds sloppy, chances are, you are not opening your mouth enough. Have another person watch you read or use a mirror. Notice if your lower jaw moves. If it does not, this could be the cause of the problem. Announcers who tuck their chin into their chest to make their voice deeper are creating articulation problems. Read your copy overemphasizing the lip, tongue and chin movement required to make each sound, then reread the copy normally. Keep your script at eye level and keep it up while reading so you cannot tuck in your chin.

The same theory applies to the announcer who does not move his lips. Read the copy, overemphasizing each lip movement, then read your copy again normally.

Another solution for mushy sounds is the "pencil method." Place a pencil sideways to the back of your mouth and firmly between your teeth. Take your script and slowly read it through, articulating all the words. Then reread your script again normally. This will help you correct any mushy sounds.

DROPPING SOUNDS. - The ends and the middle sounds of words are commonly eliminated in speech. You should pronounce carefully each syllable of each word, overstating each sound. Then say the word normally.

NEW ENGLAND "R''. - Announcers with this problem change the "R" sound in "car" to an "ah" sound (cah). The "ah" sound is easier to say since it does not involve moving the lips or the tongue. Read several words with "Rs" in them, being careful to hit the "AH UR" sound. Try the following example:

Example: Parker parked the car outside the card store.