News broadcasting

News broadcasting (also known as newscast or newsbreak) is the broadcasting of various news events and other information via television or radio. The content is usually either produced locally in a newsroom, or by a broadcast network. It may also include such additional material as sports coverage, weather forecasts, traffic reports, commentary and other material that the broadcaster feels is relevant to their audience.

Television news

Television news refers to disseminating current events via the medium of television. "News bulletins" or "newscasts" are programs lasting from seconds to hours that provide updates on world, national, regional or local news events. Television news is very image-based, showing video of many of the events that are reported. Television channels may provide news bulletins as part of a regularly scheduled news program. Less often, television shows may be interrupted or replaced by "news flashes" to provide news updates on current events of great importance or sudden events of great importance.

Cable news

Cable news refers to channels which are devoted to current events 24-hours a day. The originator of this format from which the name derives is CNN (as well as CNN International), which originally stood for cable news network in reference to the then-new phenomenon of cable television. As satellite and other forms have evolved, the term cable news has become something of an anachronism but is still in common use; many other channels have since been established, such as Al Jazeera, FRANCE 24, BBC News 24, STAR News and Fox News. Some news channels specialize even further, such as ESPNEWS (sports from ESPN), CNBC, Bloomberg Television and Fox Business Network (financial).

A term which has entered common parlance to differentiate cable news from traditional news broadcasts is network news, in reference to the traditional television networks on which such broadcasts air. A classic example is the cable news channel MSNBC, which overlaps with (and, in the case of breaking world-changing events, pre-empts) its network counterpart NBC News.

Television news channel

Television news channels are television specialty channels which focus on presenting news content.

The world's first dedicated 24-hour news channel was CNN. ^{[citation needed]}

Radio News

Radio news is the same as television news but is transmitted through the medium of the radio. It is more based on the audio aspect rather than the visual aspect. Sound bites are captured through various reporters and played back through the radio. News updates occur more often on the radio than on the television - usually about once or twice an hour.

At most news/talk radio stations, newscasts run from :00-:06 minutes after the top of each hour. Some stations produce the entire six minutes on their own. Others begin with a network newscast, which covers national and world news, followed by a 2- or 3-minute local newscast. Most of the time, time is taken out of the news "window" for commercials and a weather forecast. In larger cities, traffic reports are also included. Some stations do traffic only during rush hour while others cover traffic around the clock.

Newscasts

Local TV news stations normally broadcast 3-4 times a day: 5:00 & 6:00 in the morning, Noon, 5:00 & 6:00 in the evening, and 10:00 or 11:00 at night. Many stations title their newscasts with catchy names like "Live at Five," "Eleven @ 11:00," or "Nightbeat." These names are intended to set one station apart from the rest, especially for viewers who are chosen for audience measurement surveys. If the respondent was unable to provide a channel number or call letters, the newscast title is often enough for the appropriate station to receive Nielsen ratings credit.

Radio stations normally broadcast news every hour for a minute or so.

In some parts of the world there are 'rolling news' TV channels that broadcast news 24 hours a day, such as CNN in the United States or the BBC in the United Kingdom. Many news reports presented on the Internet are updated 24 hours a day.

Newscasts consist of several different elements, introduced by a news presenter or presenters. The presenters read 'links' and do interviews.

Most news stories come in the form of short 'packages'. These are pre-recorded reports usually lasting from one to five minutes. News reporters gather and edit together interview clips, pictures and their own 'pieces to camera' to tell a story. They script and record a 'voice-over' to explain the pictures and link the elements together.

Some stories are done as live reports. This can be a reporter on the scene of a story either being interviewed by a studio presenter (sometimes known as a 'two-way'), a reporter interviewing one or more other people, or simply live pictures and sound of an event. The sound and pictures are sent back to the TV station via fixed cable links, bounced off a satellite through a satellite truck, or sent through microwave radio transmissions from a vehicle carrying a microwave transmitter. With the growth of "rolling news" channels the use of live material has increased enormously and TV reporters are now often judged as much on their ability to perform live in front of a camera as on their package-making or writing skills.

TV news programs are put together by producers, who decide what goes in and what gets left out, and how long and in what form each story is presented. They put together 'running orders' - a list of the stories in what they decide is the right order.

A separate news editor or assignment editor is often responsible for co-ordinating the gathering of material.

A director puts the show together, with help of the technical director, floor director and a crew of people running audio, graphics, telepromptor, and cameras. Most news shows are broadcast live.

Effects on society

The invention of telecommunications and broadcasting has resulted in "the uncoupling of space and time." Spatial distanciation no longer required spacial distanciation. Information can be transmitted over long distances with hardly any delay. ^[1]

Broadcasting, especially news programs, have changed the way we perceive many people, ideas, jobs, etc. At one time, the leadership and authority of politicians were in awe with everybody. Now that their speeches, actions and decisions are all recorded and broadcast on news programs, people realized they make mistakes too, and are just like any other person. Not only does TV decrease our awe, it also increases the politician's self-doubt and lowers self-esteem. When giving a speech, we can see the speech-givers nerves and anxiety up close. ^[2]

References

^ Thompson, John. The Media and Modernity. Cambridge, Polity Press, 1995. Pg. 19
^ Meyrowitz, Joshua. Mediating Communication: What Happens? Ch. 3.