Writing Under Pressure

Writing for broadcast news, as we all know, is completely different from writing anything else. Instead of using big, impressive words and long sentences we want to be direct, concise and to the point. Basically using the least amount of words to give the most details. One way I like to do this is to eliminate extra words from a story right off the bat. You will know how to decide what words are "fluff" or "fill" words because if you take them out of a sentence, the meaning does not change, and if the meaning does not change, then the words can be deemed unnecessary. Another technique I always like to stress, especially when copy editing with MJs, is simply reading the copy out loud. When things are read out loud we can easily understand if some words are hard to say, or if a sentence is too long for an anchor. The most important thing with writing the broadcast is to not panic,especially with a looming dead line. Once panic sets in, then your news writing skills have the potential to get sloppy and slack off. People watch broadcast news to hear the news, not read it. So it is very important to always practice strong writing, copy edit, read out loud, and take a lot of pride in the stories your anchors are reading.