Deck 8: Writing for Broadcast Journalism

Question 1

What is a way of making broadcast news seem more immediate?

A) using the present tense
B) avoiding complex sentences
C) inserting attribution

Answer 1

using the present tense

Question 2

Broadcast writers need to use phonetic spelling for hard to pronounce words.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

Apposition should be avoided in broadcast writing.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

In broadcasting, you should frequently include dependent clauses at the beginning of sentences.

Question 5

Attribution in broadcast news should generally be placed

A) at the end of the sentence
B) in the middle of the sentence
C) at the beginning of the sentence
D) nowhere - it should be avoided

Question 6

In broadcast writing, you should use simple, declarative sentences.

Question 7

Broadcast news writers try to eliminate all adjectives and adverbs from their copy unless they are absolutely necessary.

Question 8

Sound is a relatively easy thing to produce for a news story.

Question 9

One of the reasons for using sound in news reports is that

A) sound reminds the reader of radio
B) sound gives sources a "voice"
C) readers are likely to pay more for news if sound is included

Question 10

A general tenet of writing for audio is that

A) punctuation should be used as much as possible
B) punctuation is generally not necessary
C) punctuation should be used sparingly

Question 11

In audio journalism, achieving good sound quality

A) is one of many important goals but not the most important
B) can be done in almost any environment
C) is the highest priority

Question 12

In putting together a video story, it's best to try to keep the idea of the story simple and straightforward.

Question 13

When you are compiling a video story, the chief goal is to tell a good story with a lot of clarity rather than making everything completely accurate.

Question 14

In video editing, using lots of different transitions is considered a good practice.

Question 15

In writing for audio, titles

A) come before names
B) come after names
C) should be omitted entirely

Question 16

One of the most important considerations of a broadcast journalist is the timeliness of the copy he or she is writing.

Question 17

Writing is not as important for broadcasting as it is for other media because little of what is spoken over the air is written down first.

Question 18

Deadlines are less important to the broadcast writer than the print journalist.

Question 19

The average length of a radio news story is about

A) 30 seconds
B) 60 seconds
C) 90 seconds

Question 20

Personalizing stories - that is, telling the listener what the story will mean to him or her - is one good way of getting his or her attention.

Question 21

Which is a true statement in regard to broadcast writing?

A) Information is equally important with explanation.
B) Explanation is more important than information.
C) Information is more important than explanation.

Question 22

The Four Cs of broadcast writing are:

A) correctness, clarity, conciseness and color
B) casual, conciseness, color and conversational
C)correctness, clarity, climax and color

Question 23

Which would be more correct, according to broadcast style?

A) The robbers stole $10,233 from First National Bank.
B) The robbers stole ten thousand, two hundred and thirty three dollars from First National Bank.
C) The robbers stole more than ten thousand dollars from First National Bank.

Question 24

Broadcast copy is prepared for:

A) the listener
B) the viewer
C) the announcer

Question 25

Dramatic unity form consists of three elements. They are:

A) lead, climax, effect
B) climax, cause, effect
C) cause, climax, effect

Question 26

Which format refers to when a story is read by an anchor or reporter without visual or audio aid?

A) reader copy
B) voice-over
C) actuality

Question 27

The most important news value for broadcast news is:

A) good film
B) timeliness
C) reporter on the scene
D) eyewitness report

Question 28

Most video documentaries are based on the

A) extended interview
B) reporter voice-over
C) anchor voice-over