USCANNENBERGSCHOOL OF JOURNALISM

Journalism 306

Broadcast News Production

Fall 2011

Jeff Wald

(213) 440-5555 Cell

Office hours: Upon request, depending on my schedule.

COURSE OBJECTIVES

This course will put together all that you have learned about writing and reporting and turning that knowledge into solid story telling through solid production techniques. You will have plenty of room to express your individual style as long as you follow the basic rules you will learn during this semester. The following will be the techniques to follow:

  • Clear conversational writing
  • Well composed, compelling video
  • Best pictures
  • Best sound bites
  • Best natural sound
  • Good pacing

COURSE DESCRIPTION

The objective by the end of the semester is that Broadcast News Production students will be able to research, pitch, write, report, shoot and edit professional television/web packages with graphics and special effects if appropriate. This class will emphasize reporting the context crucial to more complex stories. By this time, students should have mastered professional interviewing skills to elicit interesting sound bites and shoot interviews in a visually compelling manner. We will also critique your performance in front of the camera utilizing “standups” and voiceover techniques. Students should also have mastered the skills necessary to shoot creative sequences rather than “wallpaper” video. Editing skills on the Avid software should match basic professional standardsin a creative and technical manner.

All students, whether interested in reporting, anchoring or producing should have a clear understanding and appreciation of the major role that production plays in reporting video news. Class and homework exercises should emulate or exceed real-world situations to prepare students for the final upper division classes of reporting and/or producing.

OPTIONAL TEXTBOOKS

ISBN: 13: 978-0-07-352609-6

Title: Broadcast News Handbook, 3rd Edition

Authors: C.A. Tuggle, Forest Carr, Suzanne Huffman

Publisher: MCGraw Hill

ISBN: 13: 978-0030791765

Title: Broadcast News, Third Edition

Author: Mitchell Stephens

Publisher: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich

ISBN: 0205262589

Title: Creative Interviewing

Author: Ken Metzler

Publisher: Allyn and Bacon

ISBN: 0967843200

Title: Power Producer

Author: Dow Smith

Publisher: Radio-Television News Directors Association

COURSE OUTCOMES

  1. Following current events and being able to find a local angle to a national or international story.
  1. Pitching, researching, writing, reporting, shooting, editing stories under tight deadline pressure.
  1. Advanced photojournalism: Students should have a high appreciation for the power of pictures in video news. They should have the ability to distinguish the most memorable and compelling video to help tell the story. Students should also be able to personalize a story with a least one central character.
  1. Researching stories: Students should be able to go beyond the basic information provided by their instructors, editors or interviewees. They should be able to write a story “pitch” proposal based on the information they discover. A thin or incomplete Story Idea Form will affect your project grade.
  2. Reporter standups: Students should be able to produce meaningful standups that advance or bridge their stories from one element to the next both journalistically and visually.
  1. Producing News Broadcasts: We recognize that most producing opportunities, aside from on-air reporting, are in producing entire news broadcasts. Annenberg broadcast majors should be able to understand the challenges of putting together a television news/webcast for a mass audience in Los Angeles. This means that students should be able to start thinking in terms of news judgment, setting realistic time allotments, orderly presentation of ideas, pacing, style and several other areas of production necessary for a journalistically sound and creatively compelling newscast.
  1. Producing specialty segments, such as sports and weather: How these segments are changing as people get information from other sources such as the Internet, ESPN, The Weather Channel, Blackberrys, iPhones, text messages, etc.
  1. Live reports: Students should be able to report and/or introduce a story live at the scene and interact with an anchor. This skill is critical for a television news journalist.
  1. Graphics: Students should be knowledgeable in the types of graphics available and be able to incorporate them into complex stories to aid understanding.
  1. Ratings and Research: Familiarity with ratings and sampling techniques. What ratings can tell a producer and what they cannot.

Students will complete two reporter packages for homework assignments by midterm. Maximum length: 1:30 to 1:45. No package (except for the final) should exceed 1:45 without the consent of the instructor in advance.

Students will complete two additional packages the second half of the semester, last of which will be a multi-faceted or complex issue, as a final exam. This final project could run up to 2 minutes, if approved in advance by the instructor.

DAILY NEWS AND VIEWINGS

You will be required to watch at least one local and/or national newscast daily. Vary the newscasts each day to gain an appreciation for differing styles and news judgments.

We also urge you to view “CBS Sunday Morning” and “60 Minutes”. CBS Sunday Morning features some of the best produced and most creatively shot news stories on television. 60 Minutes offers lengthy reports that are issue oriented or profiles of famous people.

Also, given this era of opinion journalism, I recommend the “O’Reilly Factor” on the Fox News Channel and “Countdown with Keith Olbermann” on MSNBC. Also, Comedy Central’s Daily Show with Jon Stewart. These programs round out the traditional news broadcasts by providing stories influenced by the anchors opinions. These programs utilize traditional newsroom personnel to write and produce the various segments.

ETHICS DISCUSSIONS & SPECIAL GUESTS

Special guests from local newsrooms will appear to discuss current ethical issues and share their views on the changing landscape of television news. They will also talk about their experiences as television and web journalists. Students will be encouraged to participate in these discussions. You will be graded on your participation in class and the written logical thoughtfulness of your reports on these sessions.

STORY ASSIGNMENTS

There will be four major produced packages including the final, plus several other assignments listed in the syllabus. All video assignments should be turned in on DVD. All audio and video elements – voiceover, sound bites, natural sound and picture descriptions must be shown on the accompanying hard-copy script. A sample script will be distributed to show the format.

GRADING CRITERIA: ASSIGNMENTS AND VIDEO PACKAGES

A.Basic criteria - You will be graded on clarity, organization, accuracy, fairness/balance, completeness/omissions, grammar, spelling, and ability to meet deadlines. We will distribute a separate checklist showing the exact criteria we will be grading. Written story pitches (proposals) are mandatory and will be factored into the grade average for each project.

Each story will have a letter grade (A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, C-, D+, D, D-or F). On some assignments, we may use a point system, but the points will be translated to a letter grade.

1.“A” stories are accurate, clear, comprehensive stories that are well written and require only minor copy editing (i.e., they would air). They are also shot and edited creatively, are well paced, and include good sound bites and natural sound that add flavor, color, or emotion to the story.

2.“B” stories require more than minor editing, and have a few style or spelling errors or one significant error of omission. There may be minor flaws in the composition of some shots or in the editing. Good use of available sound bites.

3.“C” stories need considerable editing or rewriting and/or have many spelling, style or omission errors. Camera work and editing techniques are mediocre or unimaginative, but passable. Sound bites add little or no color – only information that could be better told in the reporter’s narration.

  1. “D” stories require excessive rewriting and have numerous

errors, and should not have been submitted. Camera work is

unsatisfactory, or fails to show important elements.

  1. “F” stories have failed to meet the major criteria of the assignment, have numerous errors, or both.A story that has afactualerror that is material to the story merits an F. The following are some other circumstances that would warrant a grade of F:
  • Plagiarizing a script, portions of a script, or information from any source – wire copy, feed packages, another reporter’s package or story script. (See below.)
  • Staging video: When the reporter tells or asks someone to do something specific, unless that is revealed or made obvious in the context of the story. (Gray areas will be discussed in class.)
  • Using video shot by someone else and presenting it as his or her own work.
  • Telling interview subjects what you want them to say.
  • Distorting video: shooting video in one location and presenting it as being another location.
  • Using the camcorder to intentionally intimidate, provoke or incite a person or a group of people to elicit more “dramatic” video.
  • Having someone else shoot your stand-up (portion of story when the reporter is on-camera) or interviews – (but only in those cases when the assignment specifically calls for you to shoot your own stand-up and/or interviews).
  • Promising, paying or giving someone something in exchange for doing an interview, either on or off camera.

B.Plagiarism/Academic Integrity - Plagiarism is defined as taking ideas orwritings from another and passing them off as one's own; in journalism, this includes appropriating the reporting of another without clear attribution. The following is the Annenberg School of Journalism's policy on academic integrity as published in the university catalogue: “Since its founding, the USC School of Journalism has maintained a commitment to the highest standards of ethical conduct and academic excellence. Any student found guilty of plagiarism, fabrication, cheating on examinations, or purchasing papers or other assignments will receive a failing grade in the course and will be dismissed as a major from the School of Journalism. There are no exceptions to the school’s policy.”

GRADING POLICIES

Undergraduate Degrees: The School of Journalism expects its students to maintain at least a 2.7 (B-) grade point average in all journalism classes. Those who fall below this will receive additional counseling from faculty and advisement staff. Students are required to complete each journalism class with at least a grade of C-. Journalism courses with a grade of D+ or below must be repeated.

Please note that the university's cumulative grade point average will include both grades in its calculations and students must maintain a minimum 2.0 grade point average to graduate from USC.

C.Late Assignments - Core policy is that no late assignments will be accepted, except for verified medical reasons or documented extraordinary circumstances. Meeting deadlines is a journalistic necessity in the real world.

D. Rewriting Stories - You will be allowed to rewrite, reshoot, or re-editassignments to achieve a higher grade. Such rewrites must be donewithin a deadline to be determined by the instructor, and the two gradeswill be averaged. Thispolicy does not apply to Package #4 (final exam).

ACADEMIC ACCOMMODATIONS

Any students requesting academic accommodations based on a disability are required to register with Disability Services and Programs (DSP) each semester. A letter of verification for approved accommodations can be obtained from DSP when adequate documentation is filed. Please be sure the letter is delivered to the professor as early in the semester as possible. DSP is open Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m.–5 p.m. The office is located in the Student Union room 301 and their phone number is (213) 740-0776.

INTERNSHIPS

The value of professional internships as part of the overall educational experience of our students has long been recognized by the School of Journalism. Accordingly, while internships are not required for successful completion of this course, any student enrolled in this course who undertakes and completes an approved, non-paid internship during this semester shall earn academic extra credit herein of an amount equal to one percent of the total available semester points for this course.

To receive instructor approval, a student must request an internship letter from the Annenberg Career Development Office and bring it to the instructor to sign by the end of the third week of classes. The student must submit the signed letter to the media organization, along with the evaluation form provided by the Career Development Office. The form should be filled out by the intern supervisor and returned to the instructor at the end of the semester. No credit will be given if an evaluation form is not turned in to the instructor by the last day of class. Note: The internship must be unpaid and can only be applied to one journalism class.

CLASS ATTENDANCE

Students are advised to attend the first class meetings of their journalism classes or the instructors may drop them from their classes. The School of Journalism adheres to the university policy, which states “an instructor may replace any student who without prior consent does not attend...the first class session of the semester for once-a-week classes. It is then the student’s responsibility to withdraw officially from the course through the Registration Department.”

You are expected to be in class every week, or obtain the instructor's approval in advance if you will miss a class – except for verified medical reasons or emergencies. You will be allowed to edit packages in the Annenberg Digital Lab only if you attend the advanced Avid editing workshop Week 2 and complete required work.

COURSE GRADES

Ethics Discussions10%

Package #1 (Multi-shoot preferred)10%

Package #2 (Coastal Cleanup)15%

Package #3 (Multi-shoot preferred)20%

Newscast blocking and explanation10%

Package #4 (Final Project – Multi-shoot required) 25%

ATVN Learning Lab: 10%

______

Total: 100%

CLASS SCHEDULE

(Always subject to change)

Week 1 ▬ August 23

Class Topics:

4:00 to 4:45pm

Introductions; review syllabus; What’s expected – what you should be able to do by the end of the semester. What constitutes good production? Photojournalism: Discuss the importance of pictures and sound in news packages and the importance of “people” in television news stories.Going beyond the obvious and required elements for a memorable story.

4:45 to 5:45pm

View and discuss DVD: KTLA The First 35-Years.

5:45 to6:00pm

BREAK

6:00 to 6:20pm

SPJ Los Angeles Chapter

6:20 to 6:40pm

Visit from Annenberg TV News. Requirements and paperwork.

Homework:

E-mail me a letter about yourself. Tell me anything you would like to help me understand who you are and your particular interests or goals in journalism. You may tell anything you’d like to mention. Write it in an easy, conversational style, and make it interesting. We will be making preliminary judgments about your writing and storytelling abilities from this letter. It will not be graded, but it will be answered. Due no later than next class, Tuesday, August 30, 2010 via email or hard copy.

Readings:

Most reading assignments are not shown in this syllabus because we want to provide current examples. Such reading material will be distributed in class and/or e-mailed to you as a Microsoft Word attachment.

Ethics:

Read an ethics statement prepared by theSociety of Professional Journalists:

WEEK 2 — AUGUST 30

Apple Final Cut Pro in-class workshop. Mandatory! We will meet today in the Apple Digital Lab. Room G40 (Garden Level), not in our regularclassroom.

Please make sure that your letter has been emailedto me by today’s deadline.

Homework Assignments:

Complete editing the package you started in the in-class Apple editing workshop. Deadline is next Tuesday. Students who have not completed editing on the workshop package will not be permitted to edit additional class projects on the Apple computers. Take care to balance audio levels between the reporter narration and ambient sound in the background.

WEEK 3 — SEPTEMBER 6

Class Topics:

Discuss shooting assignment and editing basics, e.g., jump cuts, etc. Shooting for the eye and ear, types of camera shots, editing in the camera.

Special Guest:

Bob Long is a creative force in the world of news, documentaries and entertainment. He has worked as a television News Director, Executive Producer, Writer/Producer, Reporter, Advisor and Lecturer.

Most recently, Bob served as vice president and news director for the NBC owned television stations in Washington, D. C. and Los Angeles. Along with a number of Emmys, Murrow Awards, and Golden Mikes, Long has received the highest award for broadcast excellence, The Peabody, the electronic news media's equivalent of the Pulitzer Prize.

Homework Assignment:

Come up with an original story idea that will be your first reporter package for the course. Use the “Story idea form” available on Blackboard for this course. Email the completed story idea form before next Tuesday, September 13th and bring a hard copy to class for full class discussion. The story should be current, relevant and should be interesting to a general audience.

Reading:

Advanced Camera Techniques: Chapter on photojournalism from “Write for the Ear, Shoot for the Eye, Aim for the Heart” also will be distributed in class. Be prepared to discuss the material next week.

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2010 – LAST DAY TO DROP

A CLASS WITHOUT A MARK OF “W”, TO CHANGE ENROLLMENT OPTION TO PASS/NO PASS

WEEK 4 — SEPTEMBER 13

Class Topics:

Discuss the importance of pictures and how they relate to words. Discuss and illustrate the use of a compelling opening shot, and how its choice can affect how story is told and perceived. Illustrate and discuss sequences and how they can make a story more interesting. We will also discuss the importance of sound – both natural sound and sound bites. What is the purpose of a sound bite? How long should a sound bite run? How do you decide? Personalizing your story: Try to find a “real person” to help advance your story.

Viewing:

Video Journalist packages from San Francisco’s KRON-TV to illustrate how to write, edit and produce your stories for J-306.