23 Scripting journalism
• To keep your audience you must tell them a story. The language of television scripting is all about cherishing the pictures and sound and adding to them with the words. That is storytelling. Find the pictures and the sound. Pick the most relevant, interesting or informative. Or just plain riveting, humane, thoughtful or emotional. Then write the words.
• It’s about simple but clear communication rather than hammering the viewer with masses of wordy detail.
• It’s about shutting up when the viewer sees and hears something that fixes him or her to the screen and keeps his fingers off that remote control or the mouse, or lets the roast overcook in the oven because of what’s happening.
• Don’t interrupt the viewer ...
Get Broadcast Journalism, 6th Edition now with the O’Reilly learning platform.
O’Reilly members experience books, live events, courses curated by job role, and more from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers.
