Conventions Found In Radio News Bulletin

After analysing and listening to lots of new bulletins from different kinds of radio stations, I have seen that often stories use a range of reporting, illustrating and elaborating, which helps us understand what is happening in the news story. Therefore, in this post, I will be talking about the conventions I found when listing to the radio news and looking at other news conventions which tends to be on the news.

1) Correspondent:
This is a journalist or commentator being live at the scene of the story. A correspondent places some of their own opinions into the news piece and report as they see things happening. They may provide this information through video, vocal recordings, or written articles.

I found an example of this when listening to the radio station talkSport at 6pm from 27th September. This was where the news presenter is speaking about the talk which the FA is talking about. After this, it cuts to a clip of the correspondent Jim White, where he was talking about his opinion on Sam Allardyce's role for England's football team.

2) Voxpops:

This is where informal comments come from members of the public, who are giving their opinions on what is happening in the story. This gives the news bulletin an alternative viewpoint. 

I found an example of this when listening to the radio station Capital FM at 6pm from 27th September. The news presenter was talking about the rollercoaster crash happening at Alton Towers. Then it cuts to the clip where a member of public who was at the event gives their opinion on the event.

3) Sound bites:

This is a piece of dialogue about a story that captures what the speaker was trying to say. It is used to summarise information and grabs the reader or viewers attention. An example where this is used is at a press conference.

I found an example of a sound bite when listening to the Capital FM radio station on 27th September around 6pm. This was when the chef executer of Merlin Company talks about the incident of the rollercoaster crash.

4) Outside Broadcast:

This is a radio station that is recorded or broadcasted live on location and not in a studio.

I found an example of this on talkSport from 27th September after 6pm, where the news presenter is talking about Sam Allardyce's transfer rules. Then the news reporter says "sports communist Jim White spoke to our sister station Talk". This then cuts to whats sounds like a prerecorded voice of a reporter who is delivering further information about the story.

5) Expert/Guests:

This may be a guest/expert in the studio who is talking about a certain event or being interviewed about a certain issue. This can also be heard on the phone or being at the studio. For example a guest on a music radio station may be interviewed for a recent song which made it to the top 10 music chart.

Overall the radio station news bulletins which I’ve found conventions for such as Capital FM and talkSport had mainly  conventions found in news stories to grab the readers attention, unlike BBC Radio 4, however. When the conventions are included, it allows the listeners to hear different opinions regarding the news stories. From doing this task, I’m going to think carefully about which presentational devices would be most appropriate for which stories.