MODERN RADIO PRODUCTION SECOND EDITION LEWIS B. O'DONNELL PHILIP BENOIT CARL HAUSMAN Create amessage ... achieve an effect ... and communicate with listeners. That's the essence of good radio production and the essence of this successful book. The authors believe that there is more to radio production than just knowing how to operate the equipment; their book is acomprehensive, illustrated guide that shows you how to use the "tools of the trade" to communicate ideas. It explains production techniques in a nontechnical manner, focusing on how those techniques are integrated into the real world of radio today. Current trends in the field are fully covered in this edition of Modern Radio Production. You'll find discussions of the uses of digital recording and computer automation, the formats and techniques specific to "narrowcasting," and updated information on satellite feeds and programming services. And, throughout the book, you'll find opportunities to practice techniques and solve typical production problems in numerous practical and thought-provoking exercises. LEWIS B. O'DONNELL (Ph.D., Syracuse University) is Professor of Communication Studies at SUNY College at Oswego and Corporate President of Cove Communications, Inc. PHILIP BENOIT (M.A., SUNY College at Oswego) is Director of Communications at Dickinson College. CARL HAUSMAN (M.A., Antioch University) is author or coauthor of numerous books and articles on broadcasting, journalism, and other topics. He also has extensive professional experience in radio and TV. Modern Radio Production, Second Edition is another outstanding addition to The Wadsworth Series in Mass Communication ISBN 0-534-11622-1 MODERN RADIO PRODUCTION a SECOND EDITION LEWIS B. O'DONNELL State University of New York College at Oswego PHILIP BENOIT Dickinson College CARL HAUSMAN Free-Lance Writer and Producer a Wadsworth Publishing Company Belmont, California A Division of Wadsworth, Inc. Senior Editor: Rebecca Hayden Editorial Assistant: Tamiko Verkler Production Editor: Gary Mcdonald Managing Designer: MaryEllen Podgorski Print Buyer: Karen Hunt Designer: Stuart Paterson/Image House Inc. Copy Editor: Steven Gray Technical Illustrator: Shirley Bortoli Compositor: Graphic Typesetting Service, Los Angeles Cover: Stuart Paterson/Image House Inc. Cover Illustrator: Edward W. Lawler C 1990, 1986 by Wadsworth, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in aretrieval system, or transcribed, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher, Wadsworth Publishing Company, Belmont, California 94002, adivision of Wadsworth, Inc. Printed in the United States of America 19 34 5 6 7 89 10---94 93 92 91 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data O'Donnell, Lewis B. Modern radio production /Lewis B. O'Donnell, Philip Benoit, Carl Hausman.-2nd ed. p. cm.—(Wadsworth series in mass communication) Bibliography: p. Includes index. ISBN 0-534-11622-1 1. Radio broadcasting. 2. Radio plays—Production and direction. I. Benoit, Philip, 1944— . II. Hausman, Carl, 1953— . III. Title. IV. Series. PN1991.75.036 1990 791.44'0232—dc20 89-33770 CIP MODERN RADIO PRODUCTION From the Wadsworth Series in Mass Communication General Medial Impact: An Introduction to Mass Media by Shirley Biagi Media/Reader by Shirley Biagi Mediamerica: Form, Content, and Consequence of Mass Communication, 4th, by Edward Jay Whetmore The Interplay of Influence: Mass Media & Their Publics in News, Advertising, Politics, 2nd, by Kathleen Hall Jamieson and Karlyn Kohrs Campbell Technology and Communication Behavior by Frederick Williams When Words Collide: A Journalist's Guide to Grammar and Style, 2nd, by Lauren Kessler and Duncan McDonald Interviews That Work: A Practical Guide for Journalists by Shirley Biagi Mass Media Research: An Introduction, 2nd, by Roger D. Wimmer and Joseph R. Dominick Communication Research: Strategies and Sources, 2nd, by Rebecca B. Rubin, Alan M. Rubin, and Linda J. Piele Computer Graphics Applications: An Introduction by Kenneth Hoffman with Jon Teeple Radio/Television/Cable Stay Tuned: A Concise History of American Broadcasting, 2nd, by Christopher H. Sterling and John M. Kittross World Broadcasting Systems: A Comparative Analysis by Sydney W. Head Broadcast/Cable Programming: Strategies and Practices, 3rd, by Susan Tyler Eastman, Sydney W. Head, and Lewis Klein Radio Station Operations: Management and Employee Perspectives by Lewis B. O'Donnell, Carl Hausman, and Philip Benoit Broadcast and Cable Selling by Charles Warner Advertising in the Broadcast and Cable Media, 2nd, by Elizabeth J. Heighton and Don R. Cunningham Copywriting for the Electronic Media: A Practical Guide by Milan D. Meeske and R. C. Norris Writing for Television and Radio, 4th, by Robert L. Hilliard Writing the Screenplay: TV and Film by Alan A. Armer Newswriting for the Electronic Media: Principles, Examples, Applications by Daniel E. Garvey and William L. Rivers Newstalk II: State-of-the-Art Conversations with Today's Broadcast Journalists by Shirley Biagi Announcing: Broadcast Communicating Today by Lewis B. O'Donnell, Carl Haus- man, and Philip Benoit Modern Radio Production, 2nd, by Lewis B. O'Donnell, Philip Benoit, and Carl Hausman Audio in Media, 3rd, by Stanley R. Alten Television Production Handbook, 4th, by Herbert Zettl Directing Television and Film, 2nd, by Alan A. Armer Sight-Sound-Motion: Applied Media Aesthetics, 2nd, by Herbert Zettl Electronic Cinematography: Achieving Photographic Control over the Video Image by Harry Mathias and Richard Patterson Preface odern Radio Production will introduce you to the fascinating and M challenging field of radio production. Why was it written? Because we perceived a need for a nontechnical text that provides step-by-step instruction in radio production and an insight into the world of profes- sional radio. For too long, the basic concepts of production have been shrouded in technical jargon, and the stress has been on the hardware, rather than on the product, the finished production. The needless complication of radio production often results in gaps in the accumulated knowledge of both students and practicing professionals; it's all too easy to "tune out" when the terms and concepts become too ponderous. We mention this even though some readers, perhaps through experience in the campus radio station, may have picked up some famil- iarity with equipment and practices and may feel that portions of this book are too basic. We don't think that is the case. Although hands-on experience is valu- able, people working at campus radio stations aren't always exposed to a wide range of techniques, and they tend to rely on amechanical, learned- by-rote approach, without understanding the theories behind the tech- niques. Modern Radio Production is structured to provide abalanced mix of techniques and theory, along with step-by-step instruction in hands-on production techniques. We believe that production is largely an extension of aparticular station's programming sound. V vi Preface Part One, The Tools, comprises Chapters 1through 5. Chapter 1intro- duces radio and radio programming and tells how the role of production fits in. Chapter 2demystifies the workings and operations of the broadcast console, an integral but often-misunderstood tool of radio production, and introduces some of the concepts that relate to the equipment and produc- tion-technique chapters that follow. From Chapter 2on, the text includes applications—problems posed and solved in relation to the material pre- sented in the chapter—and exercises. The exercises provide opportunities for amixture of production work and thoughtful problem solving. Chap- ters 3, 4, and 5explain the operation of basic equipment and deal, respec- tively, with turntables and compact disc players, tape recording and play- back units, and microphones and sound. The next three chapters, Part Two, deal with the basic techniques of production. Chapter 6explains the basics of splicing and dubbing. Chapter 7outlines many of the basic operations used in recorded production in a studio setting. Chapter 8deals with production techniques from the stand- point of doing alive radio airshift. Part Three, The Applications, focuses on achieving effects to produce radio that creates amood and puts across amessage. Chapter 9blends the mechanics of production with artistic elements of communicating an idea. Radio drama and dramatic elements in radio production are featured in Chapter 10; the purpose is not to deal with radio drama as such but to show you how dramatic scenes are incorporated into avariety of produc- tions. Commercials—a very important product in today's radio—are dis- cussed in Chapter 11, where the techniques of construction and persuasion are outlined. Chapter 12 centers on production for news and public-affairs program- ming. Chapter 13 explains the intricacies of remote and sports production. Chapter 14 focuses on some of the more advanced aspects of radio pro- duction, such as multichannel production, music recording, and simple broadcast electronics. Chapter 15 investigates computer use in modern radio. This sequence of instruction, we feel, provides abasic and well-rounded scope of knowledge to the student entering radio production. This knowl- edge will serve as afoundation for future experimentation, because in the fascinating field of radio broadcasting, a creative and energetic person never stops learning. This book has