Glossary of Terms

GLOSSARY OF TERMS

BEAT The reporter’s topic area covered on a regular basis. Courts, religion, education and crime are all beats. Think of reporters covering their beats as a cop might patrol an area.

B-ROLL The video that a photographer shoots. The b-roll video is edited together to form a series of shots for the television news story.

EDITING The process of cutting video and audio scenes to make a final television or radio news story.

FILE A STORY The deadline in which the reporters must complete their story.

LIVE SHOT A television segment that excludes any taping or editing. A person will appear live on the air.

MINI-PACKAGE A shortened version of a normal package for a television news story. A mini-package lasts about one minute or less in length when aired on television.

NAT SOUND Natural sounds, such as a person yelling, dogs barking or sirens blaring that are recorded to add to a television or radio news story.

OFF-THE-RECORD Information presented to a reporter that will not be repeated. However, it is important to remember that not all reporters will honor your request.

SOUND BITES Portions of an interview that are inserted into a television or radio news story.

TEASE A short synopsis of the story is put together in order to “tease” the viewer to watch or listen to the upcoming television or radio news story.

VO Short for voice-over. Video, or b-roll, is shown on television while an anchor reads the story. There are no sound bites.

VO/SOT Short for voice-over/sound on tape. It is the same as a VO, but a sound bite is included. WHITE BALANCE A television photographer needs to shoot a white object, such as a piece of paper or a wall, in order for the other colors to be balanced.

WIRE SERVICES News gathering services that provide up-to-date information to the media. An example of a wire service is the Associated Press.

EDITORIAL An article within a publication expressing the opinion of its editors or publishers.

FEATURE STORY A prominent article or story that highlights a special person, event or occurrence.

NUT GRAF The paragraph in a story that tells readers specific details concerning the article. Most likely, it will be located near the top of a story.

OP-ED The opposite of the editorial page. May contain columns and guest viewpoints, which are not necessarily the opinion of the newspaper.