Instructor Resource
Filak, Dynamics of News Reporting and Writing, 1e
SAGE Publishing, 2019
Chapter 9: Broadcast–Style Writing and Voicing
Test Bank
Multiple Choice
1. Which of the following is easier for broadcast journalists using video than it is for print reporters?
A. holding the audience’s attention
B. setting the scene
C. finding newsworthy stories
D. communicating important information
2. A broadcast story that incorporates video should emphasize the ______ interest element.
A. immediacy
B. fame
C. oddity
D. impact
3. Which of the following is allowed in broadcast journalism but discouraged in print journalism?
A. obvious bias
B. embellishment of facts
C. reusing content from other news reports
D. use of second-person writing
4. When writing a broadcast story, the writer should start most sentences with a ______.
A. list of adjectives
B. personal opinion
C. noun–verb combination
D. preposition
5. Which of the following is the best approach to using adverbs and adjectives when writing a broadcast
script?
A. Avoid them at all costs.
B. Find the perfect one instead of several.
C. Use as many as possible.
D. Use them only when you need to fill time.
6. You are preparing a script on a breaking news story for use in a broadcast newsroom. Which type of
language should you use?
A. obscure slang
B. poetic prose
C. rigid scientific terminology
D. common vernacular
7. A journalist who wants to use the active voice to keep copy tight should use a(n) ______ construction.
A. noun–verb–object
B. verb–object–noun
C. adjective–noun–verb
D. object–adjective–verb
8. What should a person writing broadcast copy model his or her sentences after?
A. the way a parent speaks to a toddler
B. the jargon spoken between journalists
C. the sentences used in an advanced textbook
D. the way people normally speak to each other
9. Which of the following approaches would help a broadcast journalist write the most effective content for
his or her audience?
A. Use as much descriptive language as you can.
B. Keep sentences as short as possible.
C. Express complex ideas through metaphors and symbolism.
D. Build suspense and keep the audience guessing.
Instructor Resource
Filak, Dynamics of News Reporting and Writing, 1e
SAGE Publishing, 2019
10. Which sense should a broadcast journalist focus on most when writing copy?
A. sight
B. hearing
C. touch
D. smell
11. Which of the following words best exemplifies the use of language that takes advantage of sound and
senses?
A. slap
B. touch
C. hit
D. contact
12. Derek is writing copy for a news brief on a local radio station. Which of the following characteristics is
most important?
A. follows the rules of grammar
B. meets structural standards
C. sounds good when read aloud
D. contains groundbreaking content
13. In order to increase the pace of a broadcast news story, the writer should ______.
A. include more descriptive phrases
B. write tighter sentences
C. eliminate all details besides what happened and when
D. use more punctuation
14. Which of these stories should have the fastest pace?
A. a personality profile of a beloved local athlete who is about to retire
B. a recap of an uneventful city council meeting
Instructor Resource
Filak, Dynamics of News Reporting and Writing, 1e
SAGE Publishing, 2019
C. a story about firefighters racing to save residents from an apartment fire
D. an investigation into discriminatory hiring practices
15. In the interest of improving the flow of his broadcast script, David writes longer sentences with fewer
punctuation marks. Which of the following is a possible drawback of this decision?
A. having too quick of a pace
B. making readers feel lost
C. including too little information
D. giving the story a stuttering feel
16. Which of the following is most likely to improve the flow of a broadcast news script?
A. limit punctuation
B. use descriptive words
C. write longer sentences
D. capitalize words for emphasis
17. Which of the following aspects of a broadcast story is most similar to a direct quote in a text story?
A. voice-over
B. look room
C. sound bite
D. stand-up shot
18. Which of the following best describes the type of structure used in a basic broadcast story?
A. circular
B. inverted pyramid
C. scattershot
D. zigzag
19. The lead of a broadcast story should convey ______.
A. the most important information from the story
B. the main theme of the story
C. how long the story will take to report
D. the types of visuals the audience can expect to see
20. When writing a broadcast news script, where should you place the information that would appear in
the lead of a print story?
A. the lead
B. the initial sentences of the body
C. the final sentences of the body
D. the close
21. It is appropriate to use a look-ahead closer in a broadcast news story when the ______.
A. reporter wants to signal that it is time to move on to the next story
B. story has the potential to lead to additional news
C. story does not fill the allotted time
D. reporter wants to share his or her opinion on the story
22. Which of the following is a good reason to include a graphic at the close of a broadcast story?
A. to reinforce the main theme of the story
B. to preview the next story in the broadcast
C. to direct the audience to other platforms for more information
D. to “tag” the story with a funny visual joke
23. Where does the text appear in a television or web-video broadcast script?
A. right side of the page
B. left side of the page
C. top of the page
D. bottom of the page
24. When use of a hard-to-pronounce word is unavoidable in a broadcast story, a pronouncer should be
placed in ______.
A. bold lettering before the word in question
B. parentheses after the word in question
C. italics in a footnote
D. brackets at the beginning of the line where the word appears
25. In contrast to print publications, broadcast news scripts identify initialisms such as the IRS by ______.
A. offsetting the letters in brackets
B. highlighting the letters
C. spelling each letter phonetically (eye-arr-ess)
D. spacing out each letter with a hyphen
26. Which of the following examples has the correct format and ordering of items for a broadcast script?
A. $10,000
B. $ ten thousand
C. ten thousand dollars
D. 10,000 dollars
27. Which broadcast story type lacks supporting audio or video materials?
A. reader
B. voice-over
C. VO/SOT
D. package
28. What type of visual accompaniment sometimes appears along with a reader broadcast story?
A. full screen photograph
B. over-the-shoulder graphic
C. over-the-shoulder video
D. full screen video
29. Which type of broadcast story typically has the shortest length?
A. reader
B. voice-over
C. VO/SOT
D. package
30. A journalist writing a reader script should rely on ______ to help the audience fully understand the
story.
A. eye-catching graphics
B. engaging video
C. interactive digital content
D. clear, descriptive words
31. A voice–over begins with ______.
A. a still photograph with music or sound effects playing in the background
B. the reporter or anchor reading the story on camera
C. a long stretch of video with natural or environmental sounds
D. a blank screen with sounds meant to acclimate the audience
32. How long should a typical voice-over story run?
A. no more than ten seconds
B. thirty seconds at most
C. a maximum of one minute
D. one minute or more
33. What should be the basis for your content when writing a voice-over script?
A. a print story about a similar topic
B. the most sensational aspects of the story
C. audience polling data
D. the shots contained in the accompanying video
34. Which of the following is most likely to confuse the audience of a voice-over story?
A. a mismatch between what the audience sees and hears
B. discussion of complex political topics
C. use of rounded numbers rather than exact numbers
D. natural sounds playing in the background as the voice-over is happening
35. What is the difference between a voice-over broadcast story and a VO/SOT story?
A. The voice-over contains only still images, while the VO/SOT includes video.
B. The voice-over contains scripted comments from the anchor, while the VO/SOT contains only
soundbites.
C. The VO/SOT contains scripted content as well as additional soundbites, while the voice-over contains
only scripted audio.
D. The voice-over is read by a broadcaster, while the VO/SOT is read by a celebrity.
36. Which story type is most commonly associated with broadcast news?
A. reader
B. voice-over
C. VO/SOT
D. package
37. What is the purpose of a stand-up shot?
A. to give the audience a sense of who is performing the voice-over
B. to explain something important that is not covered by a voice-over or soundbite
C. to give the audience a visual of the story subject
D. to fill time between the end of a package segment and a reader story
38. How long does a broadcast news package typically run?
A. between 20 and 30 s
B. between 1:30 and 2 min
C. between 2 and 3 min
D. around 5 min
1. SELECT ALL THAT APPLY. Which of the following sentences are written in active voice?
A. The jewelry was stolen after the window was broken by the robbers.
B. The robbers stole the jewelry by breaking the window.
C. The robbers broke the window and stole the jewelry.
D. The window was broken and the jewelry was stolen by robbers.
2. SELECT ALL THAT APPLY. When writing broadcast copy, a journalist should use words that ______.
A. stir up emotion and controversy
B. evoke a number of possible meanings
C. appeal to the senses
D. have a single clear definition
3. SELECT ALL THAT APPLY. A reporter concerned about the pace of a broadcast news piece should
focus on ______.
A. word choice
B. matched ideas
Instructor Resource
Filak, Dynamics of News Reporting and Writing, 1e
SAGE Publishing, 2019
C. sentence length
D. story length
4. SELECT ALL THAT APPLY. Which of the following are strategies used by broadcast journalists to
smooth the transition between sentences and improve flow?
A. word repetition
B. image juxtaposition
C. matched ideas
D. increased punctuation
5. SELECT ALL THAT APPLY. The most likely result of taking on the “anchor voice” in news script is
sounding ______.
A. professional
B. goofy
C. educated
D. arrogant
6. SELECT ALL THAT APPLY. Which of the following aspects of a broadcast script should resemble what
you would hear in a normal conversation?
A. ideas
B. word choice
C. structure
D. grammar
7. SELECT ALL THAT APPLY. In contrast to a print story, the body of a broadcast story should follow
a(n) ______ approach.
A. inverted pyramid
B. chronological
C. reverse chronological
D. topical
8. SELECT ALL THAT APPLY. What options does a journalist have when the script and visuals of a
broadcast news piece are mismatched?
A. use graphics to cover mismatches
B. rewrite the script
C. go get new video
D. abandon the story altogether
1. Broadcast stories do not require the same commitment to journalistic standards used in print
journalism.
2. Broadcast audiences are typically more distracted than print audiences.
3. Broadcast journalists are featured in their work, while print journalists are expected to “disappear” in
the story.
4. The best way to avoid confusing audience members in a broadcast is to write longer sentences filled
with detail.
5. Words used in a broadcast script should challenge viewers to expand their vocabulary.
Instructor Resource
Filak, Dynamics of News Reporting and Writing, 1e
SAGE Publishing, 2019
6. The primary objective in writing a broadcast script should be to make the story go by as quickly as
possible.
7. In a broadcast script, commas act like “Yield” signs and periods are “Stop” signs.
8. A broadcast story should include the same interest elements used in print stories.
9. The lead of a broadcast story should serve the same purpose as the nut graph of a narrative print
story.
10. Print stories should be written in the past tense, while broadcast stories should be written in the
present tense.
11. Both print and broadcast stories include pronunciation guides or pronouncers.
12. A broadcast story featuring an anchor reading the story directly into the camera is known as a voice-
over.
13. A stand-up shot can be used to transition between ideas in a story or serve as a concluding sign-off.
14. Writing for the ear also includes making your script easy to read out loud.
1. Why is writing in the second person appropriate for broadcast stories but not for print stories?
2. Define pace and describe how a broadcaster should determine the pace of his or her stories.
3. What is flow, and how can it be affected by sentence construction and story structure?
4. With the help of an example, explain when it is appropriate to include abbreviations in a broadcast
news script.
5. What is a package, and how is it different from other broadcast news stories?
1. How does the use of audio and video in broadcast stories affect the role of the reporter and the
relationship between the story and the audience?
2. What is the difference between “flabby” and “lean” or “skinny” writing? Which style is appropriate for
broadcast writing and why?
3. How can one “write for the ear,” and why is it more important to do so in broadcast stories than in print?
4. Compare and contrast the structure of a broadcast story with the structure of a print story.
5. Explain which types of broadcast news stories require additional practice before receiving airtime and
what that practice is intended to do for each story type.