Thompson - Writing for Broadcast Journalists

Writing for Broadcast Journalists

This is a superb book which combines the rare mixture of high quality information with humour. The style of writing engages the reader from the introduction, and the experience and insight of the author occasionally make it difficult to put down, a rare feature of a textbook. I would unreservedly recommend this book not only to those studying journalism, but to students of language and all who use the spoken and written word as the materials of their work.

Barry Turner, Senior Lecturer, Nottingham Trent University and University of Lincoln

Rick Thompsons guidance manual is packed with advice to would-be writers for this medium. Hes someone with years of experience at the top level of the national and international profession, and hes smack up to date with his references. The book is aimed at journalists, but anyone with a serious interest in developing their literacy will learn a lot about professional writing skills from what he has to say.

Roy Johnson, www.mantex.co.uk

Writing for Broadcast Journalists guides readers through the significant differences between the written and the spoken versions of journalistic English. It will help broadcast journalists at every stage of their careers to avoid such pitfalls as the use of newspaper-English, common linguistic errors, and Americanised phrases, and gives practical advice on accurate terminology and pronunciation, while encouraging writers to capture the immediacy of the spoken word in their scripts. Written in a lively and accessible style by an experienced BBC TV and radio editor,

Writing for Broadcast Journalists is the authoritative guide to the techniques of writing for radio and television. This new edition has a special section about writing online news.

Writing for Broadcast Journalists includes:

practical tips on how to avoid journalese, clichs and jargon

guidance on tailoring your writing style to suit a particular audience

advice on converting agency copy into spoken English

writing to television pictures

examples of scripts from some of the best in the business

an appendix of dangerous words and phrases to be avoided in scripts.

Rick Thompson has held senior editorial positions with BBC News at the regional, national and international levels in television and radio. He now trains journalists in central and eastern Europe, and is the Visiting Professor of Broadcast Journalism at Birmingham City University.

Writing for Broadcast Journalists

SECOND EDITION

Rick Thompson

LONDON AND NEW YORK

First edition published 2005

This edition published 2010
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, OX14 4RN

Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada
by Routledge
270 Madison Ave, New York, NY 10016

Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business

This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2010.

To purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor & Francis or Routledges collection of thousands of eBooks please go to www.eBookstore.tandf.co.uk.

2005, 2010 Rick Thompson

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or
reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical,
or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying
and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system,
without permission in writing from the publishers.

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Thompson, Rick, 1947.
Writing for broadcast journalists/Rick Thompson. 2nd ed.
p. cm. (Media skills)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Broadcast journalism Authorship. 2. Reporters and reporting.
3. Report writing. I. Title.
PN4784.B75T48 2010
808'.06607 dc22 2010010737

ISBN 0-203-84577-3 Master e-book ISBN

ISBN 13: 978-0-415-58167-7 (hbk)

ISBN 13: 978-0-415-58168-4 (pbk)

ISBN 13: 978-0-203-84577-6 (ebk)