1. Writing “for air” (scripts for broadcast)
Going from the past to the present

2. Timeliness matters more than ever
For newspapers (print) and websites (digital), everything you read already happened. Updates can be posted quicker than before, but what is being talked about is still in the past by the time you read it.
For broadcast (whether that is radio, TV or streaming) we want to follow the same model and five elements of newsworthiness, but the goal is to be LIVE! (or recent)
The audience wants the latest info. Old news = not as interesting

3. Espn became the “worldwide leader in sports” because the network was able to bring in highlights, scores, stats and more from all over the world

4. As technology changed, so did sportscenter
ESPN had been the place that people went to find out about the games
SportsCenter became one of the most popular cable TV shows with highlights
Now, that information is available from many other places (web, social, mobile)
ESPN has instead become the place to see more of the actual games
SportsCenter has become a source for the top interviews with stars and analysis

5. What the players, coaches and commentators say is often not as impactful as the game itself, but it is more current so it takes priority in a live radio broadcast, television show or digital stream. BROADCAST MEDIA Prioritizes what is going on NOW since they are usually airing content live, as it happens

6. The ABC’s of writing for air
Accuracy
Brevity
Clarity
Make it easy for both the anchor reading script (sender) and audience (receiver) to deliver/understand the intended message. Including complicated words, details, or structure of story confuses the receiver (noise).

7. GET YOUR AUDIENCE TO “C” WHY IT’S IMPORTANT (actually to hear it)
Catchy—grab the viewer’s attention but don’t be insensitive
Clever—be creative
Concise—don’t cover all 5 W’s and H, usually just the what or who where
Current—keep the writing about what’s happening today
Conversational—write the way you would tell someone
Clear—make it understandable

8. Timeliness also matters when it comes to the length of your script
There is a limited about of time in a segment, show and commercial break
When networks sell Super Bowl ad’s, a 30-second spot costs around $5 million
The networks aren’t giving away extra time for free: must be :30, not :35, :40, etc
The companies buying the time don’t want to waste money, so they better fill the whole 30 seconds, not have just 15 or 20 seconds worth of content and waste millions of dollars
The industry standard guideline is THREE WORDS PER SECOND

9. Always have a broadcast lead begin in present tense (more info later in past tense)
Lead from article posted on USATODAY.com: “Snow: 1,200+ flights canceled as storm snarls busy post-Thanksgiving Sunday”
PRACTICE:
RE-WRITE THIS LEAD FOR AIR
(1-3 sentences, starting in present tense)

10. If these things happened, what is going on now
If these things happened, what is going on now? (as in when writing a lead for broadcast)
1) Celtics legend john havlicek passed away at 79
2) The white house announced that golf star tiger woods will visit on monday
3) The Milwaukee bucks and the boston Celtics split the first two games of their playoff series…
game 3 is tonight in boston (the first two games were in milwaukee)
4) Owners of the “eau palm beach” resort have decided not to sell and will renovate the property instead
5) The florida legislature passed a bill that would allow trained teachers to carry firearms in class. The bill needs the signature of governor ron desantis before it becomes law.

11. A Note about quotes
Quotes come from people. Attribution is given to other inanimate (not living) sources.
Direct quotes are exactly what was said, all actual words placed in quotation marks.
Indirect quotes summarize what was said, still giving credit to who said them.
When writing for broadcast, it is best to provide attribution at the start of a sentence.
***If a fact can easily be found in multiple sources/publications, then attribution is not needed (for example, scores of games or details of a President’s speech).