A Feature is a 3-5 minute clip played on radio, that talks about a certain topic and gives you information on it. It may be related to a news topic or something that has been prominet in the media spotlight.
The Basics
when making a feature there are certain elements you should look to put in them.
What is the story/topic - you need to know this in order to be able to make the feature. you also need to know if the topic is going to be a contemporary issue or an issue of the moment.
Target Audience - who is your target audience and how can you make it appeal to them?
RESEARCH into the topic in your feature is essential as you need to be able to give listeners information which is clear and to the point.
you also need to consider whether you are going to use vox pops and interviews or just one of the latter. which would make your feature more effective?.
Make sure your guest are interesting and have something good to say
Is your feature going to be formal or informal? lso what music are you going to use?
We have made a feature for SNC live! which is about cyberbullying and the increase of it due to social networking sites such as Facebook. We are using real statistics in our feature as well as
Sunday, 15 November 2009
Thursday, 12 November 2009
Vox Pops
Vox Pops, originating from the Latin term meaning voice of the people is a set of quick fire questions that enable you to get a cross-section of views from the public on a certain topic.
Here are some top tips for doing Vox Pops;
Do's and Don'ts
DO approach a variety of people so that you get a different opinions; older people may not have the same views as teenagers.
DO be polite and confident; people need to feel relaxed when answering questions as it can be nerv-wracking speaking into a microphone.
DO record your question once then hit pause, that way you dont have to edit out you repeating the question. Try to get the people answering the question to refer to it in their answer.
DO keep at it, the general public are difficult to work with. Some people will give interesting answers and others wont, but you can choose which ones you use when you edit.
DONT use closed questions as you will only get "yes" and "no" answers.
DONT be rude or disagree with others opinions; everyone is entitled to thier opinions and if your rude you are less likely to find someone to co-operate.
DONT thrust the mic in thier face as this can come across as forcful or rude
DONT go somewhere that has strong background music as it will affect the audio
DONT laugh at interviewees
DONT intimidate interviewees
ALWAYS THINK ABOUT HOW YOU PIECE SOUNDS AS THATS ALL YOU HAVE IN RADIO
Here are some top tips for doing Vox Pops;
Do's and Don'ts
DO approach a variety of people so that you get a different opinions; older people may not have the same views as teenagers.
DO be polite and confident; people need to feel relaxed when answering questions as it can be nerv-wracking speaking into a microphone.
DO record your question once then hit pause, that way you dont have to edit out you repeating the question. Try to get the people answering the question to refer to it in their answer.
DO keep at it, the general public are difficult to work with. Some people will give interesting answers and others wont, but you can choose which ones you use when you edit.
DONT use closed questions as you will only get "yes" and "no" answers.
DONT be rude or disagree with others opinions; everyone is entitled to thier opinions and if your rude you are less likely to find someone to co-operate.
DONT thrust the mic in thier face as this can come across as forcful or rude
DONT go somewhere that has strong background music as it will affect the audio
DONT laugh at interviewees
DONT intimidate interviewees
ALWAYS THINK ABOUT HOW YOU PIECE SOUNDS AS THATS ALL YOU HAVE IN RADIO
Monday, 9 November 2009
Radio Station Research
Internet radio
Internet Radio is an audio broadcasting service transmitted via the Internet. . It involves a streaming which is a continous "stream" of audio which listeners have no control over. In 1993, Carl Malamud launched Internet Talk Radio which was the "first computer-radio talk show, each week interviewing a computer expert. In 1995, listeners could only listen to Internet Talk Radio as audio files which could be downloaded individually. In 1995, Progressive Networks released RealAudio as a free download. Time magazine said that RealAudio took "advantage of the latest advances in digital compression" and delivered "AM radio-quality sound in so-called real time."Eventually, companies such as Nullsoft and Microsoft released streaming audio players as free downloads. As the software audio players became available, many web based radio shows were created by a variety of comapanies. In March 1996, Virgin Radio - London, became the first European radio station to broadcast its full program live on the internet. It broadcast its FM signal, live from the source, simultaneously on the internet 24 hours a day.
Internet Radio Statistics
Headland Media
Headland Media provide instore audio for retail outlets such as ASDA, Dunelm Mill, Moto, Carpet Right, Harry Ramsden, Costcutter and Topps Tiles.Instore Radio, communicates directly and in real time to all store colleagues and customers. Instore audio brings offers and products to life through features, idents and jingles. News, weather, sport, dedications and competitions help to inform customers of what is going on instore and out as well as entertaining them as they shop. The instore radio can also be used for staff bulletins, business updates, staff training and praising colleagues during out of store opening hours. Companies can choose the music that is played instore to ensure colleagues are motivated and cutsomers are relaxed and happy. Headland Media provide a wide range of music from the 60's right up to in chart singles, and they provide Music Consultants to ensure the right choice is made.
Headland Media’s In-store audio services can include the following promotional messaging
Traditional spot promotional messages
Product Features
Supplier Interviews
DJ-read promotion
Text-to-win & product giveaways
Vox Pop Customer Endorsement
Triggered advertising (e.g. Temperature Controlled)
Live Content Sponsorship (e.g. News)
Charity support
Radio Station: Radio 1
Presenter: Annie Mac
Show Name: Annie Mac ‘s Mash Up (Friday night show)
Time Of Show: 19:00 - 21:00
Show Duration: 2 Hours
Contents/ Codes and Conventions:
Party Tunes, club music, informal, “official start to the weekend”, Interacts with listeners via phone/text messages they send in; shout outs, what they are up to etc, gets people psyched whilst they get ready to go out. Talks about new artists/ Dj’s to check out. Talking about clubbing. At The end of her show she says whats coming up and what the Dj’s are called and plays clip of them. “Music is the answer”
Radio Station: Radio 1
Presenter: Chris Moyles
Show Name: The Chris Moyles Show (breakfast show)
Time Of Show: 6:30-10:00
Show Duration: 3.5 hours
Contents/ Codes and Conventions:
Informal chat, News, Competitions and votes getting listeners involved, shout outs, popular music, news,
“the chris moyles show international radio one” informal chat, jokey feel,
Radio Station: Radio 5 Live
Presenters: Phil Williams and Anita Anand
Time of Show: 16:00-19:00
Show Duration: 3 hours
Contents/ Codes and Conventions:The latest news, sport and travel updates. A number of show promos and things that are coming up are also advertised within this show.
Radio Station: BBC Radio Suffolk
Presenters: The sports team
Time of Show: 14:00-18:00S
how Duration: 4 hours
Contents/ Codes and Conventions:Local sports coverage, with full match commentry of Ipswich Fc Vs Reading Fc, and then has National and local sport round-up from 1700-1800. Including a phone in and has only 4 songs at the maximum.
Interviews; The Do's And Don'ts
Preparation
Before doing an interview of any kind it is most important that you have prepared your questions in advance and know who the person is you are interviewing and what the topic that you are going to be talking about will be. It is most important that you know this as the theme of the interview needs to be clear to your listeners.
It is important that you know the name of the person you are going to interview so that listeners know who is talking. It is also good to find out if the person prefers to be called by a nickname as this may make the interviewee feel more relaxed and comfortable.
Types Of Interviews
Informative - The aim is to let the 'expert' explain an issue or event.
Your job is to present the known facts
Challenging - The aim is to get the guest to explain, defend, or comment on an issue.
Your job is to challenge the guest to defend thier stance opinion
Emotional - This is a tricky one to attempt and if done badly can be a disaster. However, if its done well it can be the best kind of interview. Your job is to sensitively and tactfully draw your guest into talking about thier anger, fear, disappointment, grief, disbelief etc...
Entertaining - All forms of interviews should be 'entertaining' in that they keep people interested and listening, but there are some interviews that are primarily to entertain. The topic will generally not be very serious.
Techniques
There are a series of questions that all interviews revert to and use as the basis for any interview...
What/Who/Why/Where and How
The other thing you need to remember is to ask OPEN questions can't be answered with Yes/No.
Typical OPEN questions are;
What is your opinion of...?
Why do you...?
CLOSED questions are;
Do you think that...?
Is it true that...?
Are you happy that...?
Finally make sure your guest feels comfortable and happy to come on air and make sure they are fully aware of what time they need to be at the studio.
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