MCM411 Handouts by VUBuddy

Introduction to BROADCASTING MCM 411

Table of Contents Page No. Lesson 1 Lesson 2 Lesson 3 Lesson 4 Outdoor Broadcasting I……………………………. Lesson 5 Outdoor Broadcasting II……………………………… Lesson 6 Curtain Raiser………………………………………………. Lesson 7 Radio Feature………………………………………………….. Lesson 8 Musical Programs …………………….. Lesson 9 Radio Documentary………………….. Lesson 10 Disc Jockey……………………………………….. Lesson 11 Voice in Broadcasting……........................ Lesson 12 Noise……………………………. Lesson 13 Studio……………………… Lesson 14 Radio Drama I…………………………………............ Lesson 15 Radio drama II …………………………….. Lesson 16 Advertisement – Income Generation………… Lesson 17 Advertiser’s Approach………………………. Lesson 18 FM – a new generation in broadcasting……… Lesson 19 Microphone to Transmitter…………………………….. Lesson 20 Writing Script for Radio Broadcast…………………….. Lesson 21 Interactive Broadcasting……………... Lesson 22 Revision…………………………… Lesson 23 History of Television…………………………. Lesson 24 Pakistan Television (PTV)…………………….. Lesson 25 Broadcasting Laws……………………………………… Lesson 26 Replicas of Radio Broadcast…………………… ……………… Lesson 27 New Script Writing and Direction Techniques…… Lesson 28 Sets………………………….. ……………… Lesson 29 Camera Shots – the visual language……….…………………... Lesson 30 Lights in Visual Broadcasting…………………............................ Lesson 31 Interior and Exterior…………………………………................... Lesson 32 Broadcasting and Media Imperialism……………………... Lesson 33 Environment of TV Broadcast………………. Lesson 34 Budget…………………….………………………. Lesson 35 Comparison and contrast of different Radio and TV formats Lesson 36 Current Affairs – form Radio to TV……………………. Lesson 37 Pre-production………………………………….. Lesson 38 Production and Post-production………………….. Lesson 39 TV Advertisements – money with entertainment……. Lesson 40 Enigma of more channels…………………………… Lesson 41 Anchorperson…………………………………….. Lesson 42 Comparison between Radio and TV Broadcast……. Lesson 43 Terrestrial to Satellite to Cable TV……………………………. Lesson 44 Career in Broadcasting……………………………………….. Lesson 45 Revision Broadcasting Terminologies………………………………

LESSON 01

The subject of broadcasting has assumed a global recognition. With so much advancement being done in the field of mass communication, the use of air waves for putting the message across is now a reflex matter in our daily life. Study of the subject gives us clear guidelines as how best a society can benefit from the gains of these advancements.

Beginning with FOUR BASIC questions

Why to broadcast?

The foremost thing coming to mind is why it is so essential to broadcast something. Well, growth in the size of societies requires some mechanism to keep people informed about a number of developments taking place around them to make their life organized, smooth and at times, to relieve them of their routine anxieties. Such rapid communication helps societies to improve their quality of life as well.

What to broadcast?

This is a sensitive area. The selection of programs for the purposes of broadcast leads to all sorts of complications at the later stages. Broadly speaking, the presentations could be categorized in the following pattern:

Programs for religious affairs, children, women, forces, farmers, business community, curricula-basededucational, sports, whole spectrum of people like plays, music, shows, interviews, news and views, comic, and live commentary on a range of daily life activities. … and still room available to think of more.

To whom to broadcast?

It is a haunting question for a producer of different broadcasts. But there must be a good amount of distinctness in his, or her, mind as who is targeted for a certain program. Others (outside the target listeners) may benefit from the program but it essentially remains focused for a particular segment of people.

This greatly helps the producers in the selection of script and presenters (we shall discuss this in detail in coming lectures). Otherwise, he will remain confused all the time in shaping the program. For example, a program addresses the youth; - its script, anchor background music and choice of quotes to stress different aspects of the topic would be peculiar for the young people… though other than youth can also enjoy it.

Likewise a program meant for women will be designed as to address the fair sex, but others are not barred to listen to it. This makes matters easier for the production team.

When to Broadcast?

Not all times are fit for all types of transmissions. A long sight has to be given to various categories and types of programs for drawing a time schedule for them. Usually religious programs are aired in the morning by most broadcasting houses which is very logical. Normally programs for women are broadcast at 11 am or around, assuming that they are free after having done their early morning chores like making breakfast and sending children to school etc. News are broadcast traditionally right at the start of an hour so that people can get them. Dramas are broadcast at a time when presumably every one is at home and want to relax. In countries like Pakistan, which are predominantly agrarian, programs for farmers are aired when they have finished their field job and now gathering around for gossip or can spare time to listen to things of their interest. The point to emphasis here is that there should be a reason in the selection of time to make maximum out of the broadcast, which we all understand is made possible by putting in so much effort of so many people.

Historical Facts about Radio

Radio developed as a logical next step from telegraph - the need to find a way to send telegraph signals over land or water without cables.

But the discovery process goes back much further than that.

Discovering radio waves (1864) – An amazing piece of math’s

The story of radio began almost 30 years before Marconi with a Cambridge professor called James Clerk Maxwell. Though he had never seen or experienced radio waves, Maxwell successfully forecast most of the laws that govern their propagation, calculating their speed and noting their resemblance to light waves. Maxwell showed how radio waves could be reflected, absorbed and focused like the beam from a torch - and could change the very nature of the object on which they were focused. In 1887, German scientist Heinrich Hertz carried out a famous set of experiments that proved Maxwell had been right all along.

Wireless and Radio

Wireless is the generic term for any transmission that is made without using wires between points, although it frequently is used to describe radio.

Radio is the term used first in the USA, derived from radiation - the principle that governs radio waves.

It's a characteristic of all electromagnetic waves that both the electric signal and the magnetic field that accompanies it cycle many times a second. Think of a cork on a pond - as waves pass it, it goes up and down.

The frequency of the wave is simply the number of times per second the cork goes up and down as the peaks and troughs of the wave pass it. Electromagnetic waves cycle a lot faster than this, and are measured in Hertz, where 1Hz is one cycle per second. The wavelength is the distance between each consecutive peak or trough, so if you multiply the wavelength by the frequency, you get the speed of the wave. A 100Hz wave with a wavelength of 1 meter travels at 100 meters per second.

Marconi's first wireless signal (1893) – Three dots that made history

In June 1896 a 22-year-old Italian physicist called Guglielmo Marconi, who had settled in London the previous year, called upon the Engineer-in-Chief of the Post Office to demonstrate his new system of 'telegraphy without wires'. He had already approached the Italian government - but it showed no interest. The Post Office was more receptive and allowed Marconi to set up his transmitter on the roof of the Central Telegraph Office, and a receiver on the roof of a building called 'GPO South' in Carter Lane, 300 yards away.