Broadcast Terms and Vocabulary
1. SOT: A sound bite, usually a 18-30 second sound bite taken from an
interview. S.O.T. literally means Sound on Tape
2. Butted: two or more SOTS butted together. A white flash is used so there is
no attempt to hide the edit.
3. Tease (TZ ): An upcoming moment played prior to a commercial. It is meant
to hook the viewer into staying on the channel. Teases are used extensively
by news programs and reality TV programs.
4. Bump: Usually is a graphic that brings the viewers up to speed. It can be
used as a transition between stories and may say breaking news, weather,
sports, or a specific story title.
5. Interview or INTV : an interview is between at least two people to find out
information. It can be a reporter and the person of interest for the story or a
Host and their guest(s).
6. VO: is a video that is edited to script and is shown while somebody is
talking.
7. Package (PKG): This is a completed news story containing a audio track,
shots, graphics and VO which are all edited together in a compelling
fashion.
8. Sig Out: The name of the reporter and their station. “This is Kara Duffy for
CBS12 in West Palm Beach.”
9. Program: A fully edited program block
10. Look Live: A segment of a live program that is taped and edited prior to an
event or program, to be broadcasted as if it were happening live.
11. Promo: a short promotional video of an upcoming show or event.
12. Aircheck: This is a recording of exactly how a program aired, including
bumps, fonts and commercials.
13. Audio Track: This is the narration of a documentary or news package.
14. Master: This is the main wide shot which contains all the action.
15. Presser: (Press Conference) Typically a statement given by politicians or
police. You’ll see this where there is ample press waiting in front of an
empty podium with many microphones on it. The subject walks up and
makes a statement.
16. Raw Video: This is raw unedited footage, which might contain broll,
interviews or anything.
17. B-roll: Secondary footage that is generally more interesting video footage
that is intended to be played over the script, narrative, or interview.
18. Ticker: The crawl text at the bottom of news broadcasts.
19. Bug: a logo or embossed emblem that appears lower right on the screen of
news broadcasts.
20. Anchor : News anchors are responsible for presenting stories on-camera, usually
from a studio location though their work can take place in the field
21. Beats: The areas of expertise in which a journalist or reporter covers on a regular
basis and on an in-depth level, such as politics, health, or law enforcement.
22. Chroma Key: Also known as green screening.
23. Chyron: The words on the screen that identify speakers, locations, or story subjects.
Chyron is a trade name for a type of character generator.
24. Overmodulated: Either too loud (hot audio).
25. Hot Roll: When a crew in the field doesn’t have enough time to feed back footage to
the newsroom, they must roll it live from the truck during the broadcast.
26. Human Interest: A news story focusing on a personality or individual’s story with
wide appeal to a general audience, usually this is a heartfelt and emotional story
27. Jump Cut : An edit in a news package that interrupts continuity. Example: an
interviewee speaking followed immediately by another shot of the same interviewee
speaking at a different time, so the image “jumps.” Avoided by using cutaways or
b-roll or white flashes.
28. Leading Questions: Questions intended to steer an interviewee in a particular
direction.
29. Live: Put on the air in real time, not pre-recorded or pre-produced.
30. Talking head: a television or film closeup of a person who is talking, as in a
documentary or interview.
31. NATS: Natural sound on video that the microphone picks up. Example: Including
sound of a rally with the video of the rally.
32. Hard News: The news of the day. Factual coverage of serious, timely events (crime,
war, business, politics, etc.)
33. On Cam: Abbreviation for “on camera.”
34. Outcue: The final three or four words of a news package, included in scripts to signal
to the anchor and control room staff when the package is about to end so they can
cue the next element in the program.
35. OTS: (Over the Shoulder) graphic or video that appears over the anchor’s shoulder.
36. PSA: Abbreviation for “Public Service Announcement.”
37. Reader:A script read entirely by the anchor on camera, without sound bites or video.
38. Remote: A live shot from the field, where a satellite truck is required to transmit the
image.
39. Rundown: An electronic or paper form created by the line producer of a news
broadcast. It Gives specific details of every element in a newscast, including the order
of stories, video, audio and graphic elements and timing for each.
40. Slate: A full-screen graphic, shown on screen before the beginning of pre-produced
video which identifies the story title, the reporter’s name, and the total running time.
Only for newsroom use; not meant for broadcast.
41. Slug: The name given to a story for newsroom use.
42. Stacking: Lining up stories within a newscast based on their importance and
relationship to one another.
43. Standup: A reporter speaking to camera, not covered by video
44. Stills: A still image as opposed to a moving video image. Stills can be used to
illustrate a story and can sometimes be displayed over track or interview clips instead
of video footage.
45. Sting: A brief piece of music, typically less than fifteen seconds, used to punctuate
the end of a segment or story. The sting is often the station’s own jingle.
46. Tag: A paragraph at the end of a news story, usually delivered by the reporters, that
provides additional information or sums up the item.
47. Time Code: The time signature on a camera or recording device—actual time a story
is being shot on a 24-hour basis, i.e., 1300 is 1 p.m., 0900 is 9 a.m. Includes hours,
minutes, seconds, and video frames.
48. Toss: When an anchor or reporter turns over a portion of the show to another anchor
or reporter.
49. Track: The reporter’s written and recorded script in a news package.
50. TRT: “Total running time.” The length of an edited package.
51. Two-Shot : Most often an interview guest and the back of the reporter’s head. Also
used to refer to any shot including two people; two anchors at a single news desk, for
instance.
52. MMJ: MultiMedia Journalist.
53. MOS: An acronym for “man on street” interview, in which a reporter on location gets
spontaneous sound bites composed of reactions to a story from members of the
public.