Guidance for Teaching Broadcast News Stories

by Theresa M. de los Santos, Ph.D., professor of communication, Pepperdine University, one of five Solutions Journalism Network University Hubs

There are two primary considerations when producing a solutions-oriented broadcast news package. First, as with all broadcast stories, time is limited. Second, visuals and sound must drive the storytelling.

Because you will probably have no more than three minutes to tell the story, viewers need to be able to quickly understand the issue without extensive background. If significant context is necessary to understand the problem, consider developing the story as a two-part package series (problem and response). 

For solutions stories, focus on showing the response. You can build narrative tension around challenges in implementation; areas where the solution is not working as intended; or how a response fills a critical gap or void.

When evaluating whether a solution can be effectively told in a broadcast format, you must consider whether you can access the locations where the response is actively unfolding. Strong visuals require access to a ground-level view of both the response and, ideally, the people implementing it.

Tip: Ask yourself: Can you observe the process in action? Are you able to capture moments of tension, decision-making, or implementation? For example, can you attend meetings with key decision-makers, or document how the response is being carried out? Equally important, can you show the results? Viewers should be able to see how people are benefiting from the response in real ways. Without this level of visual access, a solutions story may be difficult to translate effectively to broadcast.

Ideally, the individual(s) responsible for the response will guide the audience through what they are seeing. This not only helps clarify the process, but also allows your audience to become familiar with the people behind the work: those dedicating their time, expertise and energy to improving a situation.

While solutions stories are not profiles of the individuals involved, broadcast storytelling does provide an opportunity for viewers to connect with them on a human level. Audiences can see and understand the people driving the response. Putting a face to a solution adds depth and relatability. 

When only one solution can be shown, extra care needs to be taken not to present it as an endorsement or advertisement for the solution. To maintain balance, you can briefly note other organizations or communities pursuing similar approaches, particularly toward the end of the story.

A few tips for structuring a three-minute broadcast solutions journalism package:

• Opening: Begin with a strong sound bite that captures the value or essence of the response and its significance, or quickly establishes the problem being solved. 
• Focus: Most of the package should center on the response, the people solving the problem and those impacted by the response. The “main characters” should be the individuals developing, implementing or testing the solution. 
• The pillars: Use interviews with people affected by the response to highlight evidence of effectiveness as well as insights and limitations. These should be revealed through thoughtful questions that can be asked on camera and compelling sound bites. Present key data visually through graphics to reinforce the effectiveness of the response.

How to teach this: Encourage students to ask ground-level source questions such as: 

• How did you come up with this solution? 
• Why is this response needed? 
• What challenges have you faced in implementing it? 
• How could this solution be adapted or used in other communities or locations?
   

A few tips for organizing a class on broadcast solutions journalism:

• Story pitch session: After teaching the basics of solutions journalism and the key differences in the broadcast format, have all students individually research and pitch a solutions story. Ask them to do the following: 
  • In one sentence, define the problem or issue your response addresses. 
  • In one sentence, explain the response or solution your story will focus on.
  • Suggest possible visuals. 
     
• Story selection and team formation: From the pitch session, help students select the most doable solutions stories and form reporting teams of three. A key determinant in selecting stories should be whether the solution can be effectively captured on video.
• Assign roles: It’s helpful to assign roles within each team. Remember, in a television news package, only one reporter should be seen on camera asking key questions and appearing with sources. This reporter will also narrate/track the story. Other roles can include a videographer/video editor and a field producer. 
• Production timeline: From pitch to final edited package, allow approximately five weeks. Dedicate at least two class sessions to newsgathering. Students will likely need to visit the site of the response multiple times to record interviews, gather B-roll and natural sound, and produce an effective standup. 
• Check-ins and reporting memos: Require students to submit reporting memos and meet with them at least twice during the newsgathering process. If students report that key sources are not available for in-person or on-camera interviews, or cannot be present where the response is happening, quickly move them to another story. 
• Assessment: In a broadcast journalism course, assess both the quality of the students’ solutions reporting (e.g., whether they included the four pillars) and the overall quality of their video news package. You can have two separate grading rubrics. 

Tip: For broadcast journalism students developing effective reporter standups, placing themselves in the middle of the response in action — or within the scope and depth of the problem being addressed — offers an excellent opportunity to strengthen their on-camera reporting skills.

Tip: You can open a broadcast solutions journalism package with either the response or the problem being addressed. As with all broadcast stories, use your best sound or visuals to capture the attention of your audience.