SJC-style-and-production-guide-2012

has taken it further. Context should be succinct. Say what is necessary so the audience is notasking questions about who, what, where, why, when and how.The way you introduce a story will often determine whether it succeeds. Write the link or introfirst. This forces you to pinpoint the main interest of your story. Adopt crisp, direct speech thatappeals to the imagination. Emphasise key information, build a context, and tease other facts thatwill come later in the body of the story.Use the continuous present tense wherever possible. Write “company executives say”, ratherthan “said”. But be consistent. Switching back and forth between present and past tense within asentence is wrong. Stay in the same tense right through a story if possible.Our job does not end with the accurate setting down of essential facts. From that beginning, weshould aim to give the news a meaning and an interest that are essential to capture the attentionof the audience and enable the story to be properly understood.Our objective is to give warmth, colour and life to all our stories where this is possible.Words that are clear and plain are not in themselves dull. Short words usually do the job betterthan long ones. Stick to words and phrases that are simple and well understood.Poor grammar signifies that an idea has not been properly thought through. Cliches are the firstrefuge of the thoughtless. Be creative, clear and specific.Always write for meaning. Break your prose into separate sentences if that’s the safest way ofensuring clarity and avoiding ambiguity.A first draft is the form of a story you read through and check for factual errors, awkwardphrasing or literals, before offering it for use in a bulletin. Don’t submit copy expectingproducers to do your writing for you.Always re-read your scripts before you file them. And if you have time, read them again. Checkyour scripts for factual errors, awkward phrasing or literals, before offering them for use.No matter how experienced we are, it’s likely our writing can be improved. Rarely should a storybe broadcast without first being checked by someone else. A sharp editor or producer can makegood writing even better.There are alternatives for many words that obscure our meaning, rely on bureaucratic jargon, arearchaic, easily misunderstood, or are gender biased.On the left below are words you should avoid altogether or which are overused or usedinappropriately. On the right are words that will help the audience better understand yourmeaning.Avoidabatedaccessedacquiredadmitsairlifteda large proportion ofall-time highUseeasedgotgotsaysflownmany, mostrecord/new highUQ SJC STYLEBOOK 2012 – PAGE 80