writing for a visual medium Chris Vlahos

One of the most important things a broadcast journalist must keep in mind is that there is a difference between writing for television and writing for print. While both emphasize writing in the active voice and avoiding “to be” verbs, broadcast writing must be conversational. When writing for a visual medium it is critical that a broadcaster reference the shots he/she uses in their TV package. If a broadcaster mentions a particular thing the viewer must be able to see that thing upon its mention. Broadcasters do not need to introduce a person in a story the way print journalists do. Broadcasters should also limit the number of facts they use in a story to three because it is difficult to show the audience numbers without a graphic, which isn’t visually appealing. Journalists that remember these differences in writing usually enjoy success in the market.