Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
Table 21.1
What Traditional Print Organizations Want by Way of News
Item
Explanation
Details
Print media wants to paint a picture in the reader's mind with
words.
Questions
Will be more oriented toward details.
Background
Information
How many times did the truck roll over?
How far away from the edge of the road did it come to rest?
Were there flames? If so, how high?
History related to an event.
Has this ever happened before?
History of individuals involved in the event.
Deadline
Traditional: usually daily. Current policy may be impacted by
Newspaper website.
(Smithsonian Institution 2010). In 1843, Congress provided funding to install
a telegraph between Baltimore, Maryland, and Washington, DC. The Whig
Party held its nominating convention in Baltimore on May 1, 1844, and selected
Henry Clay as their nominee. This was the first news item relayed by telegraph
(Smithsonian Institution 2010). In 1901, Guglielmo Marconi began developing
what would become broadcast radio—he sent the Morse code signal for the letter S
from a wireless transmitter in Poldhu, Cornwall, England, to a wireless receiver in
Newfoundland, Canada (Public Broadcasting System 1998b). A few years later—
on Christmas Eve, 1906—some wireless telegraph operators onboard ships heard
the Christmas carol “Silent Night” and a voice reading bible verses interrupted the
Morse code they normally heard (Public Broadcasting System 1998a). This marked
the first radio broadcast.
From these humble beginnings, radio had an impact on the way we listened to
news and found out about other events. We could sit in our living rooms and hear
the voices of presidents, dictators from overseas, and Hollywood stars endorsing
commercial products.
Unlike newspapers, radios could bring us the sounds and words of a news event
as they happened.
Modern radio stations are separated into various interest groups called “for-
mats.” Some of the formats in today's radio broadcasting include news/talk stations,
music stations, public radio, and non-English radio. Table 21.2 explains some of the
features and news items as pertain to radio media.
