A news bulletin is a compilation of stories broadcast in order. Usually it lasts for about three minutes. The main purpose is to give your listeners an overview of the most important stories in your station’s area. It must contain the right mix of stories, from hard news (so that people can use it) to soft news, such as human interest stories and amusing ephemera.
When choosing the news stories for your bulletin, remember that people listen to radio because they want information. A good news bulletin will give them the facts that they need to do their jobs, but will also be interesting and stimulating. It will help them feel part of a community and will be something they can talk about with others.
It is usual to start the bulletin with headlines of the major stories. This will help to promote the stories within the bulletin and will help your listeners decide whether they should tune in. Your headlines should be clear and concise. They should not overstate the significance of the story or go so far as to sensationalise it. If you do so, your audience will not believe it and may not respect you for broadcasting this.
A good bulletin should contain a variety of stories from all parts of the world, but it is particularly important that it contains weather forecasts and traffic updates. These are vital services for your audience. A good bulletin will also include “closing headlines” that remind your listeners of the major stories they have heard.
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