Vo Sot Definition
LEAD
VO: Shuttle Operations (US NASA) VO: Visa Officer (various nations) VO: Vegan Outreach: VO: ValueOptions: VO: Observation Squadron: VO: Vehicle Operations: VO: Voice Only: VO: Verbal Order: VO: Validation Office (US DoD) VO: Victorian Order (British decoration for personal service to the sovereign) VO: Variation Order: VO: Vertical Opening: VO. VO or Voiceover – “Voiceover” followed by “sound on tape.” A news script, usually read live, that includes video, track, and at least one sound bite. VOSOT – “Voiceover” followed by “sound on tape.” A news script, usually read live, that includes video, track, and at least one sound bite. Both VO and SOT, usually runs back to back. Natural Sound (NAT Sound) The ambient sound from the background or foreground of a video (examples: crowd noise at a football game, cars going by on the street, teacher teaching in front of class.
A short sentence selling the story, similar to the function of a newspaper headline. For anchor reads, usually one sentence; for reporter packages, usually 3 sentences, the third sentence containing the reporter’s name, written in all capital letters
READER
A news story that has no matching video, read by the anchor with his/her face on camera through the length of the story, usually stories that are not considered “big enough” to send a crew to cover it, but worth mentioning in the newscast, written in all caps
VO (Voiceover)
A script read by a reporter or anchor where their voice is literally talking over video with the words matching the pictures in the story, generally runs 20-30 seconds, written in all caps
VT (Voice Track)
A track of audio (narration) read by a reporter within a package, written in all caps
SOT (Sound on Tape)
Any interview recorded on tape, also called “sound bites” that generally run 7-13 seconds, written in upper/lower case
VO/SOT (Voice over to Sound on Tape)
Script read by the anchor/reporter with video of the story and using parts of an interview to support the story, written in all caps for VO; upper/lower case for SOT
NATS (Natural Sound)
Any natural noise recorded on tape, such as sounds of traffic, a baby crying, a dog barking; lets the listener/viewer feel as if they are at the scene, written in all caps
PKG (Package)
A self-contained story on video that includes reporter voice tracks (VT’s or narration) and interviews (SOT’s or sound on tape), and preferrably natural sound (NATS), generally runs one minute, 30 seconds
SIG OUT (Signature Out)
The reporter’s name and news organization’s name. The sig out is the last audio of a news report. Your sig out is “(Your Name), HCC News.”, written in all caps
CG: (Character Generator or “super” which stands for superimposition)
On screen written graphic that identifies people, titles, and locations, written in all caps
RAW VIDEO
Video shot by photographer, unedited footage
LOGGING VIDEO
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Transcribing video shots, natural sound, and interviews on a log sheet
BUTT TO
Editing 2 or more sound bites back to back of the same interviewee
TRT (Total Running Time)
The total running time of packages, usually one minute, 30 seconds.
WS, MS, CU
Abbreviations for common shots used in photography, logging video and scripting production instructions); WS = wide shot; MS = medium shot; CU = close up
TAG
Anchor reads on camera following reporter package, serves as the conclusion to the story, often provides additional information or late updates.
ACTIVE VOICE vs. PASSIVE VOICE
In news writing, use the active voice. Active voice is someone doing something and passive voice is something being done to someone or something. Examples of both:
Active: “The governor gave a speech.”
Passive: “A speech was given by the governor,”
The key to writing in active voice is to make sure the action is preceded by the actor.
Passive writing is bad because it is hard to follow, and uses more words.
ELLIPSIS
The “…” in news writing indicates the anchor reading the story should pause.
SLUG
Title of scripted broadcast story
STORYTELLING STYLES
Diamond Approach: starts with an individual affected by an issue, then broadens to discuss the issue, then returns to the individual discussed at the start of the story
Narrative Approach: presents the bulk of the story in more or less chronological order
Both styles revolve around real people… referred to as “people-izing” the story.
KIS
In broadcast writing, Keep It Simple.
UP TO DATE WRITING
In broadcast writing, to ensure the copy is fresh and updated, use present or future tense in all leads. To determine this, ask yourself 3 questions: Who are the characters involved in the story? What are they doing now? What might they be doing later?
LIVE SHOT
An anchor in the studio introduces a reporter who is live in the field – not on tape like a PACKAGE. The reporter may interview someone live, talk about the scene with or without live interviews or introduce a story with video such as a PACKAGE OR VO/SOT
ON CAM (OR OC)
Vo Sot Definition
Means on-camera, a script command to show which anchor will be on camera
TAKE
Vo Sot Definition Economics
A command a director uses to call up the next shot needed in the program. For example, to get an anchor on screen, the director might say, “Take camera one.” To get a super on the air, the command might be “Take super”.