A news bulletin is a short radio or television program that updates listeners on the latest events. They can range in length from seconds to several minutes, and often focus on international or national issues. Some also contain local and regional news. A good news bulletin requires discipline: clarity, brevity and vividness. It must be well-planned and carefully arranged in time, with a clear structure to avoid the listener getting bored.
The lead story is the most important part of a bulletin, and it will determine whether or not listeners will stay tuned to the rest of the programme. This is why many stations insist that the first sentence of a lead story should answer the question “who, what, when, where, why and how”.
It is also essential that any obvious drama is labelled as such in the headline. Radio listeners tend to tune out if they think that the programme is boring, so you have to make your lead story attractive enough to keep them listening. If you do have to run a less dramatic story as the lead, try to use it in such a way that it does not give away too much, and consider including one or two shorter stories, called briefs, later on in the bulletin.
These are usually short pieces of actuality (sounds of people speaking), which help to add a sense of realism to the bulletin, and can be very effective if used with an appropriate headline. They are best avoided, however, if you’re trying to present a serious or solemn piece of news.