The Sound of Breaking News

You’re sent to cover breaking news – a natural disaster or a large-scale accident or crime. You don’t have much time, or much warning. How do you bring back sound-rich, interesting tape, that makes listeners perk up their ears?

You’re sent to cover breaking news – a natural disaster or a large-scale accident or crime. You don’t have much time, or much warning. How do you bring back sound-rich, interesting tape, that makes listeners perk up their ears?

The Northwest News Network’s Phyllis Fletcher manages breaking news coverage as an editor for reporters throughout the urban and rural Northwest. Phyllis walks us through a triage system she’s developed to partner with her reporters, and plays excellent examples of telling breaking news stories in sound.


Featuring

Phyllis Fletcher

Phyllis Fletcher (@phylfletch) (she/her) is a decorated editor and mentor with two decades of distinguished service in audio documentary and journalism. She was the inaugural Career Coach for Third Coast and has taught editing for Neon Hum and the Public Media Journalists Association. She’s also an academic author with research published in the Handbook of Global Media Ethics from Springer press. Phyllis is a senior story editor for Wondery.