MFJI students discover radio production
At the start of their introductory course to audio techniques, only a few students of the Master francophone en journalisme international (MFJI) said they actually like radio - and even fewer had any experience producing it. Within the group, many said they prefer television or online media for news and entertainment.
But this was about to change as they started their six-day radio course, giving them a comprehensive introduction to all aspects of audio production.
Writing for the ears, evoking images
After a theoretical section on radio's, its various formats and an introduction to writing for radio, students dove right into practice.
The focus is keeping the story clear, short, and concise. Students practiced simplifying their written expression as much as possible, avoiding adverbs and adjectives, stylistic flourishes, parenthetical phrases and unnecessary relative clauses whenever possible.
The goal: being able to read your own text aloud in a natural way, while holding the listener’s attention.
News brief, blog post, interview, profile
The course is divided into three blocks over two full days.
Between the first two sessions, students are divided into pairs. Working in pairs, they must create a portrait of each other based on a mutual interview.
Once the texts have been edited, revised and approved, they must be recorded.
Stepping up to the mic
Games inspired by theater help students prepare physically and relax their muscles - but the first time in front of a microphone, in a “real” recording studio, under the watchful eye of a sound engineer in the control room, is a challenge for beginners.
It’s not easy right away to manage stress, find your voice, articulate clearly and set the right tone.
Quickly, however, the group bonds, laughs at its hesitations, and dares to try again. Classmates learn the rules of the “air check” and offer constructive criticism to improve the other members' productions in a familiar yet studious atmosphere.
Learning to tell audio stories
Hands-on experience
The final exercise - and the most demanding one - is to produce a 30-minute program as a group and on a topic chosen by consensus. The group decided on “The Lives of Africans in Bonn".
Using mind-mapping techniques, the students’ “editorial meeting” identifies several topics, angle and formats, which they then divide among themselves. Each reporter has two weeks to conduct research, find interviewees, carry out interviews, write their script (including an introduction) and select the audio clips they’ll need for the final edit.
Once again, the scripts are submitted for approval before being recorded in the studio. Two students take on the responsibility of hosting the show. Their classmates take turns at the microphone to present their reports under conditions similar to a live broadcast.
Each aspiring journalist is then tasked with editing their audio segment to produce a 2-minute PAD.
Newly discovered passions
At the end of the session on radio techniques, some discovered a new calling and hope to be accepted into this specialization for their Master’s degree in Tours. Others still will stick to print media or television as their favorite - but all say they’ve gained a new appreciation for sound work and for telling a story without images.
