Writing for the news department is always a challenge: finding and pitching relevant stories for our listeners, tracking down the right sources and conducting worthy interviews, crafting a narrative that has the necessary context but will keep casual ears engaged on the drive to work.
It’s difficult. But I never expected news writing for a radio station to be anything else. Instead, it’s reading the news that keeps tripping me up in new and unexpected ways.
A few weeks ago, I misidentified Joe Biden as the president despite knowing perfectly well that he’s the VP and having copy in front of me stating as much. More recently, I got on-air and promptly butchered the name of someone I’ve interviewed at least 20 times. And on daily basis, I can’t help but bobble the simplest of words.
Today, it was “accessible,” which somehow came out as “susceptible” or “decibel,” depending on whether you caught the noon or 5 p.m. news.
But what’s driving me even crazier — even beyond my astonishment at struggling with straightforward speech — is just how hard it is to breathe on-air.
In normal conversation, I never think about the delicate balance between talking, inhaling, and exhaling. Put me in front of a microphone, though, and I feel like all of western Alaska can hear every sigh. And as soon as I wonder whether the Bering Strait Region thinks I’m a hopeless mouth-breather, I start to panic and speed-read, compounding problems even further.
In short: I’m about six months into my tenure as a KNOM newscaster, and I feel like I should be a lot better.
Ultimately, though, I know I’m improving a little each time. I’m no longer wheezing and depleted of oxygen at the end of every 10-minute newscast. And I’m able to recover from my mistakes with much more grace and good humor.
So as I continue honing my on-air voice, I’d just like to say thank you to all of KNOM’s listeners. Your patience and corrections are very much appreciated, and I promise you that I’ll keep on practicing.
