Comments on: First lesson in audio for journalists

By: Teaching Online Journalism » MVPs for November

Teaching Online Journalism » MVPs for November — Mon, 10 Dec 2007 04:27:42 +0000

[...] First lesson in audio for journalists [...]

By: Pat Thornton

Pat Thornton — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 17:22:22 +0000

I never thought of the phone interference before but that makes perfect sense. I’ll need to make a note of that and send a memo out to people.

My cell phone is always interfering with speakers and other things every day. This is all the more reason to always wear headphones when recording audio. So many people don’t wear headphones, which is a very important part of capturing good audio.

By: David Nolan

David Nolan — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 14:01:35 +0000

One more thing to add. I ran into this during a recent interview and it may become more prevalent as the technology becomes more available. The Apple iPhone causes a tremendous amount of interference, especially when the phone receives an e-mail. You can hear it over the headphones and it really disrupts the audio. It has to be turned off during taping. Just one more thing to worry about

By: onlinejournalismus.de - Das Magazin zum Thema » Blog Archive » Audio-Technik für Quereinsteiger

Fri, 02 Nov 2007 13:34:13 +0000

[...] Weitere nützliche Technik-Tipps mit Fokus aufs Podcasten: Podcast.de, Schlaflos in München, First Lessons in Audio for Journalists [...]

By: Pat Thornton

Pat Thornton — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 03:29:57 +0000

Mindy,

Excellent post. I need to print this out and show it to my coworkers. A lot of them make many of the mistakes you listed.

My biggest pet peeve is when I am with a print reporter and we are working on a story together while doing a joint interview with a subject. I, of course, am completely silent while the subject is talking, while the print person makes noises throughout the entire response. The worst is when they stop an interesting response to ask them to repeat something. I have it recorded! Or you could ask for clarification when they aren’t giving a kick-ass response.

By: The Snark Report › To tell a story, use different tools

The Snark Report › To tell a story, use different tools — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 00:30:29 +0000

[...] for those who are not tech-saavy, please read this great post by Mindy McAdams: First lesson in audio for journalists. This is a great summation of what you need to do to start collecting [...]

By: Cory Armstrong

Cory Armstrong — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 16:39:38 +0000

Well, speaking from someone who was (re) taught audio training from Mindy recently, I can tell you that her tips work well. I have posted recent podcasts on my blog as a result.

I originally learned audio on an old program called “soundedit,” which is similar to audacity, but Mindy’s way does seem easier.

And it only takes about 15 minutes for her lesson

By: Mindy

Mindy — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 02:57:21 +0000

You’re a real pro, Mary. Thanks for the important tip!

By: Mary

Mary — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 01:45:58 +0000

Great tips Mindy. But I would add something to your fourth point — the warning to not to “listen out loud” by saying uh uh or mmm mmm. When I teach my students about broadcast interviewing, I tell them the best way to make your guest feel you are listening to them is not to say uh uh or even to nod, but rather to ask questions that follow naturally from what they just said. All the nodding in the world won’t persuade them you are listening if they say “That’s when I saw the woman come running out of the house” and you follow with a question like “How long have you lived on this street?” And, we hear and see that far too often on radio and television.

By: MA Online Blog » The joys of audio recording

MA Online Blog » The joys of audio recording — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 19:03:28 +0000

[...] in the meantime Mindy McAdams has provided some very useful advice on audio recording, along with a downloadable pdf handout, which may come in [...]