Unit 3 | ENG: The News Story
Introduction
Unit 3 puts you on a real ENG (Electronic News Gathering) crew. Assigning roles, shooting interviews and B-roll with correct framing, editing from a transcript, and captioning the final piece. Building toward a fully produced, accessible news story.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:
- Assign ENG crew roles and plan a news story before shooting
- Shoot stable, correctly framed interview and B-roll footage
- Edit efficiently using a transcript to find and cut filler words
- Caption a finished video accurately and accessibly
Calendar of Events for This Unit
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10/12 | 10/13 | 10/14 | 10/15 | 10/16 |
| S | 2 | F | 3.1 | F | 3.1 | F | 3.2 | PD |
| 10/15: Choice Open House; 10/15: By 10/15: PreTest; 10/15: Fall Leadership - 10/15 (unconfirmed -- Delaware DECA hasn't posted 2026-27 date) | ||||
| 10/19 | 10/20 | 10/21 | 10/22 | 10/23 |
| F | 3.2 | F | 3.3 | F | 3.3 | F | 3.4 | F | 3.4 |
| 10/21: Cambron FMLA; 10/23: Report Card grades open in Infinite Campus (MP1) | ||||
| 10/26 | 10/27 | 10/28 | 10/29 | 10/30 |
| S | 3 | S | 3 | S | 3 | S | 3 | S | 3 |
| 10/26: Report Card grade verification window opens (through 11/10) | ||||
Lessons
- 3.1 – Plan. Guided notes: ENG crew roles & planning
- 3.2 – Make. Guided notes: shooting for news
- 3.3 – Edit & Text-Based Editing. Guided notes: A-roll/B-roll, transcript-based cuts
- 3.4 – Captions & Accessibility. Guided notes: captions, subtitles, color contrast
- S3 – News Story. Summative project, with a structured peer review pass
Unit Vocabulary
- ENG Crew/Team
- Short for Electronic News Gathering. Typically a reporter and a photojournalist (or camera operator) working together to cover a story in the field.
- Photojournalist (Photog)
- The person responsible for operating the camera and often the audio and lighting equipment on a news shoot.
- Reporter/Correspondent
- The person responsible for gathering information, conducting interviews, and presenting the story on camera.
- Producer
- The person who manages the overall story and coordinates the assignment. Scheduling, logistics, and making sure the crew gets what they need.
- Engineer
- Technical staff responsible for maintaining and troubleshooting equipment, especially transmission gear.
- Tripod
- A three-legged stand used to provide stable support for the camera.
- Microphone (Mic)
- A device that converts sound waves into electrical signals.
- Lavalier (Lav)
- A small microphone clipped to clothing for close-range audio capture.
- Shotgun Mic
- A highly directional microphone used to capture sound from a distance while rejecting peripheral noise.
- Handheld Mic
- A standard microphone held by a reporter or interviewee.
- Headphones/Earpiece
- Used by the camera or audio operator to monitor sound quality while recording.
- Batteries/Power Supply
- Portable power sources essential for on-location shooting.
- Media/Storage
- Digital cards (like SD or CF cards) used to record and store footage.
- White Balance
- An adjustment on the camera to ensure colors (especially white) are rendered correctly regardless of the light source.
- Focus
- The sharpness or clarity of the image.
- B-roll
- Supplementary footage that provides visual context to a story, covering edits or illustrating the topic.
- Sound Bite (SOT)
- A short, edited clip of an interview or speech used to convey a key point.
- Stand-up
- The portion of a report where the reporter appears on camera to deliver information, usually from the scene of the story.
- VO (Voiceover)
- The reporter’s voice track, read live or recorded, laid over video footage.
- Nat Sound/Ambient Sound
- Natural sound from the environment (traffic noise, crowd applause) used to add realism to a story.
- Editing
- The process of cutting and arranging footage and audio into the final news story.
- Captions
- On-screen text that displays a video’s spoken dialogue and relevant sound effects, letting viewers follow along without audio.
- Subtitles
- On-screen text translating or transcribing dialogue, typically assuming the viewer can already hear other audio cues (unlike captions).
- Audio Descriptions
- A narrated track describing key visual information for viewers who are blind or have low vision.
- Transcripts
- A full text record of a video’s spoken audio, useful for accessibility, editing, and search.
- Auto Transcribing
- Software automatically generating a transcript from spoken audio. Fast, but needs a human proofread pass for accuracy.
- Filler Words
- Verbal habits like “um,” “uh,” or “like” that a transcript-based edit makes easy to find and remove.
- Text Overlays
- Graphics like lower thirds or titles placed over video to add names, context, or emphasis.
- Color Contrast
- The difference in brightness between text and its background. Captions and overlays need enough contrast to stay readable over any footage.
- Audio Clarity
- How easily a viewer can understand spoken dialogue. Affected by background noise, mic choice, and levels.