Actuality

- Live or recorded audio as it

happens. It could be an event, or
interview audio from a location.
Aircheck
- A copy of a broadcast.
AGC (Automatic Gain Control)
- Normalising audio by automatically
boosting or reducing sound so that the
output remains at the same volume.

AM (Amplitude Modulation)
- A range of frequencies used to transmit
programmes to listeners. Lower quality than
FM.
Atmos
- Background noise or the ambient sound
from a location.
Audio
- Any piece of sound whether recorded or
live.

Back-anno (Back-annoucement)
- Words spoken by a presenter after
playing a song or report. The words
relate to the previous audio. Can be
scripted or ad lib.

Back-time
- A presenter/producer calculates the
duration of audio to get to a specific
junction such as the news or an adbreak on time.

Bed
- Music for talking over.
Break
- Advertisements/Commercials
Bumper
- A piece of production played next to a
commercial break or feature.
Bus
- A way of routing multiple audio channels
through a mixer enabling the channels to be
controlled by one fader (instead of four
separate ones).

Cans
- Another name for headphones.
Channel
- A single stream of audio. In stereo
broadcasts there are two channels of
audio left and right. In mono
broadcasts there is one channel of audio.

Clock-start
- An item or programme that starts at a
precise moment, such as the news or
opting into networked output.

Compression
- A system to keep the levels constant by
automatically reducing the volume of a
recording or broadcast if it goes beyond
a certain level.

Copy
1) A script which is to be read by a
presenter or voiceover.
2) A piece of advertising audio.
Cue
1) To prepare a piece of audio ready to start
(to cue up).
2) A script read by a presenter to talk into
an item.

Daypart
- A section of a radio stations output
during the day. For example, breakfast,
mid-mornings, afternoon, drive,
evenings, late nights and overnights.
DB (Decibel)
- A measurement of the level of
sound.

Demo
- A short collection of either links,
packages or pieces of audio to showcase
your talents to a potential employer.

Drive / Drivetime
- The programme usually broadcast
between 4pm and 7pm the time when
listeners are normally driving home.

Drop-ins
- Soundbites from TV programmes, films
etc.

Drone
- A long sustained note, usually to add
tension to competitions.

EQ (Equalization)
- The process of adjusting various audio
frequencies. Used to enhance audio.

Fader
- Sliding control on a mixing desk to
control how loud audio is.
Feedback
- Also known as howl-round. The earpiercing noise created when the sound
from a microphone is picked up by a
loudspeaker, which in turn amplifies the
sound.

Format
- The type of programming a radio station
offers. There are many radio formats
including AC (Adult Contemporary), Hot AC,
CHR (Contemporary Hit Radio) and news.
FM (Frequency Modulation)
- A range of frequencies used to transmit
programmes to listeners. Higher quality than
AM
FX
- Short for effects. They create atmospheres
for radio programmes and IDs.

Gain
- Another word for volume.

Heads/Headlines
- The main news reduced to a short
summary. Usually heard at half-past the
hour.
Hook
- The most memorable part of a song,
usually the chorus.

ID
A piece of production or announcement by
the presenter to identify the station.

Imager
- A piece of production used to brand
the station.

Jingle
- A catch-all term to describe station
branding. Its commonly used to
describe sung pieces of music to identify
a station.

Levels
- The strength of audio. Low level =
quiet volume, high level = loud volume.
Link
- An item of speech to connect two
items, such as a presenter speaking
between two songs.

Mixdown
- Where multiple channels of audio are
mixed down to one stream, ready for
broadcast.
Music Positioner
- An imager to demonstrate the type of
music played on a radio station. Normally
two or three songs hooks, ending with the
station name and positioning statement.

OB (Outside broadcast)
- A programme which is broadcast from
a location away from the studio.
Outcue
- The final words in a recording. The
words are added to a script so that a
presenter or journalist can tell how a
recording will end.
Output
- The audio heard by the listener.

Package
- A news story told in a creative way
using various tools including soundbites,
voiceover and possibly fx and music.
Playlist
- A set list of songs that a radio station
will play during the week.

Popping
- The loud distorted sound created when
a voice is too close to the microphone.
Positioning Statement
- A phrase a radio station uses to sell
itself to the listener.

Presenter
- The host of a radio programme
Producer
- Radio producers have a responsibility
for the content of radio programmes or
station sound.

Reverb (Reverberation)
- An audio effect. The reflection of
sound as if its bouncing of walls.
Rotation
- The repeating of a playlist over a given
time.

Royalties
- A sum of money to remunerate
composers, artists and publishers for
using their copyrighted material.

Segue
- Where a presenter plays two songs
back to back with either nothing inbetween or a station ident.
Sibilance
- The harsh hissing sound sometimes
caused by the s or sh sound.

Soundbite
- A short piece of audio.
Stereo
- Two channels of audio, left and right.
Stopset
- A break for commercials.

Talk-up
- A piece voiced by a presenter to showcase
or promote something connected to a radio
station. It could be a for a programme or
station-led event.
Teaser/Tease Forward
- A short piece of audio or script aimed to
keep the audience listening to the station.

Traffic
a) the department that schedules
commercials on a radio station.
b) Important information on roads, rail
and other forms of transport.
Two-way
- A talk between a presenter and
reporter on a news story. An illustrated
two-way includes audio clips, such as
soundbites or voxes.

VP (Voice piece)
- A summary of a news item voiced by a
reporter.
Voiceover or V/O
- Recorded voice piece used in idents,
commercials, drama or news pieces.

Voxpop / Voxes
- From the Latin Vox Populi, which
means The voice of the people. The
voices are edited together to form a
short piece.

Wrap
- A voice piece or report where the
announcer or news reporter wraps their
voice around a news clip.