Radio_Announcing

=Pennsylvania High School Speech League=

Bylaws: Article B16 - Radio Announcing
__Section B16.1__ A school may enter one student in radio announcing. No charge for name changes in Radio Announcing. A $50.00 nuisance fee will be assessed for drops. __Section B16.2__ There shall be only a state contest in radio announcing. Section B16.3 All entrants are now required to prepare three (3) broadcast scripts that are two minutes in length. Those entrants who do not have a prepared script for a given round will be disqualified from that round. __Section B16.4__ Selection for the Quarterfinal Round will be based on the approximately 24 lowest cumulative ranks from Rounds I and II. Semifinal Round selection will be based on the lowest rank totals of the top three speakers in each Quarterfinal Round room. __Section 16.5__ Fabrication of news stories is prohibited and will result in a student being disqualified from the tournament. __Section 16.6__ The student may receive assistance from a pronouncing guide, but may not seek the help of any other person. Failure to abide by this rule will result in disqualification from the tournament. __Section 16.7__ The name of the contestant shall be sent to the Office of the Executive Director no later than the deadline date set in the League’s calendar. __Section 16.8__ The PHSSL Radio Announcing Handbook is to be considered a part of the PHSSL Constitution and Bylaws. Therefore, all Constitutional provisions are applicable to the Handbook.
 * A. A newscast focusing on international events.
 * B. A newscast focusing on national news events.
 * C. A newscast focusing on the “lighter side” of the news.
 * A.	Round I. Student will read a two-minute prepared newscast focusing on international news events. Script is prepared by the student covering international events of the time period Sunday two weeks prior to the State Tournament through Round I of the State Tournament.
 * B.	Round II. Fifteen minutes before the contestant is to appear before the microphone, he/she shall be given a copy of a radio broadcast script provided by the Executive Director. This sight reading will concentrate on national news events and Pennsylvania news, but not exclusively one or the other.
 * C.	Quarterfinal Round. Students will read a two-minute prepared newscast focusing on EITHER the “lighter side” of the news OR national news (sports news may also be included in this national news script). Script is prepared by the student covering the topic area of the time period Sunday two weeks prior to the State Tournament through Round I of the State Tournament. Choice of script for this round will be made by the Radio Announcing Committee and will be announced shortly before the Quarterfinal Round begins.
 * D.	Semifinal Round. Students will read the two-minute prepared newscast he/she did not present in the Quarterfinal Round - either (1) national news events (could include sports news) or (2) “lighter side” of the news.
 * E.	Final Round. Approximately six students will be selected to compete in a Final Round. Twenty minutes before appearing before the microphone, the student shall be given a four-minute script provided by the Executive Director which may be a combination of national and world news, sports, and weather. The script must be cut to three minutes for presentation.

Procedures Used at the State Tournament
Since many students are competing in this event for the first time at the State Tournament, the following list of procedures may give you an idea of the way this event is conducted. A few suggestions are also included.
 * 1. After registration, a mandatory meeting of all radio announcing contestants is held to go over any last minute changes. Often last minute studio or time changes must be made. This meeting also involves a very important role call. The procedures are reviewed, and students may ask questions about any aspect of the competition. This is a big help to most students, as they will be responsible for finding these facilities for each round.
 * 2. Make sure that you report at least 20 minutes before you are scheduled to compete. Check the time very carefully on the sheet you will receive at registration.
 * 3. Each student must have his/her own script. Students will also be asked to fill out copies of the ballot.
 * 4. Round II is a sight-reading script, prepared by the Radio Announcing staff. The purpose of this round is to determine the student's ability to read aloud a script after minimal preparation. This script is a typical example of one that would be read on the air. Approximately fifteen seconds are available to sign-on, segues (transitions), and sign-off.
 * 5. Check the time and place for the sight-reading. You should report to the room at least 20 minutes before you are scheduled to compete. IT IS ESPECIALLY IMPORTANT THAT YOU ARE NOT LATE FOR THIS ROUND--LATENESS WILL RESULT IN LOSS OF PREP TIME.
 * 6. You may want to bring a stop watch or digital watch with you to the sightreading. Although the script is written with the two-minute time limit in mind, you may want to allow for sign-on, sign-off, and brief transition lines. The script itself should not be altered in any way. The watch will help you stay within the time limit.
 * 7. You will be given your script approximately fifteen minutes before your scheduled "air time." During this preparation period, you can edit the script (e.g. add a sign-on, transition lines, sign-off. However, you should not make any changes (e.g. adding your own news story in place of the script).
 * 8. After Round II, all contestants should report to the room listed in the program for the announcement of the semifinalists. MAKE SURE YOU ATTEND THIS ASSEMBLY. A few times in the past years, chosen students did not compete in the round because they did not attend this meeting.
 * 9. The Semifinal Round is another reading of the prepared script used in Round I. No changes will be permitted in the script from Round I to the Semifinal Round. Semifinalists should report to the room listed in the program for the announcement of the finalists.
 * 10. The final round is another sight-reading and is conducted in the same manner as Round II. The final round is held immediately after the announcement meeting.
 * 11. In all rounds a fifteen-second leeway (over or under) is given to all students with no penalty of placing first. If a student is 16 to 30 seconds over or under, s/he cannot place first but may rank 2-7. If a student is more than 30 seconds over or under, s/he cannot place in the top 7. Students are ranked 1 through 7. All others are ranked 8.

, which includes a sample script and some radio announcing tips.