If you use music or sound effects in your spot, you broadcast copy is divided into phrases is to read the copy must remember to take these into consideration in your timing.  A  30-second  spot  with  10  seconds  of  sound effects averages four to five lines of copy. A stopwatch will help you in timing spots. Whenever you write a spot, it is best that you include a “kill date” and cutoff time so the station will know when to stop using it. A spot heard over and over, day after day for along time, soon gets dull and irritating to the listener. Also, if you have a spot telling people to visit your command on Sunday, it would certainly sound ridiculous to hear it the following Monday. RADIO  ANNOUNCING LEARNING   OBJECTIVE:   Identify   the techniques used in radio announcing in terms of   preparing   and   delivering   copy,   and   the responsibilities  of  the  announcer. Some  Navy  broadcasters  forget  that  their  primary responsibility is to communicate. It is essential that you, the announcer, know what the stories are about before you try to read them on the air. Announcers who only read words are doing exactly that — reading words and not communicating. Remember — it is not the listener’s responsibility to interpret what is read. PREPARING  RADIO  COPY There  are  certain  aspects  of  preparing  your  radio copy that you must do before you go on the air. These include phrasing and marking your copy. Phrasing The bulk of the communication process centers on phrasing.  People  do  not  talk  in  words;  they  speak  in phrases.  The  phrasing  process  is  done  during  normal conversation, without thought. Beginning newscasters have some trouble transferring this natural process when aloud. Identify whether the phrases answere one or more of the five Ws and H. If the phrase does not answer one of the five Ws and H, then it is not a complete thought Marking Copy Broadcasters  use  specific  oral  punctuation  marks  to divide   their   copy   into   phrases.   There   is   disparity between   written   punctuation   and   oral   punctuation. English teachers teach written punctuation and follow strict rules of usage. Oral punctuation adds accent and tells the announcer when to breathe, without disrupting the natural flow, phrasing and the importance of a sentence. As  stated  earlier,  most  phrasing  problems  occur because  announcers  do  not  understand  what  they  are reading. They are not breathing at the right time or not marking  their  copy  properly.  Most  announcers  adapt easily  to  the  following  system: / (The  single  slash  mark  means  you  are  to  pause and take a short breath.) Use the single slash as an oral comma, just a short pause in the flow of words from your mouth — not a complete  stop  like  a  period. // (The  double  slash  mark  means  you  are  to  stop reading and take a deep breath.) The double slash is an oral period. This is a big stop and is the end of a sentence. This is the time to take a good breath for the next sentence. / / (The triple slash mark means you are to pause / for  emphasis,  but  do  not  breathe.) This mark has nothing to do with breathing. It is just a sign to you, and it means pause for emphasis. You might use it for difficult names, quotes or a number in the copy you know you want to emphasize. An  example  of  radio  copy  with  oral  punctuation delivering  their  copy.  The  best  way  to  see  if  your marks is shown in figure 13-6. WASHINGTON INTELLIGENCE SOURCES SAID TODAY THAT TUVALU NOW LEADS THE WORLD  IN  ESPIONAGE  ACTIVITIES.//  ACCORDING  TO  AN  UNIDENTIFIED  STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL, / THE SMALL SOUTH PACIFIC ISLAND NATION, / LEAD BY PRIME / MINISTER  /  JEFFREY  TINAI  (TIN-EYE),  /IS  BEHIND  SEVERAL  RECENT  INTELLIGENCE- / GATHERING ACTIVITIES / AT NAVY BASES IN THE FLORIDA PANHANDLE.// Figure  13-6.—Radio  copy  with  oral  punctuation  marks. 13-17