By Laura Greenwald, Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer (August 27, 2002): The Vanishing Verb

Objective

This lesson plan focuses on the evolving language of television news reporting. Through analysis of recent trends in the media, students will develop their critical thinking skills with an emphasis on summarizing main ideas, extracting specific details, formulating opinions, drawing inferences, and comparing and contrasting attitudes. Students will also have the opportunity to fine-tune their paraphrasing skills and review vocabulary. This lesson consists of five parts, which can be used separately or together:

• What is "TV Speak"? Students will become familiar with the topic by reviewing pre-listening discussion questions. These questions include analysis of excerpts from the NewsHour program The Vanishing Verb and call attention to differences in spoken and written language.
• Understanding Main Themes: After listening to the video, students will discuss the main themes of the report. Students will compare and contrast attitudes of interviewees.
• In-depth analysis of viewpoints: Here, students will examine and discuss the extended interviews with Robert Hager, Tom Phillips, and Shepard Smith -- interviewees from the report. This assignment can be completed in class or as homework.
• Individual or Small Group Activities: Students will learn how to paraphrase correctly as well as experience "TV Speak" directly. In the third task, students will design their own news format. The goal of the first activity is to teach students about distinguishing between academic writing and "TV Speak." By completing this activity, students will learn about the importance of avoiding plagiarism and paraphrasing correctly. In the second activity, students are encouraged to be creative as they design their own news format and hypothesize about the potential reaction from an American audience.
• Vocabulary Practice: Students complete three exercises for review of vocabulary, including an idiom.

Procedure

Place students in small groups of three or four before the class joins together in a larger discussion. Each student should receive a handout with the pre-listening questions. Students should also have access to newspapers to examine headlines and articles. Students should write short answers to the pre-listening discussion questions based on their small group interaction. Then, join the class together for a larger discussion and sharing of ideas.

Pre-Listening Discussion Questions: What is TV Speak?

1. What is missing from the following news excerpts highlighted in the NewsHour report?
   1. JOHN KING, CNN: "Those negotiations continuing. Mr. Bush speaking to reporters earlier today: Suddenly optimistic."
   2. ANDREA MITCHELL, NBC News: "Gary Condit today, the first sighting in weeks."
   3. SHEPARD SMITH, Fox News: "Meantime, the Navy looking for another suitable training location, the Navy secretary saying it will be tough but not impossible. The Navy using Vieques for the past 60 years."
2. Examine the headlines of a newspaper - what do you notice about the language? How are headlines different from other language in the newspaper? How are the headlines similar to the clips from the NewsHour report?
3. How is spoken language different from written language? Provide an example in which social context or setting changes the way you speak.
4. Why do you think reporters often use the present tense?

Viewing Activities for The Vanishing Verb

Procedure

Join the class for viewing of the report (video and audio are available on the transcript page). Each student should receive a handout with the discussion questions. First, place students in small discussion groups so they can share ideas about the main themes, compare and contrast attitudes, and express opinions on key issues. Students should write short answers to the discussion questions based on the small group interaction. Then, moderate a larger discussion.

Understanding Main Themes - Discussion Questions

1. What is "TV Speak"?
2. According to the report, how has script writing for news broadcasts evolved since the 1970s?
3. Describe Phillips' attitude towards "TV Speak." Do you share his views? Explain.
4. In Smith's view, what are some advantages of using "TV Speak"?
5. How does NBC News anchor Tom Brokaw feel about "TV Speak"? If you were a TV correspondent, would you use "TV Speak"? Why or why not?
6. Do you think the evolving language of news media reflects the desire to attract younger audiences? Explain.

In-depth Analysis of Viewpoints - Homework or Classroom Assignment

Procedure

For further analysis of recent trends in the media, ask students to read the extended interviews of Robert Hager, Tom Phillips, and Shepard Smith. (See links below)

• Extended Interview: Robert Hager
• Extended Interview: Tom Phillips
• Extended Interview: Shepard Smith

Pass out the study questions handout. If you assign this activity for homework, ask students to write short answers to the study questions. At the next class meeting, students can share their responses. If this activity is completed in class, place students in small discussion groups for review of the extended interviews and study questions. Discussion teams may focus primarily on one extended interview and report their analyses back to the class.

Study Questions

1. Compare and contrast the views of Robert Hager, Tom Phillips, and Shepard Smith on recent trends in the media. What do the interviewees say about the impact of technology (e.g., the Internet) on American society?
2. What inferences can you make about the generational differences in television news reporting?
3. How do time constraints impact TV language?
4. How do you feel about Phillips' views on the trends in TV language? In your view, should the English language adapt to an ever-evolving culture?
5. How do you feel about "TV Speak"? Does the use of shortened language on TV or in e-mails reflect our fast-paced society? Explain.

Individual or Small Group Activities

Procedure for Activity 1

Watch an entire report or segment from any newsmaker interview from The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer. For example, a recent report contrasting the views of former Secretaries of State Henry Kissinger and Madeleine Albright would be suitable for this activity (see transcript for the August 22, 2002 report Next Move ) Teach students about the importance of avoiding plagiarism and paraphrasing correctly. Remind students that when they are paraphrasing, they are putting another person's ideas into their own words. Thus, they must change the original wording and sentence structure. At the same time, they have to maintain the original meaning of the source and not add any of their own commentary. Most importantly, students must cite the original source when paraphrasing. For more information on avoiding plagiarism, paraphrasing correctly, and using documentation styles, check out the following Web sites: Avoiding Plagiarism

• Northwest Missouri State University - Tips on Avoiding Plagiarism
• Defining and Avoiding Plagiarism: The WPA Statement on Best Practices
• Indiana University Pamphlets on Common Writing Situations

Citing Sources:

• Purdue Online Writing Lab: Research and Citation Resources
• Duke University: Citing Sources

Activity 1: Academic writing and "TV Speak"

Acting as reporters for a fast-paced news network, students will enjoy experimenting with "TV Speak" in the role-play. Pass out the handout.

1. (Academic writing style) Imagine that you are writing an essay on U.S. foreign policy towards Iraq. You would like to incorporate comments from Henry Kissinger or Madeleine Albright into your paper. Choose a quote and paraphrase it.
2. ("TV Speak") Now, imagine that you are a TV correspondent who must sum up the ideas of Kissinger and Albright into a broadcast report. Prepare a brief news report about the interviewees' key ideas and policy recommendations.

Procedure for Activity 2

Students may work individually or in small groups. Encourage students to share their proposals with classmates. Pass out the handout.

Activity 2: Design your own news format!

1. Imagine that you are a producer of a national news network in the USA. Describe the types of stories and news format that would appear on your program. Consider the three questions below: a. Who will be your target audience? b. What guidelines will you provide for your reporters regarding the style of language they should use on feature news stories? c. How do you think different segments of the American population will respond to your news program?

Vocabulary Practice

Procedure

The vocabulary activities may precede or follow the viewing of the NewsHour report. Pass out the handout. In the first exercise, ask students to read the excerpts from The Vanishing Verb (students may work in pairs). For each excerpt, students should fill in the blank(s) with the most appropriate vocabulary word from the box. In the other two exercises, students will match vocabulary words/expressions with definitions and write their own sentences. Students should be encouraged to study vocabulary in context; i.e., focus attention on how the vocabulary words are used in the NewsHour report.

Vocabulary Exercise 1 - Fill in the Blanks

Read the excerpts from The Vanishing Verb and choose the most appropriate vocabulary word from the box for each excerpt. staccato shoehorn workhorse yakking episodic moonlights elliptical bard tickertape few and far between

1. TERENCE SMITH: "Today in Washington, around the country, television reporters, talking like this … Short, ___________________ bursts."
2. TERENCE SMITH: "Shepard Smith, the anchor of the fast-paced Fox report on the Fox News Channel, is known for his _____________________ delivery."
3. TOM PHILLIPS: "You hear a lot of sentences that aren't really sentences. You hear a lot of words dropped. You hear a lot of ... _____________________ speech with 'dot-dot-dots' where the connective tissue used to be."
4. TERENCE SMITH: "Time, of course, is the ultimate tyrant in television news, and Shepard Smith argues that shedding verbs, the ___________________ of traditional sentence structure, permits him to ____________________ more news into less time."
5. SHEPARD SMITH: "We don't speak in sentences with periods and dashes and colons and commas. That's not how we talk. So I try to talk like I speak when I'm ___________________ with my buddies."
6. TERENCE SMITH: "And script doctor Tom Phillips, who ___________________ as a Shakespearean actor, says that ___________________ English is nothing new."
7. TERENCE SMITH: "Call it 'TV speak,' or the case of the vanishing verb. Whatever, it's an abbreviated language unique to time-pressed television correspondents …Verbs are ___________________________ as she continues."
8. TERENCE SMITH: "But Tom Phillips argues that the best guide to television writing was provided not by the ________________, but by Albert Einstein."

Vocabulary Exercise 2 - Matching

Match the following words/expressions with definitions below.

1. staccato _____
2. tickertape _____
3. episodic _____
4. workhorse _____
5. to shoehorn _____
6. to yak _____
7. few and far between _____
8. to moonlight _____
9. elliptical _____
10. bard _____

Definitions

1. abrupt breaks between successive notes
2. rare; not many and scattered
3. to squeeze into a narrow space
4. a horse used for heavy labor; the most dependable or durable worker
5. paper tape used for recording telegraphed stock market quotations
6. to chatter or talk about unimportant things
7. to work at an additional job after one's regular one
8. divided into segments or scenes
9. an exalted national poet
10. word(s) omitted; incomplete constructions

Vocabulary Exercise 3 - Write your own sentences

Ask students to write their own sentences using the vocabulary words/expressions.

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About the Author

Author Laura Greenwald teaches English for International Relations at the Johns Hopkins University Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) in Washington, D.C. She has a Master's Degree in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages from the Monterey Institute of International Studies and a Master's Degree in International Relations from Johns Hopkins University SAIS. She has a B.A. in International Relations from Johns Hopkins University. Fill out this form to share your thoughts on Classroom’s resources. Sign up for NewsHour Classroom’s ready-to-go Daily News Lessons delivered to your inbox each morning.