Beneath a broadcaster’s voice lies many struggles, sacrifices, and numerous hours of hard work. Many people who listen to the radio believe that broadcasters do their thing with less effort, deliver their lines smoothly, confidently, and naturally, or deliver news calmly and concisely, but what they do not realize is the hours of preparation dedicated to research, scriptwriting, and technical checks, all to ensure an effortless production.

The purpose of this piece

The purpose of this piece is quite simple: to discuss the hidden sacrifices and hard work that broadcasters invest to deliver effortless presentations. Beyond the crispy voice of a broadcaster lies research, technical checks, timeless rehearsals, and the emotional hard work that must go before every production. This piece seeks to make listeners understand the dedication of all broadcasters to inform, educate, entertain, and, most importantly, connect with them.

What is broadcasting?

Broadcasting is the art of delivering news, stories, and entertainment through electronic means; radio, television, or digital platforms, dispersing content to different audiences in different locations.

Early Hours

Long before radio users hear their favorite voice speak on air, broadcasters are already at work. A broadcaster’s early morning might start with reviewing news on national dailies, verifying facts, and building on segments. Hours are spent on rehearsing the script delivery, the tone, the pace, and making sure every word is properly pronounced and resonates with the audience.

”An average radio listener believes that broadcasters just wake up, get up, and walk into the studio, turn on their microphones, and just talk and talk” says Ayomide Agboola, a seasoned broadcaster.

Voice as an Instrument

An attractive, strong, confident, and crispy voice doesn’t come on a platter of gold. It comes with several rehearsals to ensure a near-perfect delivery. A broadcaster who is up to the game spends quality time on warming up his/her voice, practicing diction, learning new words and their pronunciations, learning how to sound well in tone modulation and vocal strain.

A little mispronunciation or rushed sentences can greatly affect the listener’s understanding and also cause great damage to the broadcaster’s effort. While everyday people make mistakes, broadcasters are expected to be perfect, delivering education, information, and orientation, with zero margin of error.

There is also the struggle against minor ailments like the flu. To any other professional, they are minor and will not impact performance. To a broadcaster however, they disrupt voice texture and hinder smooth delivery.

The Technical Background

Broadcasting is beyond the voice; the technicality of broadcasting spans across microphones, mixers, queuing of songs, audio recording softwares and livestreaming. All these must be harmonized with a great level of concentration. A little glitch can destroy a whole production, though some of these glitches happen behind the scenes, many listeners rarely notice what is going on.

A modern day broadcaster is thus a multi-skilled professional who must combine several vital skills on every production. The modern day broadcaster is also adept at multitasking, maintaining a sharp focus while juggling several sections of a complex digital broadcast process.

Emotional Hard Work

Every broadcaster is trained to connect emotionally with listeners, regardless of the kind of programmes entrusted to them. Broadcasters are also trained to maintain strict professionalism under pressure. There are documented instances of broadcasters continuing their shifts while going through intense physical and emotional pain. A perfect example of a broadcaster who maintained a high level of professionalism was Cyril Stober, who allegedly continued to anchor the news on the day his father passed away, reflecting extreme professional commitment.

Part of the emotional burden of broadcasting is also harsh and often insensitive feedback from listeners. Accusations of bias, illogical condemnation of efforts, and generally toxic criticisms are problems that a broadcaster, especially on radio, must cope with everyday.

The golden rule that broadcasters live by is “the show must go on”. This reflects the strict emotional demands of the profession, as broadcasters are expected to continue delivering professional excellence even while going through tough personal experiences.

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What happens next after the Mic goes off?

Broadcasters do not just sit down and waste time after delivering a programme. There’s another level of work that usually takes place, and this includes reviewing mistakes and audience feedback, as well as planning future shows.

In broadcast circles, “you are as good as your last production” is a common mantra. This means every broadcaster is judged by the excellence in their last programme, thus putting broadcasters under immense pressure to continue improving and raising the bar.