In radio news bulletins, the pace and tone of the stories are important. Too many long complicated stories can make a bulletin dull and listeners may drift away from it. A good mix of stories, with some serious ones mixed in with lighter topics will keep the audience interested.
A good practice is to re-write each story before it goes into the bulletin and to consider the overall effect of the bulletin. This is especially the case with the lead story, which will be the one listeners judge the bulletin by. It should be interesting and dramatic and set the tone for the bulletin.
The order of the stories in a bulletin is important too. It will depend to some extent on the format of a station; a serious national broadcaster might favour more serious stories and a slower tone while a youth-oriented music radio bulletin might be light and breezy. It is also possible to re-order stories within a bulletin to add variety and balance.
In addition to the main stories, it is often useful to include a couple of briefs – short stories of just one or two sentences in length. These can be used to break up a bulletin if the stories are heavy and lengthy or to remind listeners of a key point in an earlier story. They are a great way to give the newsreader a 30 or 40 second rest during a bulletin.