Listening Journal 4: Dreams From my mother

The documentary I listened to was called Dreams from My Mother. It was produced by BBC World Service and it was narrated by Judith Kampfner. The total length of this documentary was 23 minutes.

This documentary basically discussed a part of President Barack Obama’s life that has not been focused on before and that is his life with his mother, Ann Dunham, and the influence she had on him. The documentary discussed his life in Indonesia with her along with what happened when he left to go live in Hawaii again, all the while keeping the focus of the story on Ann. It showed her life, her ambitions, and through that the listener could see the values she wanted to implement in her son.

Despite the length of this documentary it was very intriguing to listen to. The first thing that made the documentary interesting was the use of soundbites from people who knew Ann, and who were also very good story tellers. Obama’s own voice was also used as sound bites describing various locations and also describing his life and his mother, and that made the documentary even more interesting. Also the use of nat sound in different locations in order to compliment what the narrator was saying was very effective. All of the sound quality was clear and it did not interfere with what the narrator was saying.

The narrator’s voice and speed was perfect for the documentary. She told the story well through her speech, and also her emotions came through because she made reference to the fact that she too lived in an area similar to the one where Obama grew up and where part of the story took place. I think that the fact that the narrator could relate this story to her own story showed through her presentation, and this made the listener interested and not bored despite the length.

Overall this documentary was very good and the perfect length in order to tell the story well.

Listening Journal: Dressy Girls

The documentary I listened to was Called Dressy Girls. It was produced and narrated by Lena Eckert-Erdheim. The total length of the documentary was 8 minutes and 10 seconds.

This documentary was taking a look at how and why some girls dress the way they do. Lena chose to interview several girls who dress in a provocative way, asking them what their reasoning was behind dressing the way they do. She also compared many of the things they wore to fashion advice aimed at teen girls in Seventeen Magazine.

This documentary was very interesting and a real eye-opener. It was presented in such a way, that it really showed what some girls would go through to get attention, and this was done through Lena’s excellent choice of soundbites. The soundbites were also complimented by Lena’s narration of parts of Seventeen Magazine, where the fashion advice mirrored what the girls were wearing.

The sound quality was good with everything being clear and concise. However, there was no use of nat sound, only soundbites, and I think that with a documentary such as this one the use of nat sound would not have only been easy, but also enhanced the piece very much. The sound of the girls in high school, at the mall, or runway sounds could have all been used to enhance the documentary.

The narrator’s voice was very suitable, however, her tone was sometimes very sarcastic, and it seemed that she was portraying too much of her own opinion. However, her voice was good for the narration because it went well with the story and she sounded young which would appeal to the target audience. The writing quality was not too sophisticated; however, it got the message across clearly. For example, Lena would often compare what the girls said with something written in Seventeen Magazine, and this was a good way to get her point across about girls following the trend. Her writing was simple and to the point, which was what made it effective.

Also, the writing included comparisons between what the narrator was wearing and what the other girls were wearing. This was interesting and effective because it further emphasized her point to the the listener that some girls only think about dressing to impress boys, while others do not really care about it.

The documentary was just the right length. It began strongly by having a lot of soundbites by some girls telling what they were wearing, and all of the sounds overlapped. However, I felt like the ending could have been stronger had the narrator not concluded it using her own voice. I think it would have been better had she used a nat sound or soundbite.

Listening Journal 2: NPR news

In the NPR newscast the presenter was Renita Jablonski. She simply stated her name and began her story which was good because it was direct and to the point.

The newscast began talking about Obama and one of his many policies. Obama was the main subject of the first two stories, one talking about health and the other about energy issues. Then it was followed by Hillary Clinton and the Chile earthquake issue. Then there was a Wall Street story. Then it ended with more financial stories.

The NPR story in total was 4 minutes 46 seconds. I found it to be extremely dry and boring. The presenters along with all of the reporters were very monotonous, and they did not catch my attention as a listener. Also, it seemed like in many of the reports such as in the Wall Street story used information that was very boring and dry and not appealing to the audience. The only soundbite used was that by the President Obama discussing his policies, and the rest was either the presenter talking or the reporters.

Although the quality of sound was good, there were a few problems. First of all, the anchor stuttered a few times in the story. Also, her tone along with all of the reporters was not captivating and it did not sustain my attention. Also, the newscast itself was not diversified enough, and the news was presented in a very uninteresting way. There was no nat sound used, which made this newscast even more boring.

Overall, I felt that this newscast was long even though it was less than 5 minutes. I think that a lot of elements could have been added, such as nat sound, to make the stories more rich and interesting to the listeners.

Listening journal 2: BBC News

In the BBC Newscast, Mike Cooper was the presenter. He started out direct and to the point by simply stating the name of the station and his own name and going straight to the news. The newscast was a total of 5 minutes.

The newscast was rich with political news, political figures, and natural disasters. It began with Hillary Clinton and the Chile earthquake issue. Then he moved on to Uganda landslides. Next came news about Palestinians and other stories with relevance to the Middle East. The final story broke this trend by giving a scientific story about ostrich eggs and how they were used as a form of messaging.

This newscast was very interesting for several reasons. First of all, it was very much diversified in the type of news and in the way the news was presented. There were reporters and also with some stories you could hear clips of speeches such as with the Hillary Clinton story. Not only that but the stories varied in locations so there were highlights from every part of the world, and it was stated briefly and concisely in the 5 minutes. The quality of the content was good because it was strait to the point.

The quality of the sound was very clear and easy to listen to. The only problem was when listening to part of Hillary Clinton’s speech there was some feedback that could be heard. Other than that the presenter’s voice was appropriate for the type of news presented. His accent was British but was easy to understand, and he even shifted his tone depending on how serious or not serious the story was. There was not any nat sound used, just simply parts of speeches in some of the stories. The reporter's also were clear and we could understand them. The newscast overall was not boring and it was engaging.

The varying lengths of the stories, as well as the different elements such as the different reporters and the different soundbites used gave each story its own flavor. Each of the soundbites used added more to the story because they showed the tone of the speaker, so it was more interesting to hear it directly from the source. All of the soundbites used were not too long and not too short, and they were rich with information.

Overall this newscast was very clear, conscise, and interesting.