Server-Based Editing Approaches

Most news operations today use a central file server to store, edit, and access news footage.

The approach on the right can work well when only a few ENG reporters are involved in reviewing and editing footage.

Although different facilities use different methods, in setup illustrated, reporters directly access the main server from their desktop computers.

After the footage is uploaded into the server, each reporter can roughly assemble their ENG stories with cuts-only editing, and then write the scripts.

From there, an on-line editor— generally a full-time union editor— can access the footage, make the necessary embellishments, assemble the final package, and log it for broadcast.

If the station has many reporters, the latter approach can result in excessive demands on the broadcast server.

In this case, a browse server is added as a kind of buffer between reporter computers and the main server.

Using this approach, the time-coded original footage is simultaneously uploaded to both the browse server and the broadcast server.

Once a reporter reviews and assembles the footage and writes the script, the time-coded references are passed on to the broadcast server where they are used to create the final version for broadcast.

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