REPORTING FOR THE MEDIA (NEWS STORY PROJECT)
NEWS WRITING AND ANALYSIS
A. News Story
“Bus crashes, kills two passengers, injures twelve”
Number 24 bus of SBS Transit crashed along Changi Road near Chai Chee Industrial park at 3:20 PM yesterday amid heavy rains. Two passengers were confirmed dead including a 27-year-old man from Ang Mo Kio who suffered head injuries and instantly killed at the scene. The other fatality whose identity was not yet known died at Singapore General Hospital at around 4:30PM. The bus carrying twenty seven passengers was on its way from Ang Mo Kio to Changi Airport when it suddenly crashed sideways into a guard rail on the side of the road.
Witnesses narrated that the crash occurred when the bus driver veered the vehicle to avoid hitting a car which was changing lanes without warning. The bus was believed to have lost control due to the wet and slippery road caused by heavy downpour. Police declared that the bad weather conditions reduced visibility on the road and played a part in the accident. No other vehicles or nearby pedestrians were affected by the accident but police officials who responded to the scene said that the driver suffered leg and internal injuries. He was taken to Singapore General Hospital for immediate medication and has high hopes for full recovery.
Reports revealed that twelve other passengers were injured in the crash. One was in a critical condition at the Singapore General Hospital and three others were in serious condition at Changi General Hospital. Three of the injured passengers were stable in the same hospital while five others were released after being examined. The police officials have not yet released the names of the fatalities as they are still contacting families and relatives.
Most of the passengers were taking it as one normal trip to the airport and were not paying much attention to the road. A passenger interviewed at the scene said that she didn’t exactly see what happened and just felt the swerving of the bus followed by a loud bang. Then, people came flying everywhere, most of them looking confused and shocked. The passengers stated that they tried to help each other out of the bus but rescue came quickly.
A nearby pedestrian named Jessica Chan said that the accident happened so swiftly that everyone had no time to figure out what was going on. She further stated that she saw a car moving in on the lane occupied by the bus and the bus suddenly made a loud crash into the guard rail. The car driver was not injured but the passenger suffered minor injuries.
The accident, third one involving a bus in the past year, has led to renewed calls for seatbelts in buses. A bus driver interviewed said that having seat belts in buses would not be a major step because people are used to having car seatbelts. Another commuter interviewed said that buses are more difficult to maneuver than cars and even the best drivers cannot avoid getting into troubles sometimes. Having seat belts in buses would be an uncomfortable idea but it is a worthy strategy to save lives and avoid injuries.
B. Radio Script
An SBS Transit Number 24 bus crashed sideways into a guard rail along Changi Road near Chai Chee Industrial park at 3:20 PM today amid heavy rains. Fatalities include a 27-year-old man from Ang Mo Kio who suffered head injuries and instantly died at the scene and another person whose name is not yet known who died at the Singapore General Hospital at around 4:30PM. Twelve other passengers were injured of whom one is in a critical condition; three are in serious conditions; three are stable while five others were released after being examined. Witnesses said that the bus driver tried to avoid colliding into another car that was changing lanes without warning when it crashed into the guard rail. Police report revealed that the heavy rains caused minimum visibility in the area and slippery roads which might have caused the difficulty for the bus driver. The accident is a renewed call for the issue of formally having seatbelts in public buses as a major safety strategy.
C. Analysis of the News Story
A news story is said to have some components or elements that determine its “newsworthiness”. There are ten identified elements of news; however, a story is not required to have all those. The elements of news are oddity, emotion, consequence, proximity, drama, human interest, prominence, progress, conflicts and timeliness (The Georgia-NJ Connection 2003). The news article entitled “Bus crashes, kills two passengers, injures twelve” contains the elements of emotion, consequence, proximity, drama, human interest and timeliness.
The emotional element determines the impact of the news on the emotions and feelings of the readers and audience. The news talks about an accident with fatalities and injuries which are likely to create feelings of worry and sorrow among the audience. This is connected with other news element like drama or events that connote sensational situations and consequence or the effect of the story on the readers. The news is about road safety, road accidents, death and injury which are situations that can be of great impact to the senses and emotions of the people reading and hearing the news story.
Proximity of the news connotes the area or place where the news story will be published. The news article tackles about an event that has impacts on Singapore. The news is about a bus accident killing two passengers and injuring twelve so the news article suffices the requirement of proximity. The accident happened in the city of Singapore and the people involved are Singaporeans. The news can be a ground for renewed awareness against road safety which is a very important part of daily living in a metropolitan city like Singapore.
The subjects of road safety and accident have always aroused human interest. It usually awakens fear, grief and vigilance among people. The idea of living daily in a dangerous world of unstable weather and uncontrollable traffic situations is a psychological challenge. The news is about a bus accident with injured and dead passengers. The news story carries human interest by making the people of Singapore aware of what can happen during common trips and daily travels which are beyond control but can be prevented by being informed of road safety.
Finally, the news article is timely. Road safety is an inevitable issue. The world is not a safe place to live in. The complicated transportation system of the modern world is a challenge on its own. Everyday road accidents occur which usually result in injuries and worst, in death. The news article tackles about a recent accident in a major area in Singapore and the fatalities of the accident
The news article also answers the 5Ws and H. It includes the persons involved in the story, tells the theme of the story which is the bus crash which caused the loss of two lives and physical injuries to twelve people, the location of the news, when it happened and how the accident happened. Several facts were also included which made the article more detailed and comprehensive. The facts in the article are written coherently and additional information is provided to make the story more meaningful. Any news story, be it in print or radio, demand direct language and exact facts. The print news story which is supposed to be published the next day contains more discussion and uses the correct language and grammar. The radio script, on the other hand, is more of a gist of the whole story. It would run for only 30 seconds and would be reported the same day that the accident happened so it has a more up-to-date tone to it. Both the articles use direct language and facts are related to one another.
RESEARCH AND INTERVIEW PREPARATION
A. The Angle of the Follow-Up Research
The follow up research focuses on the status of the road safety program, public transportation system and current statistics on road accidents in Singapore.
Background Information
Singapore has a highly developed and well-maintained road and highway network (2006). It has a total road network of 3,144 kilometers with four road classifications namely: expressways and semi-expressways; major arterials; minor arterials and local collectors; and local accesses. Singapore has developed a well connected public transport system where public buses and taxis on the roads serve the travel needs of the population (-2). Public transportation and taxis are abundant and inexpensive. Visitors should consider using this form of transportation, which is widely available and reliable. Driving is done on the left-hand side of the road and motorists should be particularly aware of motorcyclists, who often ignore lane markings. Lanes are frequently closed without warning due to constant construction throughout the city. The Automobile Association of Singapore provides roadside assistance, and the Land Transport Authority has rescue vehicles on the road at all hours. In addition, closed circuit cameras monitor all roads. As with all laws in Singapore, those involving traffic rules, vehicle registration, and liability in case of accident are strictly enforced, and they may involve criminal penalties ( 2006).
Public transportation in Singapore is dominated by the two main public bus operators which are SBS Transit Limited and Trans-Island Bus Services Limited now known as SMRT Bus Limited. SBST has its own Bus Captain Driving Centre (BCDC) to train and upgrade the driving skills of its bus drivers. The bus drivers are taught defensive driving techniques and driving skills are continuously upgraded. Remedial training is also provided to those drivers who are not performing properly. It also has a Safety Department responsible for implementing safety practices for the daily overall planning and supervision of its operation and for maintaining accident data used for investigations and analysis of accident trends. TIBS on the other hand, has developed a comprehensive safety training program that starts the day each driver is hired by the company. All new trainees have to undergo a 24-day service proficiency training course, where defensive driving and customer service techniques are taught by traffic police officers before the test is undertaken. TIBS buses are also equipped with safety features that improve passenger safety. These features include sensitive-edge retractable doors that retract upon contact with an obstruction during closing, infrared sensing devices that prevent doors from closing when there are passengers standing on the steps at the exit, and accelerator-interlock devices that prevent accelerators from being depressed when entrance and exit doors are not fully closed. The buses are also sent to shops for regular checks and maintenance under a comprehensive preventive maintenance program ()
The Ministry of (2005) reported that the Singaporean Traffic Police recognizes the importance of good road safety education in ensuring that roads are safer for all. The road safety public education efforts include annual publicity campaigns and major events like the Road Safety Outreach, Road Courtesy Campaigns, Shell Traffic Games and Anti-Drink Drive Campaign. These campaigns are actively publicized through various media channels like television, radio, press and outdoor advertisements. The Traffic Police also conducts road safety talks and exhibitions to schools, companies and government organizations. About 120 talks and exhibitions were conducted in 2004 to reach out to the public.
In April 1997, the Singapore Land Transport Authority launched the left-turn-on-red (LTOR) scheme, a traffic management practice that is equivalent to right-turn-on-red (RTOR) in North America. LTOR traffic control permits motorists to turn left on a red traffic signal indication after stopping and giving way to conflicting vehicles and crossing pedestrians. LTOR is operated full-time under a sign permissive rule: A vehicle can make a LTOR movement only at those intersection approaches that are signed to permit LTOR. In February 1999, the legend for LTOR signage was enhanced by replacing the previous “GIVE WAY-Left Turn On Red” with “Left Turn On Red-STOP Before Turning”. This informs motorists in stronger terms to stop at the intersection before proceeding to perform the LTOR maneuver. Motorists failing to do so are liable to pay up to 0 (U.S. ) for a pecuniary fine or up to $ 180 (U.S. $ 105) together with four or six driver demerit points for failing to give way to oncoming vehicles or pedestrians, respectively ( 2004).
In Singapore, accidents are classified into four severity categories: fatal (a victim who dies within thirty days of an accident), serious injury (includes fractures, concussion, internal lesions, crushing, severe lacerations, or severe general shock requiring medical treatment or hospitalization that prevented the person to perform ordinary pursuits for at least seven days), slight injury (victim brought to the hospital and requires subsequent medical assistance of no less than three days), and property damage only. Data on accidents are collected by traffic police and the General Insurance Association. The traffic police accident data form for injury accidents captures the accident classification; date, time, and location of the accident; road traffic condition; weather condition; street lighting condition; collision type; driver condition; and details of accident vehicles and parties involved ().
Data on the Regional Safety Program Country Report also indicate that there is an improvement in the road safety situation in the country. The period of economic expansion and increased motorization in the late 1970s and early 1980s caused the initial rise in fatality cases in those years. Road safety measures undertaken in the 1980s have significantly reversed the accident trend. Reported cases of accident in 2002 showed 199 fatalities from 190 accidents – slightly lower by 2.6% in 2001. At the same time, there were 145 serious injury accidents, resulting in 172 serious injury casualties. There were 6,544 slight injury accidents, with 8,900 casualties. The fatal and serious-injury accident rates per 10,000 vehicles in 2002 were 2.7 and 2.1 respectively. The fatal and seriously injured casualty rate per 100,000 people was 4.8 and 4.1 respectively (pp. 4-6).
Discussion
The background information were gathered from a magazine written by Wong, Ho and Foo in 2004, a website called GetformeSingapore.com, and databases of the United States Department of State Bureau of Consular Affairs and Asian Development Bank. The sources were randomly chosen based on their contents that relate to the topic of the follow up story. The follow up story is premised on the original news story about a bus crash in Singapore which killed two and injured twelve passengers. The follow up story focuses on the road safety program that the country adopts, the present system of public transportation and some statistics on road accidents which may be useful in supplementing the topic on overall road safety in Singapore.
The United States Department of State Bureau of Consular Affairs and Asian Development Bank offered information on their databases on the Singaporean road safety program and traffic conditions. The United States Department of State database contained the general situation of road safety, public transportation and traffic circumstances in Singapore. The Asian Development Bank database contained a country report on the road safety program in Singapore which included discussions on the road safety mechanisms, trends in road accidents, status of public transportation and the various entities which assist in the promotion and implementation of the road safety program.
The GetformeSingapore website provided information on the role of the Traffic Police in traffic management and road safety in Singapore. The Traffic Police is a significant entity in Singaporean transportation system and they are given major roles in promoting safety among the motorcyclists and the citizens. The information in the website was about certain strategies that the Traffic Police undertakes in order to increase public awareness regarding road safety.
The magazine article by Wong, Ho and Foo tackled about a traffic management scheme called Left-Turn-On-Red implemented by the Singapore Land Transportation Authority. It is an interesting topic to supplement the information gathered on the road safety program as it narrates a specific scheme which would help traffic management and may prevent road and pedestrian accidents. The magazine also discussed some details pertaining to the scheme like penalties and its significance to Singaporean traffic management.
All the sources contributed to the aim of the follow up story to examine the general road safety program, public transportation system and recent road accidents statistics in Singapore. It did not only provide data on the main road safety program but also on some schemes that government offices carry out in order to advocate the program and increase public awareness and participation.
B. Interview Preparation
Source Contact List
Public Transport Council
Singapore Land Transportation Authority
SBS Transit Limited
SMRT Bus Services
Singapore Police Force – Traffic Police Department
The Interview Questions
Public Transport Council
Singapore Land Transportation Authority
SBS Transit Limited
SMRT Bus Services
1. What is the extent of operation of SMRT buses in the Republic of Singapore?
2. What trainings are given to drivers in order to ensure and maintain their efficiency?
3. How does the organization promote road safety among its passengers?
4. What assistance does the organization extend to affected passengers in case of accidents?
Singapore Police Force – Traffic Police Department
Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com
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