ABSTRACT
Newsreading is the point where the business of information and the game of showbusiness meet. But even among the ‘heavy’ set of newsreaders most outwardly disdainful of TV’s gloss and glamour, the act of being oracle to perhaps millions of viewers will always have something of the ego trip about it . . . however hard they may try to deny it. TV presenters have to live with fame, but while being a public figure might
massage the ego when the public is on your side, that same fickle audience will be as quick to complain as they are to compliment, not only if your performance begins to falter, but if they take offence at the cut of your suit or the shape of your tie. Similarly, presenters’ mannerisms can sometimes draw more attention than the
stories they are reading. Leaning back or forward, swaying from side to side, scratching the nose, licking the lips, blinking hard or waving the hands about, are all tics which the budding anchor may have to iron out by patient practice in front of a mirror, or better still, a video camera, before risking his or her reputation before an audience.
