0898 – Causes Of Mic Fright

2023.06.17 – 0898 – Causes Of Mic Fright

So, what’s going on?

Extreme nervousness is one of the most unpleasant experiences to go through: physical and mental suffering that, if you are a broadcaster, may be in public and recorded and be played back - not just in one’s mind but also on social media for years to come.

glossophobia

/ˌɡlɒs.əˈfəʊ.bi.ə/ 

noun 

The fear of public speaking (speaking to a group of people)

Deriv: Greek glosso- (tongue, language) + -phobia (fear).

 “Year after year in the UK, glossophobia claims the top spot as Britain’s no. 1 phobia, repeatedly knocking ‘fear of death’ down into second position. ...

At a funeral, the average Briton would rather be in the casket than deliver the eulogy.”

Richard O. Smith; The Man with His Head in the Clouds; Signal Books; 2015.

What situations may cause ‘mic fright’?

Nerves are usually quite normal. Even so there are some situations that may cause anything from butterflies to freezing:

·        A radio or TV presenter, used to studio work, being asked to present ‘on the road’ or on stage in front of ‘real people’

·        The ‘mic live’ red light coming on (sometimes it’s called, perhaps understandably, the ‘dread light’), and the accompanying sweating armpits, and shallow breaths

·        Even working in a different studio, with a different format or with breaking news, perhaps with a new producer or co-host – all of these can cause usually languishing Lepidoptera to awaken…

·        The audience – its size (twelve people is perhaps less daunting than 200), its importance, and how familiar we are with the members[1]. Before you know it, there you are, face-to-face with paying clients from major corporations who are looking to you to bring their message to the masses

·        The difficulty of the subject

·        Your familiarity, or not with the script

Feeling a need to impress, perhaps it’s an audition or your first day

[1] The size of the audience that you are in a room with, also affects how deliberate your enunciation must be. That’s because different frequencies and different types of sound, carry over distances with differing degrees of efficiency. Combined with ‘room noise’ and clarity or otherwise of the public address system and any reverberation, it means that some crucial letters may be missed and some words merging into others.

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