Newsreaders

- are those people who read the stories that keep us connected with what is going on in the world, or perhaps what we are told is going on in the world.
I had occasion to look something up yesterday and, in doing so, came across a list of newsreaders for television. It made curious reading.
Now let it be said here that my television watching is extremely limited. I see around the first half hour of the SBS news. For those of you in Upover and elsewhere I must explain that the "SBS" is the national multi-cultural channel. Their news service, while it has a lot of national content, does tend to offer a bit more in the way of international news. I watch it so that I know what people are being told. It isn't always what I am being told by any means - but that is another story. Once they reach the sports section I switch off. As long as I have a vague notion about the cricket (and it is very vague) then I am not interested  in more sport.
But the news readers do interest me. They often seem to end up as somewhat of a celebrity. I am not sure why. Perhaps reading the news on a commercial channel is different? I don't know.
I don't for one minute think it is an easy job, just the opposite. It doesn't just mean sitting there and reading what is in front of you in a nice clear speaking voice. You need to understand what you are reading if you are going to make it make sense to other people.  You need to be prepared to do the occasional interview. You need to be prepared to finish a story and then, instead of going on to the next item, give out some "breaking" news. There is timing to consider...and how on earth do you pronounce some of those names even if there are phonetics there to help?
I have been interviewed on radio a number of times but those interviews have been leisurely affairs, planned ahead. (I cringe at the sound of my own voice on radio. I sound dreadful.) Those interviewing me have been able to ask questions, ask more questions to check things, review and edit. A journalist appearing behind a microphone and asking questions for television is under a lot more pressure - even if "live" does mean that short delay so that if someone says or does something disastrous you can cut to a commercial or have a "technical difficulty". 
The news readers I have seen over the years have varied. There is one I still miss. He was by far the best I have ever come across. He was trained by the BBC. His speech was excellent and he was, according to my hard of hearing friends, easy to lip read. I met him once after he had retired and he admitted that the job was stressful and that he used to dread news items coming in from certain places because of needing to be able to pronounce certain names.
The SBS has language specialists. It broadcasts in many different languages. There are news services in many languages - sixty eight of them at last count. 
Not all of those appear in the regular news service of course. That comes in English. 
Sometimes there is, for me, a curious little glitch. The story will include a news clip with someone speaking another language and there will be subtitles on the screen. If, as I usually am, I am looking down at the ironing or some knitting or something else that needs to be done I know I need to look up and read the subtitles. The problem is that the subtitles are only an approximation of what is being said - if that. I then find myself trying to listen and read and then, between the two, work out has actually been said. It's frustrating.
It also makes me realise again and again how complex the job of a good newsreader is.
The SBS has just said goodbye to a news reader of great skill. She was an Asian language specialist but she could seemingly get her tongue around a great many other languages as well.
I'll listen to the new people and wonder whether they will get their tongues around all the languages which go into telling us what is happening in the world.