Radio Feature

The beginnings of the feature genre—a more poetic or impressionistic version of radio documentary—can be traced to the 1920s in England. The exact year when the term feature was used for the first time is subject to discussion. The ambiguity of the definition permeates the entire history of the feature genre. Put simply, a feature may be seen as an artistic piece of opinion journalism or as an artistic documentary programme that uses specific characteristics of a particular fact, that is discussed or described, to present a more general topic. Reková addresses the history of the genre, various international definitions (the interchangeable characteristics of the genre) and the history of it in the Czech Republic. In this book, Reková deals with the feature genre for the most part, as defined by Peter Leonhard Braun, who sets the direction for many other creators. It is vital to point out, however, that in the golden era of the feature genre, there were multiple directions or schools of feature. Braun preferred the one that, in essence, represented “writing with sound”, while others focused more on working with music or a smaller number of characters.