Yesterday I asked the question via Twitter
#Radio types: What advice would you give my LeedsTrinityPGs starting news placements today, hoping for a first break?AbiJaiyeola from BBC Radio Leeds was first to respond:
Talk to everyone have lots of ideas and don't be shy! Make sure people will remember you for the right reason!karlibubbles (Karli Drinkwater) is now a producer with Sky Living. She remembers all too well the struggle to get a first foot on the ladder:
Not much has changed since class 08. Grim. I had months of uncertainty & heartbreak. It takes nerves of steel.steve70s (Steve Wallace) is a Leeds Trinity graduate now splitting his life between
Locate the kettle, get used to opening the post, grab the freebies when you get the chance. And smile.The need for a positive attitude is echoed by lauraharmes from the 2005 Leeds Trinity cohort, now reading bulletins for Capital FM, XFM, LBC and Classic FM in
Be positive, be confident without being cocky and work really hard! Make an impression. Oh and smile :)Radio_MH_prod (Michael Hamilton) is a Leeds Trinity graduate who worked extensively in commercial radio before moving to his current role of ‘news & sport genius at the Nolan and Livesey shows on BBC Radio 5live’. He has this advice for those following in his footsteps:
Key to commercial radio journalism is the patch. Go in knowing the transmission area, issues, big stories...
...and how to pronounce the place names for when you read bulletins / do voicers.
Tim White is a former news editor of Radio Aire who now runs his own sports agency (TWMCLtd) as well as teaching broadcast journalism. He believes it’s important to make a positive impression right from the first day:
Look smart. Be proactive, ask for something else to do, don't wait to be handed a task.Emma Blackburn (ecblackburn) is a reporter with BBC Look North. She won the BBC’s first Developing Talent Journalism Award in 2009 with a film she produced at Leeds Trinity:
Stories keep a newsroom turning, have plenty to offer&you'll make your mark. Start early leave late and enjoy!NUJ reps
Join the NUJ. This link gives you the reasons why ...But the last world must go to a poet, comedian and performer.
Kate Fox (katefoxwriter) is best known to listeners of BBC Radio 4 as the poet in residence on Saturday Live, and has moved on from the grubbier world of news. She urges trainees to see the big picture:
Talk to people in EVERY dept of the station. You'll bump into them all over the place in your Radio Future.
Very true. Radio is indeed a small, small world.
Thanks to all contributors; keep ‘em coming.
Be eager, be willing, be prepared to go out and do the vox, and above everything else never ever ask me what celebrities I've interviewed. I don't work in local radio to be a part of the celeb culture. I do work in local radio to be part of my local community.
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