Guest hosting today Charlotte Bailey who is one of the chosen 10 recruited by the Daily Telegraph's multimedia training scheme.
The program aims to equip this cohort with all the modern skills of multiamedia including videojournalism.
So Charlotte how do you feel doing this?
Charoltte: I feel pretty challenged by the whole experience to be honest. A year ago I would not only have questioned the need for this training but I would have wondered what it was all about in the first place. This is an area which is completely new to all of us.
David: So what have your colleagues been saying?
Charlotte:They've been surprised at how quickly they've taken to it - both practically and also in the sense that I think we've all be surprised at how much we've enjoyed this. We are all, at the end of the day, writers, but this is refreshing for us.
David:When you went for the interview at The Telegraph that must have been tough. What was going through your mind? When did you find out you'd be choseen from how many?
Charlotte:I had spent two years or more gathering work experience. I hadn't done a journalism course and so I suppose I got here via a route which is not that common these days.
I had worked with a lot of old-style journalists during periods of work experience and they had all taught me some great basic skills leading me to follow more practical routes of learning my trade.
Then when this job came up, I saw it as a chance to get some theoretical training and to finally make a move forwards into something more concrete than just regional work placements.
I filled in the application form, and as they all say, did not think any more of it.
I got a call from my dad saying I had got an interview and I have to say it took about a month for the whole thing to sink in.
We had been chosen from 700 and 32 were interviewed.
David: Cool, the chosen few - that must feel good.
Now you don't have to make me blush or anything or if you want, I have thick skin, but how did you find some of the things we shared...?
She's having to think about this.. that's a good tghing shes says. :-(
Charlotte:This has taken a bit of thought and I surpised myself with my hesitiation to be honest because I have had a lot of thoughts going around my head today about what videojournalism is and how i'll fit into it and I suppose this was the problem at first - I didnt know where I fitted in.
But at the end of the day it became clear that this wasn't the question at all, that there was no need to make efforts to fit in around a pre-formed structure but that we create that structure for ourselves.
This form of journalism not only allows us to inject our own ideas onto a piece but allows us to form a piece as near to how we envisage it on our minds as possible and being able to convey our mind's eye to other people is an incredible force.
David:So to any student or professional reading this, any advice on the multimedia and vj front? You know any pearls or slivers of wisdom?
Charlotte: Well, being the conscientious student that I am I would sum it all up in one simple ratio - 3:6:9.
we're both laughing
No, but seriously, without brazenly flaunting my new-found techy speak, I would advise that we don't shut out this form of media before we've given it a go.
Talk about it, have a look on some of the news websites and just become aware that this is already a big part of journalism.
David concludes: Everybody had a voice.. thanks Charlotte.. now time to go back and tidy this up and post. Getting late here. BFN
Charlotte: Thanks and I'm going to have to get away now too and rest up - if I'm going to be a VJ pro by the end of tomorrow..
Tony's come into the room. He's the head of training at Press Asociation. Anything to say Tony?
Tony: It's great to see lots of smiliing faces walking out of a training room at the end of an 8 hour day and to see people reluctant to go home.
Ok that's it . . .
Original post before David rudely interupted:
Having spent most of our first day's training kneeling in fields, sprawling across pavements, and generally behaving more like the SAS than Lois Lane and Clark Kent, I find that my original thoughts as to what journalism was all about are beginning to show some cracks...
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