Trials & Tribulations of "Real World" Reporting

Well that's it... all over!

I started my week at the Echo a bit of a nervous wreck... Pam (the lovely lady who arranged for my work experience) gave me a paper and when I walked through the door, looking like a complete tool I asked her what she wanted me to do with Monday's issue of the Gloucestershire Echo (there are only a few questions you ask in life and regret immediately by the persons response) - Looking at my in a 'bless they've sent her on day release' kind of way she said "just read it dear, we'll be with you in a bit".

So I waited around for over an hour, meanwhile I was thinking - Oh god this is going to be worse than making coffees for the week, I'm actually doing bugger all! Luckily I got the chance to head up to Magistrates Court with a reporter to get the low down on all the crooks in Cheltenham, and of course put my knowledge of Journalism Law to the test. This totally backfired when we got up there and realised the courts were closed for an entire week for refurbishment - ahhh well.

When we got back to the news room, Tanya (features editor) kidnapped me and stuck me on features for the day which was great! At first I was a little dubious - I got sent out to wonder the streets of Cheltenham and find out about anything special going on during Race Week in the pubs and clubs (I thoroughly enjoyed it at the time, in hindsight it was just a job reporters don't have the time to do as it's not that important) - So all in all a relatively interesting first day but I didn't get chance to put pen to paper.

When day two kicked off it was another boring start with not much to do, I then got to go out and do some vox pops with people in Cheltenham Town Centre about the increase in petrol prices... again it was another of those jobs nobody wanted to do, but I was excited at the time because I felt like a big important professional... or not.

Day three started off OK, I was still on features but I was getting better stories to cover and actually managed to get a byline for Thursday's paper. Doing phone interviews was ridiculous! I truly felt like a fraud calling people up claiming I was a reporter from the Echo when in actual fact I'm only little Print Journalism student pretending to be a reporter for a week... it's a students version of dress up really isn't it?

Anyway I managed to get a page 10 lead for the following day's paper which I was so over excited about it verged on sad. You can check out my review of Red Rag's Irish Art Exhibition at on the thisisgloucestershire website by clicking on the underlined text.

So... we're onto Thursday when I got to write a few little preview pieces on bits and bobs going on in the area (like this quite pathetic little piece on Guinness), but nothing too big until Dan (another features editor) send me over a press release from Cirencester. It was about a gentleman called Tom Boyd who had wrote a musical adaptation of Twain's 'The Adventures of Tom Sawyer' back in 1954, it was picked up for the West End, then dropped! So he forgot about it, until recently it has been revived and brought back to life by what seems to be a wonderful cast - so I was epically pleased with the fact I got to interview Boyd, the legend himself.

Then I got asked to do a few more features, namely a story on an informal art exhibition in Cirencester and then one on another play by a quite established writer Hugh Whitemore.

He had written a one woman play about Winston Churchill's wife Clemmie... chuffed to get an interview with him too first thing on Friday morning.

And then it happened... my big story on the Echo (haha I sound like such a nerd).

... I think this post is up to a record length for me so I'm going to start another one with the "big scoop" on - I think it adds drama and suspense haha ;)

First Day Nerves

I have work experience at the Gloucestershire Echo next week and I could not be more nervous about it. It's a bit different when you're sat in University writing stories that only your lecturer will read (or maybe a plagiarism committee if you're a dunce and copy stuff)... anyway... it's a bit different when actual people are going to read your work.

I've never had great responses to my academic work, it's not one of those things that comes naturally, I really have to work for my grades. When you're in a class with people who you know are a million times better at something than you are it can be quite daunting.

Then going out into the working world it can be quite nerve racking, I fully expect that when the Subs see my work I'll be stuck in the news room making coffees which is going to suck! But I have to give it a try.

One of my lecturers got some lucky people the opportunity to work at the Independent over the summer, I considered applying for it but I decided it was a bad idea until I knew what to expect from a news room... and if I do end up making the coffees I can do that in Cheltenham, I don't want to be stuck in London doing it for two weeks.

Anyway - more to come on work experience next week... unless I get slaughtered by the real world before making it back to my computer.

Cheltenham Car Park Catchphrase...

Since the beginning of time people have found reasons to complain, protest and disagree. Whether it was a caveman fighting with one another over a patch of land, or a country battling with another oh… a patch of land. Western culture is one of seemingly unsatisfied cynics, why should today be any different?

Gloucester Royal Hospital began handing control of its car parks over to Vinci Park in January, they also signed a contract with Vinci Park for them to begin construction on a 1,000 space multi-story car park in an attempt to free up local side roads and provide more staff parking, a project which has an estimated cost of around £9 million.

Local residents and businesses have met a similar project at Cheltenham General Hospital with some animosity. The build, which is expected to cost around £6 million and should roughly add 400 spaces to the already 800 strong car park, was originally challenged because of aesthetic problems. The front of the car park was primarily designed with timber cladding and people didn’t like this because it clashed with historic buildings in the area surrounding the construction site.

There have also been major disputes about the control of car park charges being placed in the hands of Vinci Park just before a national review is about to take place, when government is expected to abolish car parking charges at NHS sites across England.

Free parking schemes are already in place in hospitals across Scotland and Wales, if Vinci Park are given the go ahead for this development, they will be allowed to charge staff, patients and visitors parking until their contract runs out. Director of Corporate Governing and Facilities, Graham Lloyd said:

“The government are currently consulting on a number of options at the moment and we will need to await the outcome of this process.” He did however go on to say:

“What is clear is that we already do a lot of the measures that are suggested”. Obviously the hospitals in Gloucestershire are struggling to cope with the high demands placed on their car parks and suggestions made by the government are not relieving the problem.

“We have retained free parking for patients with long term conditions such as those receiving cancer treatment and subsidised rates for all patients who are in hospital for an extended period of time.”

Cheltenham MP and Liberal Democrat, Martin Horwood said that in light of government reviewing the NHS parking nation wide, it is not right for visitors to either hospital to be charged when other NHS car parks will be free: “the project needs to be considered in light of the national review.”

It has been speculated that Cheltenham General Hospital are offering the local council in the region of £15,000 for the planning process to go ahead, Martin explains: “It is fairly common for developers to give funds for public benefits… but it should not be used to push through unpopular developments”.

In a recent interview, Julie Sergeant, Chief Executive of near by Sanford Park Lido expressed fears that construction of the proposed car park will cast a shadow on the famously popular outdoor swimming pool in Cheltenham. This is a draw for tourism and could potentially result in a loss of income for the borough.

Martin Horwood feels that an appeal on the build is necessary, he said: “The need for a car park doesn’t excuse imposing a design that is unwelcome to residents and insensitive to the historic Lido site”.

But don’t worry! It isn’t all doom and gloom; some people are actually supporting the development of car parks in hospitals. Chantelle Farmer, a student from the University of Gloucestershire, was forced to experience Gloucestershire Royal Hospitals parking facilities first hand. She completely convinced that the car park builds should go ahead.

Chantelle said: “[parking] at the hospital is ridiculous and very often I found that I couldn’t park during peak times so would have to park on the side of the road or away from the hospital”. She said that the parking there is expensive and when Vinci Park take control of the parking at Gloucester Royal they should charge less than the NHS. In 2008, English hospitals charged £112 million for its car parks, but if Vinci Park charges much less, they may not be in good standing to make a return on their investment of £9 million on one single car park.

So, the battle continues! There is a need for more parking, but nobody is willing to let the building work begin. Only time will tell who will prevail in yet another historic battle over… a patch of land.

Looking forward...

Well, this latest blog is coming to you from my brand spanking new MacBook and things are looking up in the work experience world...

Looking forward to getting my teeth into the Gloucestershire Echo for work experience in March, mean while I'm in the middle of writing up a review of a Jim Blair gig to send off to AfterDark... things are getting serious. I have decided that being as proactive as humanly possible in my quest to get to Star News is the best way I can achieve my goal.

At the minute I only have a weeks work experience booked at the Echo, but I'm in the process of contacting Stroud Life and a few more publications that are out there. So the news today (apart from my lush new MacBook) is that I have a new online portfolio set up; nikkiowen.carbonmade.com so you should all get yourself over there and check out my clippings file. Also to come I'm going to upload so photographs and videos that I've taken throughout my time at university.

Cutting from Autumn 2007

"Let me ask you a question. What's worse? Not getting everything you wish for or getting it, but finding out it's not enough?"

I heard a quote the other day and it seemed to clarify my state of mind at the minute...

"The rest of your life is a long time and whether you know it or not, it's being shaped right now. You can choose to blame your circumstances on fate or bad look or bad choices, or you can fight back. Things aren't always going to be fair in the real world, that's just the way it is, but for the most part, you get what you give... The rest of your life is a long time and the rest of your life starts right now." - Mark Schwahn

Today I received an email from a local newspaper telling me that I could not get work experience with them because they can only take me for week long blocks. Now, because I'm trying to concentrate on getting my grades up to a standard I've never been able to achieve in my life (ha!) I can't afford to take a week off university. So the search continues...

On a MUCH lighter note... I have just paid for my reporting master class in London this February. It's with Nick Davies; the brain behind 'Flat Earth News' and David Leigh a mastermind journalist with more than 30 years experience! I definitely cannot wait for this experience, it has cost an arm and a leg but I think in the long run, the benefits gained will be invaluable.

Esther Rantzen said "only one in ten people working in the media are actually good at their job." - My mission over the next few weeks, months and years is to push myself to be that one, to stand out from the rest and get where I want to be. I honestly believe that if I keep putting myself out there and attending these great conferences, work shops, and to be quite frank... anything else I can get involved in, I might just make it.

Jumping in head first...

Well, it's such an honour to have been asked to contribute to the SoGoPro Street Team Blog a few short weeks ago. So I have recently been racking my brains for ideas for blogs and then it dawned on me.

In this blog I'm going to get you all updated on what has been happening on the work experience front for me.

So at the minute, I'm applying for an internship at Star News in Wilmington, NC. I have fallen in love with the concept of working over in the States and now I need to make it happen. It's about 2am here in Cheltenham and I'm going to be working through the night to get my cover letter for the managing editor of Star News Tim Griggs sorted, and I'll starting to piece together my portfolio for him. Unfortunately at the minute I don't have that much in the way of hard copy for him to read, so my mission first thing tomorrow morning is to scoot down to the Gloucestershire Echo HQ and grab some work experience hours. Hopefully then I'll at least get a few more bylines to throw in his direction.

Now back to Southern Gothic Productions, as this is where the love for Wilmington has stemmed. SoGoPro first started in 2009 with the extremely talented Hilarie Burton, Kelly Tenney and Nick Gray pushing their little independent production company out into the world. Since then they've managed to achieve so much in such a short space of time sending a short film entitled 'The True-Love Tale of Boyfriend and Girlfriend', the basis for a feature length film, the the first episode of a web series called 'Friendship Union Community Theatre' and the idea of a graphic novel our way. It sincerely amazed me the following that this venture built up, not only do you get to reap the benefits of this, but SoGoPro actually show you the process that they go through to get the the finished product.

It's such an inspiration and just seeing how the sense of community in Wilmington has helped build the production company up from the ground is truly inspiring. It looks like a magnificent place to be a part of, so that's why I decided to apply for this internship.

Hopefully over the next month or two I will be able to poor a lot of effort into my bid to make it to the States and get where I want to be.

I will keep you updated on the obstacles that surround me and let you all know how things are going in due course.

xo