Andrew Napier from the Daily Echo and Hampshire Chronicle.

On Thursday, a journalist called Andrew Napier came in to talk to us about reporting council meetings and other journalism lark, he said some interesting things and gave us some helpful tips.

Although there are no 'hard and fast rules' on getting news stories, Andrew gave us a few pointers:

1: Make calls - you won't get anywhere in Journalism if you don't make calls, this doesn't just apply to gathering stories, but also for checking your facts.

2: Go and see people - according to Andrew, stories about journalists sitting behind their desks all day is rubbish, journalists regularly go out and talk to people and make news stories from what they've heard, a journalist may go and see Police officers, fire fighters and councillors in one day. An important tip when trying see Police officers is to go directly to the plods, don't go through Press Officers as they will usually try and confuse you enough so you put the phone down and stop bothering them from their 'busy' days. However, be wary when talking to people like the Police and councillors, as they might try and lie to you.

3: Go to council meetings - nearly all council meetings are open to the public, which means that a Journalist can go along as well. These can be a great source of information, as Andrew Napier proved when he got 8 stories (spread across the Daily Echo and Hampshire Chronicle) from the Winchester Town Forum on 25th January.

4: Read press releases - these can be a major source of information for Journalists, however these can conceal information that may be a lot more interesting than the press release itself, so you should read the whole press release.

5: Be prepared to hear out for information - listening to people's conversations might seem rude, but it can be an extra source of information, not necessarily for getting a story, but for gathering extra information that can be used in a story.

6: Read newspapers! - obvious isn't it? Reading newspapers will help you get ideas for stories, but don't just copy a story you've seen in a newspaper though

Andrew also gave us some useful advice when starting out as journalists:

1: Try and get better at shorthand - Journalists are more employable if they have good shorthand, you might not get a job because of it.

2: Do freelance work - freelancing can be a good way to get started as a newspaper/magazine might like your work and offer you a job.

3: Try and get on a graduate training scheme - the BBC and newspapers run journalism training courses, you may be offered a job at the end.

4: Avoid national newspapers at first - national newspapers can treat their staff 'like slaves', it might be a good idea to avoid national newspapers for a few years, or don't if you want to be treated like a slave!


TB 2012