The reason for Jane Young to be a journalist is that [originaltext]M: Today we h

M: Today we have journalist Jane Young on our shows. Glad to meet you, Jane.
W: Me too.
M: Being a journalist is really hard work. What inspired you to be a journalist? Was it family or did you just enjoy story writing at school?
W: I’ve always loved writing since I was a kid. It took me a while to work out what sort of job I could do that I could use some sort of creative writing in. It was only when I left university that I realised journalism would provide that opportunity. Interestingly enough, it was only after qualifying as a journalist that I found out my great uncle was a reporter for the paper that is now the Evening Standard.
M: Would I be able to go straight into working for a national paper after getting a suitable degree?
W: It is possible but only if you’re in the very lucky 1% who are accepted onto a graduate training programme run by a national newspaper. You’ve just got to apply. I’m not sure how many they take on but it’s a very small amount. Some newspapers have scrapped these schemes altogether. A lot of people who get on these schemes tend to be from Oxford or Cambridge.
M: If someone wants to be a newspaper journalist, what subjects should he be taking in school?
W: Newspapers want people from all walks of life and with all different skills and areas of expertise, because obviously they want to reflect the society they’re writing about so there’s no particular subjects you should take. A lot of journalists would have studied English because they like the written word, but I know people who have studied all sorts like politics and history. They’re all good background knowledge as you have to write stories about many different things. It’s only progressing in your career that you become a specialist writer. There’s a common misconception that a media studies course of some kind will help, but that’s not always true.
M: Is it useful to work on school newspapers if you want to be a journalist?
W: Definitely. Any kind of work experience you can get will help you get on to your training course and help you get your first job. It gives you something to talk about in an interview. You’ll always be competing against a lot of people. It will give you a little edge. You’ll learn of course, and you’ll have cuttings—stories that have been printed—to show everyone.
M: Do reporters for newspapers look down on reporters from TV and vice versa?
W: It is quite a different discipline and there is an element of that, both ways. I think a journalist has to compile a much more detailed story because it’s going into print whereas TV journalists generally have to fill a couple of minutes and they tend to have a lot of backup with them—they have a team. We think we work harder for our money and we’re required to understand the story in greater depth. You have to admire the TV reporters though for their ability to sum something up in such a short time, you tend to think they’re sat around all day just taking notes but they’re thoughtless when the lights are turned on. They’re not just pretty faces after all!
M: How do you cope with deadlines?
W: They are just a normal daily occurrence. You always think you’re not going to hit it but you normally do. There is some bartering going on, but you can tell the shouts get louder when you get closer to the deadlines. TV journalists tend to have to do a number of reports during the course of the day whereas we only have to make one edition—quite often a story will change quite dramatically so we might file four different versions of the same story to hit that deadline.
M: Would you say that the industry is still largely male dominated?
W: I would say that it’s probably 50-50 male and female staff now. The divide comes when you look at the senior management posts—there are very few female editors. Rebekah Wade, editor of the News of the World, the deputy editor of the Express, Nicola Briggs, that’s about it.
M: Do you think that the press invades the privacy of certain people?
W: Yes we definitely do. The question is whether that’s justified or not. That depends on who’s privacy you’re invading and why. I personally don’t know why we would be taking pictures of people topless on the beach, but if they are celebrities and they have done something of public interest, for example, developed a drug habit and sought treatment for that, then we should report that, as they’re happy to take part in the media circus to secure them millions of pounds a year.
M: Nice talking to you.
W: Nice to be here.