A not so high (week) five...

Week Five...
As I walked in the door at 8.30am I was handed the keys to a work car and told I was to head to the Motor Boat Club to do a quick interview with a woman who was turning 90 for our (monthly? I think.) aged persons lift-out.
The story was to be short and fluffy so I was more worried about crashing the work car or getting lost than the interview and story. All ran smoothly and I was back in the office by 9.20. I wrote the story but it wasn’t a very inspiring piece... when Linda edited it she changed the order of the pars I had written and it flowed much better.
I was then given a piece on two Townsville companies who had just won Queensland Heritage Awards. I did phone interviews with the co-ordinator of Life Long learning at CityLibraries who won an award for a ten-month lecture series they did, and also a woman who has volunteered more than 30 years of her life to the Townsville Heritage Centre, who won an award for their volunteers and care of historical artefacts.
It was a difficult story because Linda had outlined that she wanted it to begin as a news piece and expand into a feature... she had outlined what information she wanted to be stated in the first four or five pars, but when I wrote it as she had asked it didn’t flow the way it should have...so I was torn.
I made a few changes from what she had asked and it worked a bit better but it still wasn’t great. When she came to edit it she had the same thoughts and made even more changes to the areas that I had clearly seen needed changing... I felt good about it because even though I had felt ‘stuck’ with where to take the story, Linda ended up making the changes that I had thought about making anyway....So next time I’m going to trust my instinct.
After that I was given more Catholic news stories from the infamous list. As this year is the centenary of Mary MacKillop’s death the next Catholic News lift-out will feature many stories on her. The first story I was given a little piece on a sister who is coming up from Brisbane in October to give some lectures on Mary MacKillop, the Sisters of Saint Joseph and their history within Townsville.
I found it a challenging piece because I couldn’t figure out what was really newsworthy about it... the Catholic News lift-out is met with a little bit of distain within the office I think, because it really is trying to make news out of not much at all.
(I think I forgot to mention that last week I also wrote another story on Baptism preparation workshops in Townsville... another story where I was trying to make something interesting out of very little.)
I was to write another story on a family who live in Townsville who are descendents of Mary MacKillop. Even though that in itself is interesting...I found this story difficult because it was to just be about the family...who really are just an average Australian family... AND because when I rang the father of the family around lunch time he said he wouldn’t be able to talk until 4.30. So I was twiddling my thumbs for a while until it ticked 4.31. I did a quick phone interview and then had to rush home to open my house for my new housemate to move in. Which meant I had to write the story from home over the weekend... I think it turned out ok. I really like my lead... but I still feel like the story lacks a point. It will be interesting on Friday to see what my Catholic News colleague has to say.
Hopefully next week will be a little more exciting... and newsworthy!

Four-ging ahead...

Week Four... was a bit of a flop really.
Linda had emailed me earlier in the week to say she wouldn’t be in the office but that my other two colleagues would have work for me...
Taking a leaf out of last week’s book (where I was shoved a 9am job as soon as I entered the office at 8.45) I decided I’d rock up at 8.30 this time... only to discover that no one else was there. Luckily I had brought my own work... an interview from one of the business managers I met at last week’s dinner meeting for my partner’s work. The talent was an accounts manager at a Queensland wide radio station (based in Townsville) who started her career with heavy involvement in volunteer work... It would make a very interesting story. All I had to do was turn my little question and answer form into a 400 word career profile...easy as pie! Turns out neither of my colleagues arrived in the office until almost 10am...So I was extra glad I’d brought something to occupy my time.
However even once the other two ladies arrived they seemed a little lost for ideas of what I should do... It’s a bit difficult working on Fridays because the whole office is in end-of-the-week mode, while I am in Monday-mode...wanting to achieve as much as possible and working on high speed. The two women I work with are head of the social club and their Fridays are often taken up with barbeques and raffles... as they were this particular day, leaving me a little lonely and lost.
We had the Catholic News lift-out that is printed every three/four months to fill in (next edition is to be printed in a few weeks) so one colleague gave me a list of phone numbers with three or four word descriptions next to them...a faint clue of what the story might be about when you ring the phone contact... unfortunately as this is the list provided to her by the Catholic Diocese she couldn’t really help with any more information than the very little that was on the list... it was a case of the blind leading the blind really.
My two office companions also had places to be in the afternoon and left the office about 2pm...leaving me alone with the “list from hell.” (Her words, not mine!)
I tentatively rang the first number...a Father in Mt Isa answered and told him I wanted to talk about the Pilgrimage... he rattled off very few details at lightning speed and I felt my stomach turn... politely asked him to repeat himself...tried the re-word the question a dozen times... and finally got down something remotely story-esque.. .
I rang the next number... the contact wasn’t home but the person who answered the phone would get them to call back on Monday.
I rang the next number... similar story.
I rang the next number... no answer.
It was 4.30pm. I left the office. Hopefully next week would look up.
On Monday I got an email from Linda regards the career profile story I had filed;
“Hi Bessie, I feel so bad. I should of told you we don't do career
profiles of radio. They are our opposition. Last time I did it I was
called into the General Managers Officer. It is bit different in the
general news pages of the paper but because our publication out here are
linked to advertising I think that is the reason. Sorry again. Linda”
As you can imagine... I was ecstatic. Though really I was incredibly gratefully that she let me know later rather than too late... it would have been beyond awful for it to have been printed and then for me to have been called into the general manager’s office... but still I felt like my day there had been a great waste. And I was worried about telling my talent that I couldn’t run the story.
Another stroke of luck was that the talent took the bad news incredibly well and even gave me a long list of her friends with interesting jobs who didn’t work in the media sphere for me to me to do profile on... So at least this week kind of finished on a high. :)

Learners out to save lives

Published August 8, 2009

AN initiative to help save young lives on the roads was launched in Townsville yesterday.
Leighton Contractors' Youth Drive Safe program offers Townsville secondary students the chance to win one of 125 packages, each consisting of five hours of free driving tuition, saving around $300.
The initiative aims to create safer roads and communities by offering young learner drivers the essential practical skills and knowledge before gaining their driver's licence.
The first three Townsville students to win packages were Townsville State High School students Jamie-Lee Sard, Thomas Reaston and Kyle Pace.
Northern Regional Traffic Co-ordinator Inspector Brian Cannon said road deaths were tragic and three of the 10 fatal crashes in the region this year had involved young drivers. He said he supported the initiative and it was vital for young drivers to use all their practice hours in their log books.
``Realise at the end of the day it's you who will be responsible for your driving behaviour, you need to know your limitations and the limitations of the vehicle you are in," Inspector Cannon said.
The students said the free lessons would help to teach them to be aware and in control of their actions while driving.
``I think it's a really good idea and opportunity for young drivers to get lessons and to learn how to drive safely," Jamie-Lee said.
``It'll be easier to get my Ps when I'm finished getting all my hours up," Kyle said.
``I don't know anyone who has had an accident, but I know they do happen, you see them on the news every night. It is something I'm afraid of," Thomas said.
Inspector Cannon said young Queensland drivers were twice as likely to be involved in crashes as other drivers on the road.
He said inexperience, speed and alcohol were the main causes of crashes involving drivers under the age of 24.
Main Roads Minister Craig Wallace officially launched the program.
Mr Wallace said he knew firsthand the pain road crashes caused after his best mate was killed in an accident when he was only 22.
He said he was proud Townsville was the first regional area in Queensland to have the Youth Drive Safe initiative.

By Bessie Blore.

Third time's a charm...

After only three days of work at the Bully I already think this is the most rewarding, challenging and worthwhile subject I’ve taken at university...

My third day ran incredibly smoothly and I feel that I used the trials of last week to launch the day off to a good start. I went in with the mindset that I was going to work harder than ever to complete each story to a high standard and as quickly as possible...and I had decided that in order to make sure every word I wrote was read and critiqued as fairly as possible, I was going to have to ensure my stories were complete before Linda wanted to check them... this meant coming up with full and fabulous lead... something I had struggled with over the last two days of work.

The day began with a 9am appointment with the photographer and a trip to Castleton to cover a story on IGA raising money for Camp Quality via an auction of footy jerseys. This photographer this time was Scott, a man I had briefly met a few months before hand via a photojournalism subject at uni. For the story I interviewed the NQ area manager of Camp Quality, IGA’s promotions manager and a family who had a daughter with leukaemia. I was set guidelines for the stories length and angle by the chief of staff in the newsroom, a woman I had not worked with before but who was very direct in how she wanted the story and I found her directions helpful.

The most challenging part of this story was interviewing the mother of the child with leukaemia as she seemed quite distressed to be talking to the media about something so personal, few of her answers made sense and I had to continually prompt her and re-ask questions in a different way to try and get anything worth quoting... I found this to be a big learning curve, as most other people I had interviewed were fairly media savvy and knew their answers before the questions were asked.

While writing the story I struggled with the lead again, but I made sure I completed it before I showed Linda and the only change that was made before printing was the addition of a full stop in the middle of a sentence and the removal of one quote... success at last!

The next two stories I wrote for the day were career profiles for the Career One section of Saturday’s paper... they are written from questionnaires that we send out to different companies/businesses...or just everyday people who know who have interesting jobs or stories to tell. The stories are more like advertorials as they are basically a way for companies to get their name out there for free... but I really enjoyed writing them as it was a chance to be much more creative than with the regular news stories I’d done in my time so far.

Again I found the lead the most challenging part of writing... but I persisted on finishing every detail before Linda checked the stories and she made little change to anything I had written.... And she said I’d done a great job with both of them... I was quite pleased!

Linda told me I was to find some people of my own to write career profiles on, but it is hard because I’m not from Townsville and I don’t have many contacts here... but on Monday night I went to a business meeting for my partner’s work and met a lot of local business owners and have since recruited many of them as talent for me to write stories on... again I feel like I’ve accomplished something that is usually very much outside my comfort zone.

One big lesson that arose from my third day was to check every detail of my work scrupulously. Today I received an email from Linda saying that my leukaemia story was printed with the incorrect phone number in it and that the paper would have to print a correction... I checked my notes and it turns out that the phone number error was just a typo... but it is a big lesson to learn. Linda said, “A good lesson learnt early on means you won’t make the same mistake again. It is all a learning process”.... and I think so far Linda’s wise words are the best thing I’ve learned since being there.

(NB: I will try to post the stories I have had published here over the weekend... I just don’t yet have electronic copies to put up.)

Going back for seconds....

My impression of the second day of my internship at the Bully...

* It was not as fun as the first.... The second day was much more what I imagined the first day to be like, with me being overwhelmed and rushed and feeling completely useless...
I felt that Linda expected me to know so much more, but at the same time I don't think that is at all what was bothering me...

*I actually struggled with writing the stories I was set to write a lot more this time... At first I was set a story on a triathlon that is going on in Townsville next month, I rang the people and did the interviews over the phone. I knew the article was the go in the careers section of the paper, but I still imagined I was doing a news style article... I wrote around 400 words but couldn't write a good lead so I left it open for Linda to throw some ideas at me to see how she wanted the lead... when she came over to look at what I had done, she didn't read the article I had written and instead changed the entire idea of the lead, which changed the whole angle of the story and meant everything had to be re-written, which I struggled with because it made me feel that I didn't even know which quotes she thought were important as opposed to which quotes I had thought important to guide the flow of the story... and this meant that I came off looking like someone who couldn't do what they are supposed to be doing for a living...

*As well as writing that story, I was to arrange a time for the photographer to go and grab a photo of the people in the story for a day early the next week...it proved very difficult as the people who were to be in the photo were hard to organise, the photo was to be of office people at the beach and they required transport, the photographer was not there for me to speak to about possible good photo ideas, after I made the first book and arranged everything Linda said she'd rather the photo be taken somewhere else which meant the people in the photo had to be contacted again and re-organised and then transporting the people possibly clashed with the insurance policies of the newspaper....and I felt like screaming! Because again I came off as looking like the person who didn't know what was going on....when I was doing the best I could in a situation where I was the middle-middle-middle man (answering to the people in the story, the photographer and my boss)...and a situation I had never been in before...

*In the afternoon I had to go to Stocklands with the photographer and do the Vox Pop and "5 Minutes With" and "A Guys View" for the youth liftout section as they had someone sick and needed a fill in.... I'm not the worlds biggest fan of the youth liftout section... so I wasn't entirely proud of my work...but it was a hell of a lot easier than the triathlon article and more than anything it was good to get out of the office and get into more off the cuff interviewing.... I was working with Suz again, the same photographer I worked with last week, and we had an absolute ball together. We seem to get our jobs done really quickly when we work together and have fun doing it at the same time as we both know exactly what it is we need and exactly what it is the other needs...and things just seem to flow well when I'm doing a story with Suz... I hope I get to work with her again next Friday!

*Writing the articles for the youth liftout was a lot easier (and I think they turned out a lot better than my other work) for a few reasons... 1) My brain loved having a break from the Triathlon article 2) I wasn't putting as much pressure on myself because I don't have a very high opinion of the writing style of the youth liftout, even though that sounds awful (I'm sorry!) 3) Because I didn't have to answer to Linda, who I feel is a very talent journalist and I hate seeming like I'm letting her down....

*I also wanted to reflect on why I was anticipating that Linda would be difficult to deal with.... it was because over the phone she seemed like someone who had very little expectations of me...for example telling me things like needing to have a medical certificate if I have a day off and not just skipping the internship for an extra shift at work etc... When I felt like I didn't need to be told those things because I am an adult who has worked in the "real" corporate world before...another reason was that I found out she is the person who fired their intern after 3 weeks... an infamous story among JCU Journalism students.... however when dealing with her at work I think she is a very professional person. She is excellent at saying what she wants and expects out of a story, she's great at constructive criticism and hasn't ever purposely made me feel like I wasn't able to do something... she's an excellent writer and it a very scrupulous editor... and I admire her very much... I don't want to let her down! And that stresses me out!

*I’m finding the internship very challenging because working at a newspaper was never really what I wanted to do and has never really been of high interest to me, so I am trying to view the experience a great learning curve... but it is a struggle... sometime I feel like it’s really not the place for me, so much so that I am resentful that I was placed at the Bulletin when I specifically asked Lindsay Simpson (when I thought she was taking this subject) if I could be at City Life or Duo.... but if I go down that line of thinking then I will ruin the rest of my experience there by being negative...and it’s only week two...so I will return this Friday, and every Friday for the next 11 weeks, with a smile and an open mind.... and try to learn as much as possible while I’m there!

Creating my personal brand...

What am I good at?

Creative writing, photography, arguing a point, sticking to a project I love, reading, exploring, creating, doing things my own way, being punctual... I am brave... I am relentlessly enthusiastic and passionate when I love something..

What am I not good at?

Retaining information on topics I'm not interested in, sticking to projects I'm not interesting in, spelling, sticking to deadlines, having to do things for someone else that I don't agree with... I am cynical when I don't love something... I will procrastinate (terribly!) when set a task I'm not interested in...

What do I want to be known for –

...professionally?

Being reliable, the best (or up with the best) at the what I do, willing to give anything a try (I would like to be known as someone who can be called on at late notice and always pull through, someone who can do what is asked of them, someone who will try their best each and every time...) Be eminent for: writing, art & photography. Charismatic, accessible, skilled and efficient... being individual and offering something that is uniquely me. Enthusiastic.

...and personally?

Being reliable, loyal, loving. Be eminent for: writing, art & photography.

First thoughts on the first day...

I just wanted to do a quick post, before I get into the good stuff over the weekend, to reflect on my feelings of how the first day of my internship at the Townsville Bulletin went....
* I was nervous... so nervous of being late that I got there 40 minutes early and read a book in my car for half an hour...
* Linda and all the other staff were nicer than I anticipated... (not sure why I didn't think they would be... will mull over this over the weekend)
* I got sent out to do a story on the launch of a Driver Training program... at first I thought I was going out with a Journalist to cover the story and then I realised I WAS THE JOURNALIST... So it was just me and the photographer and she thought I was a pro... when I told her it was my first day, my first real story EVER she took pitty on me and got right in there initially pointing out who all the officals were for me and telling me background info on people so I knew who to go and speak to... I was lucky becuase the launch had organisers there specifically to be a go-between for the officals and the media, so they asked me who I wanted to speak to and would go and grab them for me... but then after the formal speaches I was on my own.. and I felt pretty confident from the first few little chats with people that I could go and speak to anyone.. it definitly helped that I was able to introduce myself as "Bessie from the Townsville Bulletin"... after years of being "Bessie a student from JCU"...and I don't think anyone guessed that I was still a student, which really validated me. I felt like I had completed a real job, which I had!
The photographer told me I had done a good job and I found it really interesting being able to follow the photographer around after I'd done my interviews, althought I don't think Linda would be impressed if I told her I had followed the photographer around... even though I really thought I had enough for the story!
* Going back the newsroom and writing the story was the hardest part of the day... but luckily I wasn't feeling too precious about what I had written. I was actually really appreciative of having Linda rip it apart and show me how it should be done... I will definitly learn better that way.
* I am really worried about having to do more than 1 story a day... Linda said by the end of the internship I should be able to do at least 4 stories a day! I only finished the 1st one by 3.30 and the subs start at 3.....and I had lots of help from Linda to get it right...
* I was a bit annoyed that it was straight news peice that I had to do today, as my passion is in features and photography... and I know my work won't show my full potential becuase I do struggle with hard news... but I tried my hardest today, Linda was incredibly helpful, interviewing such important people by myself (and having the Bully just throw me in there) was very liberating and I enjoyed it so, so, so, so, so much!
* The other girls in Advertising-Features were all really friendly and seem pretty keen to have me help them with their upcoming stories... they have a few monthly liftouts coming up and have told me to try and come up with some stories ideas based around their general topics... so that is exciting!
* I think I felt better by the fact that Tara and Ryan were there as well...thought I only saw them for our tour for the first hour of the day... but I didn't feel like I was the only intern in the building...so that somehow in the back of my mind made me a bit more confident...
* Overall it was new and very exciting... and I CANNOT wait to grab the paper first thing tomorrow morning and see if my story is in there! :) [Mum and Dad will definitly be sent a copy to stick on the fridge!]

Spring Cleaning

I was washing the dishes, thinking about you as I always so often do, stacking the clean dishes atop the other clean dishes that I couldn't be bothered unpacking from the previous meals dish washing and it hit me. That this is what my life has turned into. Piles and piles of things I just can't be bothered sorting out, or throwing out, or putting away.

I sit at my computer for longer hours than I sleep each day, empty orange juice glass to my left, day old red cordial glass to my right, week old teacup shoved mindfully behind my speakers. Noodle cup lid, fruche container, dove chocolate wrapper poking vicariously from my nearly full bin. Travel bag sitting by my bookshelf, each zipper open and clothes, clean and dirty, spilling from it, over onto the floor next to my meter by meter mound of week old newspapers and music magazines. Pens, shoes, my brand new wok scattering the floor, reaching the end of my bed. My esky hidden by a pile of worn-once dresses and stockings, skipping my bags, jackets and blanket smothered bed leading all the way back to my desk. Piles and piles of things I just can't be bothered sorting out, or throwing out, or putting away.

Hundreds of drafts, news articles, interview transcripts, history essays, government flyers, receipts, comics, paint brushes, stationary - god is there stationary -, broken DVR, mini tape recorder, tissues, dictionary, half started painting, papers and papers and papers, shit that just needs to go somewhere. My chipped hot pink fingernails tapping away at my broken keyboard. My computer desktop covered. Files and files of things I just can't be bothered sorting out, or throwing out, or putting away.

...and it hit me. That this is what my mind has turned into.
I think tomorrow, before my Art lecture, that I will do some Spring cleaning.

Commonwealth plays $2 billion games

As the closing ceremony begins today the total cost of the Melbourne Commonwealth Games could escalate to $2 billion, over five times the original $350 million budgeted in 2002.

Victorian MP Russell Savage spoke to ABC Mildura yesterday and said Games’ organisers “lost their grip on reality”.

The Victorian Government’s original proposal excluded the expenses of public transport, security and police resources, and was upgraded to a maximum $697 million in March 2003, ABC reported.

It was yesterday revealed that the Victorian Government spent $119 million on security at the games, $73 million more than initially allocated.

A spokesman for the Victorian Government said the security upgrades were driven by the September 11 attacks and Bali bombings.

It was announced in September 2003 that $30 million would be allocated to the production of the Opening and Closing Ceremonies.

Mr Savage said he believed the billion-dollar blow out was due to a “fireworks circus to end the Commonwealth Games”.

Funds for the Games were raised through sponsors, merchandising, TV rights and ticket sales, after the Victorian Government’s $697 million investment and over $100 million from the Commonwealth Government.

However, “nervous” Games organisers “gave away 5,000 tickets for the Opening Ceremony” just days before the Games in a desperate bid to try and fill seats, the ABC’s The World Today reported.
The Commonwealth Games ends tonight at the MCG with an expected $7.5 million giveaway of Closing Ceremony tickets to volunteers, cast and crew.

Drought of the Century

In the next 12 months the beautiful spring water creeks of far north Queensland could be transformed into sand and stone if the proposals for a $1 billion Century Zinc mine and pipeline in the region are approved.

The pipeline will run from the planned mine, 150km south west of Burketown and span 300km to the Gulf of Carpentaria, crossing major freshwater river systems in its path.

President of the Gulf of Carpentaria Land Council, Murrandoo Yanner, voiced his concern for the ecosystem of the Gulf and the livelihood of future generations in the area, yesterday while attending an indigenous cultural festival in Brisbane.

“82% of what (the water) we use will be taken out (by bores) in one year. And that’s industrial use, personal use, everything. That’s what it amounts to,“ Mr Yanner said.

“Theoretically … the place the pipe’s first going to bust and spill is at the kinks. They (the minerals) are most abrasive at the kinks in the pipeline and they’re right near the major river systems.’

The pipeline will carry zinc ore slurry to a port facility on the Gulf, which will then be shipped overseas.

The entrance of foreign ships into the Gulf has also raised opposition from the Council.

“Big ships from overseas, from different oceans, will bring stuff like thorny star crown fish that will drop off and invade our ecosystems … our reefs,” Mr Yanner said.
The National Native Title tribunal will mediate negotiations between the Council, State Government and Century Zinc Limited, on the use of land and the employment of indigenous people in the development.

Employment falls for fishing future

More than a thousand Queensland fisheries workers (6 per cent) have been paid to leave the fishing industry since November when the Federal Government released its $150 million fishing licence buyback scheme.

The Securing our Fishing Future scheme, initially proposed in November 2005, aims to protect marine biodiversity, fisheries minister Senator Eric Abetz said, while ensuring “long-term sustainability and productivity of Commonwealth fisheries”.

The centrepiece of the initiative is a $220 million business exit assistance package including a licence buyback scheme and is supported by the introduction of new fisheries management actions and the redevelopment of Marine Protected Areas.

Senator Abetz said the licence buyback schemes meant skippers and crew who leave the industry or “lose employment aboard vessels that have exited the industry will become eligible for payments of $5,000 and $3,000 respectively to help with retraining or relocation.”

For every one person employed on board commercial fishing vessels a further 1.58 related Queensland jobs are created onshore, according to the Queensland Seafood Industry Association.

This means, of the 1200 fishery employees who have left the fishing industry since last year, a further 1896 onshore jobs have been jeopardised.

“The tender provides an opportunity for those wishing to leave the industry to do so, while also better positioning those who remain to be profitable,” Senator Abetz said.