Firstly, I'd like to ask if you guys have heard of the amazing new app called Periscope?
If you haven't heard of periscope this is what it is: Periscope is an app that enables anyone to capture or watch live video broadcasts, which was acquired by Twitter in 2015. The app was founded by Kayvon Beykpour See more here. I would instinctively say that this app is my number one favourite app of all time. I only recently discovered periscope about 5 weeks ago through word of mouth and people talking about it over my Twitter timeline. I decided to take the chance and download it to see what the fuss was all about and I can tell you I have never regretted downloading it. For Iphone users it has been available via the app store for about 2 months and for android users the app has now became available to download since yesterday.
People may be thinking to themselves what's the big deal, it is just another boring app to distract you from getting on with your day. Truth is within the past 3 weeks I have learnt a lot more than I could ever imagine I would do as a result of being able to connect with people in the Journalism industry every morning in the comfort of my own bed before getting on with my daily tasks.
If you have read my previous blog posts or my introduction on my blog you would see that I have indicated my desire to get into the Journalism industry and I'm currently taking active steps in pursuit of this dream.
I wake up every morning to the sweet notification which sounds like a birds chirp, notifying me that my favorite anchors are online and are about to broadcast :)
I hurriedly drop everything I may be doing and quickly get connected and then start interacting.
I now even get shoutouts and recognitions from my favorite CNN anchors Rosemary Church and Errol Barnett.
This I tell you always brings a smile to my face!
As an aspiring Journalist wanting to break into the industry, I am quite keen to get as much knowledge as possible about the industry and what it takes to make it.
Maybe you're like me and you're at University plowing your way through the academic year hoping and praying for the semesters to come and go so you can get into the real world and start making money. Or maybe you belong to the category of the opposite and feel very comfortable at Uni enjoying the party life and making numerous friends, trying to blank out the fact that at some point you will be thrown into the deep end and will have to swim. Meaning at some point you and I will be faced with the stage in our lives where we will have to put all that we have learnt over these years being institutionalised to test and try and make it within our chosen career paths.
Yesterday's periscope session involved another one of my favorite anchors Zain Asher who took it upon herself to stay an extra 15 mins. After throwing hints by typing "please do a career advice session this will be useful" This was adhered to and an hour later a notification popped up on my phone ''Live on #periscope: Before she heads home @ZainAsher wants to offer some career advice. Any Qs? I was so happy, very expectant about what will be revealed.
I would also like to share these tips with you. Even though it seems specific to this particular industry I'm sure you will be able to find at least 3 that could be applied in your life :)
Here are some of the key tips from Zain and Errol Barnett which I would like to share with you.
1. The TV industry is a very competitive industry.
2. It is imperative that you have something advantageous that puts you ahead of everyone else to offer .
3. Develop your skills. Do you see yourself as a sports reporter, Business reporter or a political reporter? e.t.c.
4. What is your competitive advantage
5. Everyone wants to break into the reputable news stations BBC, ITV, Sky one news, CNN UK. In the case of America CNN, ABC, CBS. BUT very few people have a skill.
6. Find your passion and get developed in that
7. Have you considered grad school? - Grad school is a school that awards advanced academic degrees (i.e. master's and doctoral degrees) with the general requirement that students must have earned a previous undergraduate (bachelor's) degree.
Grad school can open numerous doors as it did for Zain Asher. It provided her with useful contacts as she was able to network with a lot of people. Many of the teachers she had back then at Grad school worked at various TV stations.
Graduating and having an instant network of people is great. GET CONTACTS! MAKE CONTACTS!! You have to develop relationships with people within the industry you want to break into.
8. It is not as competitive when you have a skill to offer
9. Go for something that very few people can do.
10. Find your niche- Internships are a great way to break into a niche. It will speed up your career a great deal.
11. Don't be afraid to take risks and show versatility
12. It is also useful to prove that you can write news articles.
Zain told us over periscope that when she applied for her current job at CNN as an anchor CNN could see that she could write articles and so that demonstrated to them her versatility.It therefore gave her an edge over other applicants.
13. Make sure you develop, develop and develop your skills! Can't emphasise this enough!
Errol Barnett who is also an anchor kindly gave his own advice and recommended that knowing how to code is important. He strongly recommended knowing how to put a website together and being creative technically as technology and the world of social media is continuously expanding.
Once 'coding’ was only done by software programmers. But as most parts of the world have become integrated with digital technology, the opportunity to exploit the power of code is available to people in almost any career.
From football and engineering to fashion and art, most industries now have a strong digital component. It is expedient that you learn how to code in order for you to get noticed in your chosen industry.
You don't necessarily have to major in Journalism or go to Journalism grad school to be successful but it is helpful and helps to give you a deeper knowledge and understanding.
I found it very useful and I am really grateful to Zain for doing this career advice session.
I would like to share with you also some pictures from the periscope sessions that have taken place over the past few days:
Lastly here are some of the news anchors I look up to:
Errol Barnett- Anchor for CNN International based in Atlanta. He anchors during the overnight simulcasts and famous for his news reporting with the award winning 'Inside Africa' cultural affairs programme on CNN.
Mon-Th 11p-1a in LA | 2-4a NYC | 6-8a GMT | 2-4p in HK | Trekked 22 African nations in 2yrs
Zain Asher- British news anchor at CNN International based in Atlanta. She currently co-anchors CNN Newsroom, weekdays from 12-2am on CNN International, and at 1am ET on CNN America
Rosemary Church- is a CNN International news anchor. Based at the network's world headquarters in Atlanta, she anchors the 2-4 a.m. ET edition of CNN Newsroom along with John Vause.
Max Foster- is an Anchor and London Correspondent for CNN International, based in London
Hope you guys were inspired by this post and are now eager to join periscope :) It's fun and worth it!
Speak to you guys soon
xoxoxo
Zoe
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