NEWS FROM GRAMMAR 2015

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Pathways to journalism Former Grammar students and now ABC journalists, George Roberts (1998) and Lucy Barbour (2003) share their journeys. George Roberts I think I'm lucky enough to have one of the best jobs. Being a journalist allows you to meet presidents, celebrities, to question prime ministers, and witness first-hand major news events. On the downside you also witness grief, devastation and disaster but there's never a dull moment. It has given me experiences I'll never forget. Last year, I was working long hours on the Indonesian Presidential inauguration and was growing tired. That night, still working, I thought, "Gee I wish I was in bed," and then I realised, "Hang on, you're at the Presidential Palace, with the President, on his first night as leader of the world's fourth largest country. This is cool!" So how did it happen? Well, becoming a foreign correspondent was a combination of luck, hard work and carefully following the advice of some great mentors. It took me a while to realise it's what I really wanted to do with my life. When I was at school I wanted to be a journalist but didn't really think, “a boy from Launceston" could crack the media game, so I enrolled in Arts and Law instead, After flunking some subjects and dropping out of Law (from a combination of immaturity and disinterest) I had a "quarter life crisis" and went into sales, marketing and business development, while still studying marketing and journalism. In my final semester at the University of Tasmania I was allowed into a course that had limited places available: Radio Journalism. I loved it. The course was great because it was hands on. I was hooked. George with villagers in Rawagede Java At the end of the course a job came up with triple j, doing short arts pieces. The uni was asked to recommend a few students who might be suitable. Somehow I was lucky enough to get it. It paid $100 a fortnight for one story. To get into journalism most people have to do volunteer or unpaid work so you can build a "show reel" or "portfolio". So I did a segment on Edge radio on the art scene in Hobart and got work experience at WIN TV. On day two at WIN I did a "package", or story, for that night's news. "Well, we'll have to start paying you if you're getting stories on the news," I was told. I couldn't believe my luck. After about three months of casual weekend work I was offered one month of full time work at the ABC. I knew this was worth the risk, so took it. One month turned into three, to seven, to ten. I knew I needed to get to the Sydney newsroom to be noticed. I applied for triple j news, because the position was based in the Sydney newsroom, right next to the national ABC editors. Once in Sydney I was able to pitch radio current affairs stories and eventually get some TV stories. The rest, they say is history. I went on to be Western Sydney reporter and then a political reporter in Canberra, before being offered a six week fill in posting in Jakarta in 2011. It was a baptism of fire. About three asylum seeker boats sank during that time, one left 215 people dead. It was also when the "Bali Boy", an Australian teenager was on trial for buying marijuana. It was busy but fun and I loved working in Indonesia, so when the job came up six month later I went for it. For nearly three years I've enjoyed the challenge of running an international bureau with more than ten staff, learning a new language and culture and working from the field. One of my friends who works for a major newspaper says he's never seen journalists work as hard as ABC reporters do now. George with Ban Ki Moon page 6
There used to be dedicated radio and TV reporters. Instead we now have multiple platforms to file for: radio and TV News, radio and TV current affairs, Online, ABC News 24, local and national radio live crosses, and even twitter. The latter is often the best way to get breaking news across, especially when you're in a situation where you can't get away and record a radio report. If someone asked me to sum up my job I'd say: there's never a dull moment in journalism. If you're thinking of it as a career, go for it, but be up for a challenge and hard work. You'll have some great stories to tell your friends. Lucy Barbour George with David Frost The pathway to my job as political producer for the 730 programme has included everything from avocado farming, travel writing in Asian jungles and even a stint helping to manage a homeless choir. University, travel and some rather quirky jobs eventually led me to the ABC, where I worked for Andrew Denton on Enough Rope before venturing out on my own into freelance food writing and community radio. My first attempt on air was a rudimentary food podcast that explored topics like sustainable fishing, raw milk cheese and how to make the world’s best cocktail. Ironically, pouring drinks in a bar was what supplemented my income as a self-employed journalist at the time. One year later, much to my excitement, I was employed by ABC Rural radio. Equipped with a microphone, camera and my brother’s rusty Subaru, I worked across regional Victoria, reporting on everything from bird flu outbreaks to biodynamic wines and even a talking camel (I’m not joking). After 18 months, I was offered the position of rural radio reporter with ABC Canberra. From there, I moved to Parliament House to work as the department’s political reporter and spent my days chasing Barnaby Joyce up and down the corridors. Late last year I was offered the role of political producer for Sabra Lane on 7.30. My first week in the role coincided with the leadership spill motion, so there wasn’t much time to ‘settle in’. Lucy in radio Lucy and Jules 7.30 Each day I’m awake by 6am to catch the early headlines, read the newspapers and try to squeeze in a run. By 9am, we’ve pitched a story idea on our daily conference call, and then we start researching, interviewing and writing. A huge amount of work goes into a short television package. Our coverage this year has included the scrapping of major policies like the GP co-payment and university deregulation, as well as a recent exclusive on Australia’s mental health services. Often stories break late in the day and we have to change tack or drop our original piece altogether. If we’re not filing, we’re ‘digging’, uncovering important stories that deserve to be told. We usually clock off after 7:30pm. Parliamentary sitting weeks are incredibly busy - full of intrigue, whispers and networking. The night we filed a story at 7:29pm was a little unsettling, but working to deadlines has become second nature. Journalism isn't glamorous. It can be incredibly hard work but storytelling is addictive and I'm loving the journey. page 7
Page 1 and 2: nEWS FROM GRAMMAR ISSUE 59 JUNE 201
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Page 5: Co-Captains Converse 2015 Co-Captai
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Page 21 and 22: Nurture Nurture Challenge Pip Manso
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Page 25 and 26: Book Launch The launch of the book
Page 27 and 28: Launceston Grammar Prefects 1931 Th
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NEWS FROM GRAMMAR 2015

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