OXFORD

MEDIA + JOURNALISM
MEDIA + JOURNALISM
OLIVIER HOLMEY
Journalist,
Euromoney Magazine
University College, BA
Oriental Studies, 2010
WHAT: I report on finance in the Middle
East and Africa for a monthly magazine
called Euromoney. I travel to those regions
regularly and write both long features and
shorter news pieces.
WHY: I love to write, and get to do it for a
living!
Writing for a monthly publication means
I have the time to thoroughly research
my pieces, and talk to a multitude of
sources for each one. Covering money in
Africa and the Middle East is especially
interesting as it is a great way of delving
into politics, social struggles and matters
of corruption. If I work hard, and get lucky,
I can find things out that are of genuine
interest to business people, shareholders
and the general public.
I read Egyptology and Ancient Near
Eastern Studies, so I’m happy my work
still relates to those places I have been
interested in since my university days.
ADVICE: Print journalism is a
notoriously difficult line of work to
get into. If you don’t have a clear
preference in terms of specialisation,
and are open to a challenge, I would
recommend considering business
journalism. It is one of the few
areas of journalism that still hires in
high numbers, and pays its writers
decently. If you would like to do
investigative work, business writing is
particularly good: remember “follow
the money”, the investigative mantra
in All the Presidents’ Men.
TOP TIPS: I would recommend
you acquire some basic skills in
journalism before applying for your
first job. I say that because fewer and
fewer papers have trainee schemes.
The most straightforward way of
acquiring those skills is by writing
for a student paper. It will teach you
how to interview, take notes, meet
deadlines and write concise copy.
Elizabeth Culliford
Digital Editor, ReutersSt
St Hilda’s College,
BA English Language and
Literature, 2014
WHAT: I mainly work on our social media
and live news output, which means I get
to test out new ways to tell our stories
online, as well as editing breaking news
coverage.
WHY: There aren’t that many jobs where
you get to spend your day working on
topics that people are choosing to talk
about at the pub in their free time. You
get this front-row feeling about what’s
happening on the world stage, and I
love being part of an organisation that’s
trusted to give impartial news. I also get
a real kick out of the adrenaline of it all.
HOW I GOT HERE: I joined the Thomson
Reuters business graduate scheme about
two years ago and I worked in corporate
communications while I studied parttime
for my NCTJ diploma in multimedia
journalism at News Associates. Then,
I landed a role in the newsroom as a
social media analyst for Reuters for
my final placement and I now work in
editorial.
WHAT I DID AT OXFORD: I wrote for
anything that would let me. I was
a deputy editor at ISIS magazine,
culture editor at Cherwell and was
part of launching Industry fashion
magazine. I tried out the commercial
side, selling subscriptions for The
Economist and the International
New York Times, and working on
advertising deals for ISIS. I also
turned into a work experience junkie
– from TV running to editing English
translations for an Egyptian news
website, but mainly writing for local
papers.
TOP TIPS: Your first job can just be
about getting a foot in the door.
Think logically and decide whether
you can learn from doing something
and get closer to where you want
to be by doing it – then give it
everything you’ve got. Don’t panic if
it isn’t the job you want to be doing
when you’re 30 - that might not even
exist yet.
150