Why hire me?

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I am currently in my 4th and final year at Napier University and feel the course has prepared me well for the media industry.
Possibly the most challenging aspect of the course so far was our Magazine Production module, when I was elected co-editor of Impulse magazine, a Napier production. Our issue raised an advertising budget in record time and featured interviews with Scots band Glasvegas, Glasgow comedians Frankie Boyle and Limmy, Scots writer AL Kennedy, Scottish rugby captain Mike Blair and DJ Nathan Fake. The issue also included articles on Hepatitis C, the Russian presidency and Scientology. Though the work involved was certainly gruelling, it was definately worthwhile when I was awarded the highest mark of all in the class at peer assessment.
It was through Napier that I first came to write for Scotland on Sunday newspaper, during our time on placement.  I wish I could say I only felt excitement arriving for my first day – in truth my feelings were more akin to dread. In the previous two and a half years, I had lost count of the number of times tutors had warned us about the pressures and panics of a real newsroom, where by the sounds of things, both egos and dreams were routinely shattered. On my way in I had been plagued by Frank Spencer-esque visions of me rolling down a hill clutching onto the top of a photocopier while the entire Scotsman building collapsed behind me in a cloud of mortar and dust.

As it turned out, the expectations set up by my tutors were refuted by people who were extremely dedicated and hardworking, but also approachable.
Instructed to keep an eye on the wire services, I have to admit feeling a certain thrill at being one of those watching raw news come in as it developed. A bomb in a café in Pakistan was first listed as reports of a loud noise being heard across the city, with instructions to stand by for updates.
But, as any self-respecting journalist will tell you, the wires cannot tell the whole story. I was lucky enough to witness a real ‘Hold the front page!’ moment, when reports came in of the body of beheaded Lithuanian Jolanta Bledaite being pulled out of Arbroath harbour, half an hour before the first print deadline. The news editor, Peter Laing, was tipped off by at least two different sources twenty minutes before anything came over the wire services, buying valuable time. Unable to get police to confirm that a body had been recovered as the clock ticked down, Foreign News Editor Nick Drainey told a police spokesman he was going to run with the story regardless, though his next phone call was to a lawyer to check the legal implications.
As it turns out, I had hidden my constant terror well. I had arrived at Scotland on Sunday hoping to leave with at least one by-line to my name. As it turned out, I got several, each a thrill in itself. A colleague of mine laughed that it was no wonder, as I was constantly asking if I could help anyone out, and that I could afford to “chill out” a little. My response?
“I can’t afford anything – I’m not being paid.”
However, having said all this, I was still delighted on the last day of my placement to be told I was welcome back anytime – on an unpaid basis, of course. I have continued to work with the paper, financial constraints permitting. My work so far can be viewed here - http://www.journalisted.com/jen-lavery
Possibly one of my proudest moments at Napier was when an essay from my Third Year was chosen to be featured in the Napier School of Creative Industries Showcase Booklet 2008. The essay, which dealt with the moral and professional issues surrounding the use of deception in journalism and can be viewed on this blog, was something I had put a great deal of thought and effort in to. To hear that it had been selected from dozens of others gave me a real feeling of validation, and a greater determination to live up to my own, now further raised, standards.
In my 4th year I am currently learning practical aspects of TV journalism. This module has taught me basic camera work, and has also given me a reasonable working knowledge of Final Cut Pro. Videos I have made can be viewed on this blog. While my main passion is news journalism, I am also a great fan of the cinema and harbour a great interest in the technical and creative aspects of film-making. I have an extremely large film collection, a reasonably wide knowledge of directors and genres and enjoy writing my own movie reviews, examples of which can be viewed on this blog. While I would class myself as more of a print than television journalist, the opportunity to combine two of my passions has been undeniably invigorating.
During my time at Napier University I balanced my studies with my commitments to The Stand Comedy Club. Within the office of The Stand I have two main responsibilities.
The first of these is that of Assistant Press Secretary. I liaise with journalists and editors to set up press tickets to review shows. I act as a go-between when journalists wish to interview acts appearing in our venues, and aid in the negotiation of television and radio appearances. I am responsible for producing copy to appear in The Stand Comedy Clubs brochures and website, and have provided copy for shows at several festivals, including but not limited to The Edinburgh Fringe Festival, The Magners Glasgow International Comedy Festival, The Merchant City Festival and The Leith Festival.
During the Edinburgh Festival I circulate “Diary Pieces” to various publications, many of which have been published.
I am responsible for producing and distributing press releases for The Stand Comedy Club. I monitor publications for mentions of our venue, and keep the clubs press cuttings archive up to date. My position also requires me to assist press officers from other entertainment agencies when their clients appear in our venues.
My second responsibility is that of Benefit Coordinator. The Stand holds roughly twenty charity evenings per year between its two venues. I am responsible for checking the credentials of potential fundraisers, contracting them to a specific date, and programming suitable comedians for the night in question. In 2oo8 alone The Stand Comedy Club raised over £2o,000 for good causes. 

 

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