Studies at Cornwall College, meeting the Hairy Bikers and work experience at the Hereford Times (From Hereford Times)

A steep learning curve in becoming a journalist

8:02pm Thursday 6th November 2008

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By rebecca cain »

At the end of this week I will be half way through my course which is a scary thought.

The time has just sped by and before I know it the 23rd of January will be upon me.

It has been an action packed month. I have been to two inquests, one court case, a council meeting and filmed my news video at the Flavours of Herefordshire food festival.

The first case I went to was an inquest with a jury, which is apparently quite a rare thing. It was about a man who was killed at a dock yard and it was investigating whether health and safety was an issue. My course friends and I did find it quite repetitive and at lunch time when the course leader said we could go every one was out the door.

That week I was following up a story about the latest poverty figures released and what a trial it was! Trying to get quotes off people sometimes can be almost impossible. I rang I don't know how many schools and tried and failed to get a local family to base the findings on. The only person who I did manage to get a quote from was the local MP. After my endeavours the article did not go in the paper as it was somewhat out of date.

At my work experience on Friday's I had quite a different day on the 17th. I ended up going out with a reporter to the scene of where an car accident had happened the night before and someone had died. It was the first excursion of this kind I had been on and it did feel a bit morbid at first. The paper was highlighting how dangerous the road was though so I felt as if we were doing something worthwhile. In these cases as well the paper tries to be very sensitive to the deceased's family.

Later on in the day I had the more pleasant task of going to a fashion school in Falmouth. A London designer was there and I got to interview her and talk to the students. It was a fun story and one that I was pleased with.

It was then time to revise the slightly less glamourous subject of Public Affairs, more specifically Local Government. I am glad to say I passed the exam with 72% which I was very relieved with!

At the end of the exam week I caught the train to come home to Herefordshire for half term. On Saturday October 25th I went to the Flavours of Herefordshire food festival to film my news video for the course.

It was a long day but I thoroughly enjoyed myself. I focused on a local cider making company called Once Upon A Tree and whow successful their day was.

I met the Hairy Bikers, Si and Dave, who are lovely. They made such an effort to go and see as many fans as they could. I filmed them doing a cooking demonstration and they were so funny and down to earth. They really kept the crowd entertained. They said that they were impressed with the county larder and how friendly Herefordshire people are.

The next week I spent in the newsroom at the Hereford Times.

I had a great week as I really learnt a lot from my time there.

I got the opportunity to go to an inquest, a Magistrate's court case and a council meeting. I am learning about the law of what we are allowed to report at court so it was really interesting to go to a case and apply the rules. I enjoyed being given the chance to write an article from it.

The council meeting was quite long but I could see how important it was to report on it as what they discuss is so relevant to what happens in everyday life in the county. I think I need more lessons on which bits to actually pick out to make a story!

The newsteam were all really friendly and helpful and I was surprised how quickly my week went.

Before I knew it I was back in windy Cornwall and back studying every day. The Falmouth Packet student magazine, Vibe, has come out and I am so pleased with it. It is great to have a publication where half of the content is done by yourself.

I feel really positive about my studies at the moment as I have enjoyed my work experience so much I know that it is a field I really want to go into.

Of course most importantly: where has my shorthand got to?! 70 words per minute. Not far off the target of 100 in January.