MY name is Anton and I'm a Year 13 pupil at St Marys CBGS studying Art, Media and English Literature with the hope of going to university to study Journalism, which is why I chose Andersonstown News for my work experience.
Being invested in what happens locally and how different stories are told in the media I’ve always found myself tuning into the news.
As a project in school, I got to design my own magazine front cover and double page spread, which is probably where my interest in journalism started. I liked having to write articles about certain people and events (even though I had to make them up), producing the images and creating a house style that related to our given theme.
I have always been encouraged to pursue a career that relates to English because everybody says that’s what I’m best at, but I’ve sat through an English lecture by a college professor and I did not like it, so I’m hoping that this insight into a career in journalism can inspire me more than that lecture did.
People do usually find me to be a bit shy, however, my close friends would strongly disagree, so by the end of this week the best outcome would not only be to understand the day in the life of someone working in the media but to have broken out of my shell a bit more.
This is my first look into the world of work and I’m very excited and eager to learn about everybody’s role here. I’m already finding it to be very interesting.
Over the last week I have been out on jobs watching and understanding how journalists do what they do. I have attended events with Michelle O’Neill, John Finucane and Gerry Kelly to really see the impact of politics locally.
Anton with Gerry Kelly MLA and Sean Moyes from St Mary's CBGS
I have sat through interviews with Claire Hanna and Paul Maskey to observe questioning technique all while seeing how a professional curates their photographs for the news.
Anton and Paul Maskey
Taking this experience to a more practical level, I was able to interview Annie Armstrong regarding the Crescendo Project, in which I wrote an article and actually had it published on the Belfast Media website. Not only this, but I have been all over Belfast discovering the different trials and triumphs of various areas, most recently witnessing the closure of Sacred Heart PS as it gets ready for amalgamation.
Overall, my experience here only has encouraged my aspirations of becoming a journalist and helped my confidence flourish as a result of the friendly and welcoming staff.
