ITN anchor Nina Hossain talks with next generation of journalists
Fri, 11 Mar 2016 11:30:00 GMT
Huddersfield-girl Nina spends time with today’s student journalists
► Pictured Nina Hossain was invited to the Uni by Media and Journalism Lecturer Stephen Dorril
GENDER bias in the media industry has undergone a complete U-turn according to Huddersfield-born ITV news anchor Nina Hossain, when she came to the University of Huddersfield to advise journalism students on how to get into the industry.
Nina Hossain is a journalist who has just celebrated 10 years with ITN and who has reported live on some of the biggest events of that decade, including the July 7th London bombings, the 2012 Olympics and the Royal Wedding.
Students from a variety of journalism degrees came along to benefit from her expertise as she spoke about how over the years the media industry has been overcoming the problems of diversity. While it was once deemed good to be white, male and middle-class, said Ms Hossain, if you are female, now is a better time than any to break into the industry as diversity is a sought-after trait in a person’s CV.
“If I was entering the profession now, I would show an awareness of diversity in my portfolio,” said the newsreader. “You need to be able to demonstrate that you accept being diverse is part of your role of working as a journalist.”
Before advising the students on the skillset needed to be a news anchor, Ms Hossain spoke about how she is now full of optimism for the industry, unlike four or five years ago when the end result of the sudden rise in citizen journalists was uncertain.
Speaking about her own entry into the industry she told the students how on graduation she was chosen for a traineeship at Border Television in Carlisle. During her four years there, she produced, reported and presented across the programme output. This stood her in good stead for the rest of her career.
Making the session as interactive as possible, Ms Hossain opened the floor up to questions from the students and was asked what advice she had to give prospective journalists wanting to break into the industry.
“Work experience is a must,” she insisted. “You have to be willing to go out there and get the know-how. Also, don’t be afraid of when you’ve completed your degree of getting a job as a runner.
“Many of you might think, why would I go and get a job as a runner? I’ve got my degree. But if you’ve got the qualification and the experience then you will find getting a job is much easier.”
This is the second time in less than twelve months that the ITN newsreader has returned to the University. Last summer, she was conferred an honorary doctorate for services to the world of media and broadcast journalism where it was said to be “wonderful for Huddersfield students to see a local woman achieve such a high national profile.”
