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Final year Journalism and Media students won three of the five full-time positions in the recent Students’ Union elections. Radio journalism students Matt Christie and Kieran Elsby, and Public Relations student Ben Hall were elected in an ‘Oscar night’ ceremony on 10 March.
Matt, who set up the Students’ Union’s radio station, Radio Hudd, will oversee a team of five student officers including Ben, this year’s newspaper editor, as Vice-President (VP) Communications & Democracy, and Keiran as VP Student Activities.
First year journalism student Tidi Kwidini was elected as chair of the Students’ Union Council, a part-time position, alongside the media trio on Wednesday.
“Getting involved from early in your degree is always a good thing,” said Ben on Tidi’s election to the role. “It gives you something other than just a degree and you really get some good hands-on experience.”
Pictured: Matt Christie (Second Right), Ben Hall (Left ) and Kieran Elsby (Second Left) - Tidi Kwidini not pictured
Huddersfield’s own version of university challenge has been won by 25 year old PR student Tom Lay. He carried off the first prize – a pair of tickets to watch Huddersfield Town – after topping the news quiz league.
Students on the second year module Public Relations Practice and Management have been answering ten topical questions every week since the beginning of the academic year.
“It’s the only method of forcing them to read the papers that has really worked,” said tutor Eileen Jones.
The competitive spirit has been fostered by the presence in the class of Rugby League star Robbie Paul, whose late challenge took him into third place, behind PR undergraduate Rebecca Thourgood. Tom and fellow student Hannah Powley also won an award after their presentation for a new publicity campaign for the teenage cancer charity, the Laura Crane Trust.
Said Eileen: “We are very grateful to Huddersfield Town for the tickets. It’s really interesting to see the incentive effect of a prize to aim for .”
A second year journalism student has his own breakfast show each weekend on Pennine FM Radio. Alex Bray (19), who comes from Holmfirth, hosts Breakfast with Alex from 6am till 10am on Saturdays . He is on air live again in the afternoon, with a sports show from 3pm till 6pm.
Alex, who hopes to make a career in broadcasting,also has his own show on Radio Hudd (the Alex Bray show, of course), which is aired Wednesdays 4pm till 6pm. On the breakfast show he will talking and playing music. "We want you to get your personality across," said production manager Jonathan Gold.
To suit the show's target audience there will be a range of classic pop and recent hits. Alex said "This is a great opportunity to develop my skills, and is a step along the way to a career in presenting and possibly programme making."
Alex, who plays the cornet in Hade Edge Brass Band, and is also a pianist, is also an accomplished actor and has performed with a number of local amateur and professional stage groups.
MOVIE buffs are set to roll out the red carpet after a top film critic was confirmed for a new film festival. Holmfirth – the true home of movies – is set to launch its own film festival this May. More than a century after local company Bamforths produced Britain’s first silent movies, film fans are in for treat at an evening with BBC legend Barry Norman.
Norman was best known for his 25-year run as the face of the late night Film review show, before he jumped ship to Sky in 1998. Now after decades of meeting and interviewing Hollywood’s greatest actors, including John Wayne and Laurence Olivier, he is set to tell his tales to an audience of movie lovers at Holmfirth’s historic Picturedrome.
Talking to The Examiner from his Hertfordshire home, the 76-year-old said he was pleased to see another local film festival get off the ground. He said: “I’m very much looking forward to it, it’s part of an intermittent tour I do of festivals giving a one man show.
“It’s something I’ve been doing on and off for a few years now, it’s great. “I shall be talking about a bunch of classic movies, why they were made, how they were made, what happened when they were made and why I think they’ve lasted so long. “That takes up the first half and the second half is a Q&A where people can ask me any questions they like about anything to do with the movies.“The most frequent question I get asked is ‘what’s your favourite film of all time?’ to which I have no answer because I’ve seen far too many. “I’ve seen more than 12,000 movies and there isn’t any one that stands out.” And while Holmfirth may be the home of Bamforth’s Barry said he was not a particular fan of the classics. He said: “I really have no patience for people who say, ‘they don’t make ’em like they used to’, because this is not true. “The best films today are just as good and technically much better than any films that have been made before.”
With current Film 2010 host Jonathan Ross stepping down later this year, rumours are rife about who will replace him. But Barry Norman fans are set to be disappointed after he swiftly ruled himself out of the running. Barry, who last presented the show in 1998, said: “I thought I’d miss it but I never did. “I got out at the right time, 30 years without remission for good conduct. “The film industry was changing and it got to the point where the publicity tail was wagging the dog. “If you were very lucky you got 15 minutes with the star or director or writer, which is rubbish – you can’t do a proper interview in that time.” While Barry had no answer for his favourite film he did list his favourite interviewees as George Clooney, Clint Eastwood, Michelle Pfeiffer, Kim Basinger and his all time favourite, Sophia Loren.
Festival organiser, Stephen Dorril, said he was pleased to secure such a top expert. He said: “We were looking for someone that was a big name in film and Barry Norman seemed an ideal choice. “He’s still a well known name and is still the chief reviewer for the Radio Times. “He’s met and talked to almost all the major stars in Hollywood and he will talk about his favourite films and people he has met in his long career in film.”
Mr Dorril, who is the film journalism course leader at Huddersfield University, said he was also in talks with a top female star to appear at the festival’s glittering red carpet launch. Other events planned include a day of Bamforth’s films and a day dedicated to Huddersfield’s most famous theatrical son, Hollywood star James Mason. The Holmfirth Film Festival is from May 22 to May 29. The evening with Barry Norman will be on Thursday May 27. Tickets £12. www.holmfirthfilmfestival.co.uk
Breaking news - including Tony Blair's appearance at the Iraq war inquiry - was handled by a Huddersfield student when he spent a week at The Times. Final year Public Relations student Ben Hall helped staff at the newspaper in filming, editing video, collating contact details for MPs and arranging filming requests across London.
"It was a fantastic experience," said Ben, "and has given me a great insight into where the future of newspapers is heading." "I got to speak to Boris Johnson's brother and didn't have to make even one cup of coffee."
Ben, who is the editor of the Huddersfield student newspaper, is to use his experience in his final year case study, looking into the future of newspapers and news brands in an online world.
It was the Oscar ceremony of the education world. And at a glittering prize-giving night at London’s Tower Hotel, the University of Huddersfield scooped two of the main awards.
The Student of the Year award in the Creative, Arts, Media and Design category was shared by journalism graduates Rebecca Elvin and Jonathan Forrester, while in the Human and Social Sciences section, the title went to Emma Cranmer.
They each received an impressive Xcel trophy after the gala dinner which was compered by Blue Peter presenter Konnie Huq. The event was attended by students, their families and their nominating tutors from universities across the UK.
Rebecca and Jonathan both graduated with first class honours degrees in Journalism last summer. They were nominated by tutor Eileen Jones for their outstanding work overall, but particularly for their final year practical project. This involves students working for an outside client for whom they produce a piece of work.
Rebecca and Jonathan worked for the Forget Me Not Trust, a charity which is raising funds to build a hospice for terminally ill children. The produced for the Trust a 68 page lifestyle magazine which they wrote, edited, designed, and for which they sold advertisements to cover the cost of printing 10,000 copies, aimed at raising the profile of the charity. They then organised a dinner dance and launch party for the magazine, Vibe, at Huddersfield’s Galpharm Stadium where an auction raised more than £1,000 for the Trust.
Emma qualified as a professional social worker last September. Her tutor, Paul Hollingdale, said that in parallel to undertaking her course, she had a number of challenges to face.
“Emma has been a registered young carer with her home local authority and continued throughout her course to have caring responsibilities for a significant other in her life. Nevertheless she qualified and in both of her assessed placements; she had glowing reports from her tutors and agency colleagues and, essentially, clients who use the services.”
The awards are organised by Xcel magazine and sponsored by Barclays Capital and The Times. The event is designed to raise aspirations and acknowledge students who have excelled both academically and personally.
The founder of Xcel, Sylvano Clarke, said: “Positive role models play a key part in the growing achievements of our young people today. Universities needed a platform to promote the good work they were doing.”
Photo Credits - Flasch Photography
As a third year Journalism student I was intrigued, fascinated and in awe when ITV’s Nina Hossain came to talk the Media Department. As soon as she walked in the room she commanded the attention of everyone; she was friendly, honest and armed with more knowledge about the ‘biz’ than I think anyone expected.
Nina explained of how she had wanted to be a journalist since the age of 11 and always had that as her goal. Graduating with a degree in English, she gained specialised qualifications on a post-graduate journalism course at Preston. From there, she managed to land her first job on Border TV as a trainee journalist. The money was less than what she earned working in her part time job, but she took the risk. Clearly, it paid off and has led to her career with BBC London and ITV where she is now a household name and respected journalist, reporter and newscaster.
Throughout Nina’s talk she interacted with students and gave compelling advice about the ‘insecure and difficult media industry’. Students eagerly asked her questions about how to get into the industry, work experience and her career goals for the future.
Nina expressed much interest in the coverage of Haiti and the female/male ratio in jobs within local and national news. She said: “It has been a rude awakening of how difficult the industry is, I would much rather be a man working in this industry.”
A noticeably attractive woman, Nina modestly answered inquisitive students’ questions. When asked if her appearance had helped her go far in the industry, she answered: “I always go to work looking the best I possibly can, without becoming distracting, I’d do this in an office job as well, it’s just professionalism. I don’t think the way I look got me the job necessarily, but BBC were looking for an Asian woman. I was offended by this at first; I didn’t want the job because of the colour of my skin but I’ve proved my worth now and think you should grab ever opportunity that comes your way.”
Percussionist Claudio Kron do Brazil is leading a nationwide campaign to encourage everyone to use everyday office items to create their own office samba bands to help beat the Blue Monday blues on the most depressing day of the year, the third Monday in January.
According to Claudio, everyone has a natural rhythm and by using ordinary items, such as staplers to create a cha-cha-cha rhythm, paperclips to produce a shaking sound, and waste bins for bongos, the downbeat workplace can be transformed into a fun carnival atmosphere.
In fact, he brought along a selection of his own drums for the media students to try, in their own TV studio. Within an hour, he had two dozen non-musicians creating a 15-minute percussion jam session.
By creating a common rhythm Claudio believes the resulting upbeat sounds works as a drum therapy to help bring people together and take their minds off depressing thoughts
The Beat Blue Monday campaign aims to raise a smile and valuable funds for mental health charities on what is calculated to be officially the worst day of the year. The syndrome was first defined by psychologists, and marks the final full week of January when people suffer from a series of combined depressive effects .
Commenting on his efforts to encourage everyone to create their own workplace carnival Claudio said: “I believe that if your heart beats you can play the drums. The Carnival has proved time and time again to be the greatest event for making people happy – by using both drumming and carnival we can help everyone triumph on Blue Monday.”
PR student Tom Lay said: “It was great playing the Samba with Claudio. Everyone gets a bit down at this time of year but I think this was the perfect way to banish the blues and brighten up the most depressing day of the year.”
Claudio Kron do Brazil is a percussionist, songwriter, dancer and poet from Bahia in Brazil who came to the UK in 1996. He now performs and runs percussion workshops all over the world and works with community groups and businesses to spread his philosophy of the power of percussion to create harmony and happiness.
Examiner Article - 20 January 2010
Video to Follow
Media relations students Ben Medley and Nathalie Wright take the hot seats in the Journalism and Media TV studio for a crisis management exercise. Ben was taking the part of the transport minister and defending the government's snow-clearing strategy while Nathalie fired Paxman-style questions at him. They were among a group of second year students learning how to stay calm in a crisis - and they proved that researching the subject is the key to an authoritative performance.
PR lecturer Eileen Jones said: "They know that a trainee is never going to be placed in the firing line in a situation like this, but the experience is a really rewarding one for them. They learn to speak with confidence, and this particular group had really done their homework. They were very professional."
It’s always wise to start at the very beginning, as we know it’s a very good place to start. There is always that feeling when one gets an idea, something to wake up to in the morning and smile about at night… but like everything, there is no road without a challenge and Radio Hudd is probably a prime example.
The original idea germinated around about 2007 and it has taken a lot of hard work and persistence by a dedicated team who got the ball rolling and achieved their goal. The main dynamic force were 3rd year students Matt Christie, Kris Lockhart, Kieran Elsby and Kevin Smith. Matt said: “What was needed was Persistence! You’ve got to be persistent. It’s no use sitting there and coming up with a good idea, enquiring about it only to find out it’s too much of an effort. If you are going to pursue a project like Radio or the Newspaper you have got to sit down and “chew the gristle” so to speak. You’ve got to focus on what you want to do and never lose sight of what it is you want to accomplish.” For them 18 months saw the birth of Radio Hudd, which at times was a ‘touch and go’ experience but it was the determination that kept them keeping on.
Matt Christie and his team wondered why a University like Huddersfield did not have a radio station for students but like everything, challenges did arise, something Matt called the group came up against opposition in some areas, concerns over budget and motivating others students tested their will to achieve.It was not until they met Jenny Haigh ,Deputy Manager of the Union,that the dream seemed achievable.
Belief in this project pushed them pursue it. They knew they had to use their own initiative and go from lecture theatre to lecture theatre in their own time leaving their contact details and encouraging students to get involved. “In all truth and honesty we were not prepared to give up without a fight, even when there was a limited number off people getting involved we were still determined to get this project off the ground."
Jenny Haigh, who Matt said he would be “forever indebted to”, played a major role in the set up of Radio Hudd. She believed in the cause and as a result attended the Annual General Conference, where she was able to find them £5000. “She is certainly not one to mess around. If I ever get to write an autobiography there will be 2 or 3 paragraphs devoted to her, to tell others, how people like her helped leaps and bounds”
The money they received went towards equipment and licenses and the group continued to develop with the assistance of Rebecca Herd the Promotions and Marketing Coordinator, who worked with two other ladies from the Union, Becky Scott and Clare Allison. They found themselves with a limited amount to spend on promotions and with the launching of the station, some of the money was spent on what Matt called “fads”, such as T shirts, badges, and stickers given out at the Fresher’s Fayre to promote it.
The biggest push was the Freshers Fayre (2009) where it seemed to be inundated with people who wanted to get involved and for the boys, it was overwhelming as they had gone from an extreme of no one getting involved to another extreme where everyone was interested and this made it hard to turn some people down due to such a large intake “I had to tell them that we had enough people but that we would take their contact details and get in touch if anything came up. This was hard as I do not like to disappoint people”
Being head of Programming of course has its challenges; Matt’s main responsibility is looking after the presenters. “I’m their voice. If they have any concerns, they tell me and I relay these at meetings. My other responsibilities are ensuring that between 12pm and 10:30 pm there is something on air and not just anything, something of good quality. Not necessarily of Radio 1 or Galaxy standard but something worth listening to. Interesting people, with interesting stories, talking about their lives at University, music they love and any upcoming events that might encourage people to get involved in.”
Radio Hudd’s success has so far been sealed with statistics showing that between, 30th September 2009 – 30th October 2009 1141 listeners tuned in. Of that figure, 839 of them had come back more than once and 55% of that 839 were regular listeners.
The next step for Radio Hudd, Matt discussed, is to get rid of the log in, username and password as he thinks it restricts a lot of people from listening and are now embarking on the next faze of finding their successors. “We want to find people who are as dedicated as Kris, Kev and I. We have some people in mind. Another step is getting the radio station playing out in the Coffee Bean in the Student’s Union and possibly in the toilets. I think it will provide a platform for more listeners to get a feel of what Radio Hudd has to offer.” He said.
Talking about long term goals Matt mentioned that his ultimate goal was to
get a frequency for the radio station. He said: “I might not be here to witness this but it is to get a frequency for the radio station, which costs about £27000. If I can pull it off that would be amazing.”
He had a lot of hope and positive things to say about Radio Hudd; and its growth only continues to be strengthened by a devoted team of members. In Matt’s final thought he was quoted as saying: “Radio Hudd does not just provide something to do in your extra time. It provides a branch for you to learn and meet people. This is University, a good place for social diversity. You study better if you are happier. Plus if you can balance your work and everything else, you can achieve anything.” I could not agree with him more.
Anyone who has a desire to work in the Media and particularly in Television will want to hear journalist, presenter Nina Hossain talk about her own experience.
The Huddersfield-born reporter will be here on Wednesday 20 January at 2.15 pm in the Television Studio (Journalism and Media Building) to answer questions.
All Staff and Students Welcome. Please check back soon after the event for student reports on the event.
Rebecca Elvin and Jonathan Forrester (pictured right) are joint winners of the Creative Arts, Media and Design student of the year award. They will receive a trophy at the Xcel Student of the Year gala dinner and celebration in London in January.
Rebecca and Jonathan both graduated with first class honours degrees in Journalism last summer. They were nominated by tutor Eileen Jones for their outstanding work overall, but particularly for their final year practical project. This involves students working for an outside client for whom they produce a piece of work.
Rebecca and Jonathan worked for the Forget Me Not Trust, a charity which is raising funds to build a hospice for terminally ill children. The produced for the Trust a 68 page lifestyle magazine which they wrote, edited, designed, and for which they sold advertisements to cover the cost of printing 10,000 copies, aimed at raising the profile of the charity. They then organised a dinner dance and launch party for the magazine, Vibe, at Huddersfield’s Galpharm Stadium where an auction raised more than £1,000 for the Trust.
Eileen Jones, the course leader for the Journalism and Public Relations degrees, said that Rebecca and Jonathan had achieved far beyond anyone’s expectations.
“They worked with a degree of professionalism which was exceptional. Creating the magazine alone would have been a remarkable achievement, but they then went on to demonstrate outstanding skills in promotion and event management. The Forget Me Not Trust paid them the highest compliments. But they also continued to work at the highest level on other final year modules as well.”
Rebecca and Jonathan are both to start soon on a Masters degree course in magazine journalism. Rebecca said: "My media teacher at sixth-form college told me that attempting a degree was an over-ambitious move.”
The award ceremony is on January 21.The awards are organised by Xcel magazine and sponsored by Barclays Capital and The Times. The event is designed to raise aspirations and acknowledge students who have excelled both academically and personally. The awards are offered in a wide variety of subject areas with additional awards available for Best Institute of Widening Participation, Student of Courage and the overall Xcel Student of the Year 2009 who will be announced at the ceremony.
Covered on Calendar and in the Examiner the grand opening of The University of Huddersfield's New Radio and Television Studios was a media affair. Opened by the Universities Chancellor Patrick Stewart you can read more about the event here.
Calendar Interview at the University of Huddersfield's New Television Studio at the opening of Media and Journalism's Television and Radio Studio.
Used courtesy of - ITV Yorkshire.
Filmed, edited and produced by Matthew Nash and Mujebur Rahman -2nd Year Televison and Media Students (First Tier News)
Filmed, edited and produced by Matthew Nash and Mujebur Rahman - 2nd Year Televison and Media Students (First Tier)
Stephen Dorril, Course Leader for Film Journalism in the Media and Journalism department, is happy to report that the Holmfirth Film Festival, of which he is chairperson, has just received a substantial grant from the South Pennine Leader Project for a short film competition.
The Festival, which will run from 22nd to the 29 May 2010, will shortly be launching a competition titled 'Beyond Summer Wine Country'. The Festival is looking to students, schoolchildren and professional film-makers to create short films (up to ten minutes and on sixty-second mobile phone clips) that show Holmfirth and the Holme Valley in a new light and go beyond the stereotypical images left over from the television programme. The winning entries will be shown at the Festival and used to publicise the area.
University students and lecturers are heavily involved running and taking part in the Festival with the Music students and composers creating new soundtracks to silent movies and the Bamforth films originally produced in Holmfirth before the First World War. Further details on the Festival are available at www.holmfirthfilmfestival.co.uk
