Media, Journalism & Publishing – B2 English Listening Exercise

9 target audience 10 student magazine 11 physical copy 12 news report

13 phone call 14 fact-checking 15 personal website

16 press conference 17 freelance project 18 determination

Mark Davies : Hi everyone. My name is Mark Davies, and I’ve been working in media and publishing for over fifteen years. Today, I’m here to give you some advice on starting your career in journalism, and specifically, why building a portfolio of published articles is an absolute necessity to showcase your competence.

When starting out, many recent graduates assume they should immediately pick a popular topic, like celebrity gossip or sports, to write about. However, my advice is to focus on a specific target audience before you do anything else. Knowing exactly who you are writing for will make your articles much sharper and more appealing to editors who are looking for clear voices.

Now, you might dream of getting your name in a national newspaper straight away. It’s a great ambition, but in reality, your best chance of getting those crucial first few articles printed is by approaching a student magazine. They are always desperate for content and are much more willing to give beginners a chance to prove themselves than the mainstream press.

Once you have some published work, you need to collect it to showcase your competence. Many young writers just save digital links to their work, assuming they will stay online forever. Unfortunately, websites shut down and links easily break. Instead, you must keep a physical copy of every article you write. It serves as permanent proof of your achievements that nobody can delete.

When you finally present your portfolio to an editor like me, we are looking for variety, but with a specific focus. While a clever opinion piece or a film review is nice to read, what we really look for is a solid news report to prove you can gather information and handle facts objectively. That is the true core of journalism.

Of course, to get published, you’ll be sending out lots of ideas, or ‘pitches’, to editors. Because it’s so quick, you might expect email to be the best way to do this. But honestly, editors get hundreds of emails a day and yours can easily get lost. I’ve found that a phone call actually makes a much stronger impression and helps you build a personal connection immediately.

Let’s talk about the content of your articles. Beautiful writing and perfect grammar are obviously expected from the start. Yet, the skill that truly sets a beginner apart in today’s media landscape is rigorous fact-checking. If an editor sees that your portfolio pieces are accurate and reliable, they will trust you with bigger and better assignments.

To showcase your portfolio effectively to potential employers, you shouldn’t just rely on social media profiles, even if you have a lot of followers. It is absolutely crucial to build your own personal website to host your work professionally. It acts as your digital business card and shows you take your career seriously.

You also need to understand the practical side of the industry. Reading textbooks about journalism certainly helps you grasp the theory, but attending a press conference will give you a real taste of how reporters operate in the field. Watching seasoned journalists ask tough questions is an invaluable learning experience.

Many aspiring journalists ask me about the best way to gain initial experience in the workplace. While unpaid internships are very common in publishing, I strongly suggest taking on a freelance project instead. This way, you can actually get paid for your efforts while building your reputation and adding independent work to your portfolio.

Ultimately, to succeed in this incredibly tough industry, having a way with words is only part of the equation. Some people say that luck is the main factor in getting your big break, but honestly, determination is what will keep you going after facing inevitable rejections. Keep writing, keep pitching, and your portfolio will eventually speak for itself. Good luck!

9 history 10 science fiction 11 word limit 12 press pass

13 target audience 14 photographer 15 portfolio

16 website 17 documentaries 18 criticism

Liam: Hello everyone, my name is Liam Davies. I’m a professional journalist and media consultant, and I’m here today to talk about how I got my start in the publishing industry. I often get asked what the best route into journalism is. Many of the people I work with studied journalism or media at university. I actually considered doing a degree in literature, but in the end, I chose to study history because I loved researching the past. It turned out to be a great foundation for investigative writing.

While at university, I realised I needed some practical experience. I thought about trying to volunteer at a local radio station, but a friend suggested I join the campus student magazine. I decided to write film reviews. Initially, I hoped to write about the latest action movies, but the entertainment editor told me they had that covered. Instead, I was assigned to review science fiction releases, which I quickly learned to appreciate.

Writing for the magazine was a steep learning curve. I was a bit worried about the tight deadlines, as we had to submit our pieces very quickly after a film’s release. However, I soon discovered that sticking to the word limit was actually my biggest hurdle. I tended to write long, detailed opinions and had to learn how to be concise!

There were some wonderful advantages to the role, though. I assumed the magazine would just give me some free cinema tickets now and then, which would have been nice. In fact, I was handed a press pass, which gave me access to exclusive early screenings and local film festivals. It made me feel like a real professional.

Through this experience, my writing improved drastically. Beginners often think that developing a sophisticated vocabulary is the secret to good journalism. While that helps, I realised that always remembering your target audience is the most essential element of writing a successful review. You have to speak directly to the people reading your column.

Working on the magazine also opened doors to networking. I was always secretly hoping to interview a famous director, though that never happened! I did, however, team up with an incredibly talented photographer on several assignments. We collaborated on features, and she taught me a huge amount about visual media and storytelling.

Over my three years at university, I wrote dozens of articles. Some students contributed to the magazine hoping to earn a little pocket money, but we were completely unpaid. Rather than a salary, my primary goal was to create a comprehensive portfolio that I could present to future editors when applying for jobs.

When graduation approached, it was time to look for professional work. I applied to several national newspapers, hoping to get a junior reporter position. None of them hired me, but a well-known entertainment website saw my student reviews and offered me my first paid job, which was a fantastic starting point.

Since then, my career has evolved significantly. While I occasionally write about independent cinema, my main area of expertise these days is reviewing documentaries. It’s a niche that I find incredibly rewarding because you are dealing with real-world issues.

Finally, if I could give one piece of advice to aspiring journalists, it would be about attitude. People often say that you need endless enthusiasm to succeed. While passion is important, being able to handle criticism is absolutely vital. Editors will cut and change your words, and you can’t take it personally if you want to survive in this industry.