Work Experience at the Bristol Evening Post

Once again I have been to the Bristol Evening Post for work experience. After catching up with the deputy Editor, and meeting the staff, I was invited to the morning conference.
During the conference the reporters and editors discussed the stories for today, the layout of the paper and the order of the stories. We also viewed some of the pictures that had already been taken for some of the stories being covered.

I was introduced to a reporter named Dominic, who took me out to our first story,
We travelled to Knowle, where we met a woman whose house had burnt down. She had been lent a caravan from a friend, and her next door neighbour had offered for it to be parked on her driveway, as people were trying to break in to the destroyed house.
The woman had been living in the caravan for 5 weeks, with her 18 year old daughter, who is insulin dependant. It was an upsetting interview, as the woman cried throughout, and was clearly struggling to deal with the events that had happened.

While we were there, the daughter went into diabetic shock, because they had no fridge to keep her insulin in, no electricity, and no running water. The caravan didnt even have a toilet. It was a disturbing sight, but it was really good practise for journalism, as it is a clear example of an upsetting story, which the reporter cannot get emotionally involved in.

Once we had interviewed the family, and taken pictures of the remains of the house, we went on to the Coroners Court for an inquest. The inquest was in to the death of a 16 month old, who was believed to have died of swine flu unexpectedly last year. We met and interviewed the parents of the child, and listened to the inquest, which found that the baby had in fact died of acute bronchiolitis, but the swine flu, and other viruses, had been found in the toddlers body.

I was taken back to the office, and after a break for lunch, sent out on the streets of Bristol to do the daily Vox Pops. This requires approaching members of the public with a specific question, to get their opinion, as well as take a photo and their details. This is published in each episode of the Evening Post. My question was: "Do you think the police did enough to deal with the riots in Bristol?"

The front page of the Evening Post on this day was CCTV images of 25 people wanted by police for the rioting.
When I arrived at the office the next day, I found the building cordoned off with police tape, as every window around the office had been smashed overnight. This led speculation as to who would target the Evening Post office, as it was the only incident that occured overnight.
We later found that a local Mitsubishi garage, which had also been featured on the front page of the paper with the CCTV images, had also been targeted, with 7 of their models being damaged. However, it is unclear if the incidents are linked.

My first job of the day was to go to a press conference with the local police about the investigation into the riots in Bristol. Also there were reporters from the BBC, ITV and Sky. We were not given much new information on the investigation, but shown some new CCTV footage that the police have been given, and told about any arrests that have been made.

When I got back to the office I was sent out to do the vox pops again, this time asking if people support their local post office. After failing to recruit anyone outside the office to take part, I decided the best place to go would be to the post office, as people who use it are more likely to have an opinion on it.

After lunch I was forwarded very emails to write into articles. These were mostly fluff pieces, including a stray dog who was brought back from the brink of death by a kind stranger. This story required me to phone several people for quotes and for pictures, which is a really helpful skill to have for the future. Other stories I covered was a new free cycling scheme for children, and an award winning garden being opened to the public.

I will be back for a few days next week, and will blog my experience then!

Work Experience: The Bristol Evening Post

To help with my journalism course, I arranged to spend a couple of days out in the industry, with the Bristol Evening Post. Firstly, I went to Bristol Crown Court with a reporter to follow some of the court cases. The first case was a sentencing for death by dangerous driving. The defendant was sentenced to 15 months in prison, and a 3 year driving ban. I found it really difficult watching the woman being led away, as she was clearly remorseful for her actions, and was distraught about being taken away from her daughter.

The next case was a man from my home town, who was being sentenced for depositing waste. Bikes, cars, oil drums, scaffolding and metal were piled high in his garden, and after several previous chances to clear it from the Court, he was given a hefty fine, with a prison sentence if it was not paid within 6 weeks.

The final case I sat in is an ongoing case of robbery and manslaughter. Here the jury was still being told details of the case, and so it will be some time yet before this case comes to an end.

After my lunch break I was sent out to do the daily Vox Pops. The questions given were:
Do you think people living in Clifton should be DNA tested? and
What do you think about Chinese lanterns?

I went out into Bristol City Centre, in the Cabot Circus and Broadmead areas, however it is very difficult to get passers by to participate, especially with regards to photographing them. I absolutely hate going out and getting vox pops, and find it really frustrating that very few members of the public are willing to take part, however I do think it is good to get the public's opinion on stories.

On my second day I was sent out to get more vox pops, this time the question was:
Would an increased terror risk put you off travelling?

Once again, I struggled to get people to participate, as with it being cold and wet, people didn't want to be photographed, or be held up while trying to do their shopping.

Back in the office, the news editor told me he wanted me to get involved with the murder inquiry of Joanna Yeates. I was driven to Clifton, and told to retrace her footsteps before she died, from the Bargain Booze on Regent Street, to her home in Canynge Road, noting down the locations of any CCTV cameras I found.

On the way I went into the Tesco Express that Joanna was last seen in, and continued to retrace her footsteps until I reached her house, where I was met by lots of police, and other journalists such as Sky News. Whilst I was there, Hinton Rescue were moving a parked car, which was blocking the final drain that needed to be searched. The car was moved, and the journalists crowded around the drain with baited breath, as the police searched through the leaves and sludge for the missing sock, which unfortunately, still hasn't been found.

I've really enjoyed my time at the Evening Post (except the Vox Pops!) and have arranged 2 more visits over the Summer. It is really good to get a feel of what its like in the industry, and to talk to people who are in the position that you hope to be in in the future. I was really pleased that I got the chance to be involved with some really interesting stories, including the Joanna Yeates murder inquiry, which has made national headlines.

I would really encourage anyone interested in Print Journalism to try and arrange a visit to their local paper. It's a really rewarding experience.