It’s Monday morning and journalism interns Amy Mitchell-Whittington and Josh Wells are busy trying to find someone to comment on an important climate change report for their radio show The Better Half.
The latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report has just been released and they’re hoping to speak with one of its lead authors.
They’re in luck. With less than an hour to go, Griffith’s Professor Roger Kitching from the School of Environment who is in Japan for the report’s release is on the line.
Pre-recorded interview done. Relief, the line-up for another week’s program is complete.
In their third-year of a Bachelor of Journalism, Amy and Josh are interning for a semester to experience firsthand the frantic (but fun and informative) pace of radio producing.
“We have production meetings in the morning and discuss what’s making news and then in the afternoon we go to air, so it’s fast-paced and we’re learning a lot,’’ Amy said.
“It’s really improved our journalism skills, not to mention our contacts,’’ agreed Josh, who wants to work as a sports commentator when he graduates.
A half-hour roundup of news and events,The Better Halfis supervisedby Griffith University radio lecturerFaith Valencia, a journalist, producer and presenter in her own right.
Faith and fellow panellists Elizabeth Egan and Yasmin Khan worked at the ABC together. Political commentator and journalism lecturer Dr Paul Williams completes the panel line-up.
“I thought it would be a great idea to have the Better Half program running out of the Griffith journalism lab, giving students a taste of what it’s like to work in a busy newsroom,’’ Faith says.
“This is first time we’ve had students as interns on the program and it’s working out really well. It’s been an effective way to help them develop their news and production skills.”
The Better Half is broadcast weekly at 1pm Mondays on 4EB 98.1 FM.