Tuesday 9 October 2007

Guest Speaker: Steve Ivall ( Deputy Editor of the Falmouth Packet)


Steve Ivall, Deputy News Editor of the Falmouth Packet visited UCF Woodlane campus to offer advice to first year Journalism students.

Steve has years of experience behind him, which could prove vital for students hoping to break into the profession.

After giving a brief introduction of himself, Steve began by explaining the role of the Falmouth Packet in the community, describing it as being "vital to Cornwall and its readers".

Ivall then went on to describe the relationship between local and national newspapers explaining that Cornwall creates both local and national news stories.

Stories involving tourists who visit the region create stories in Cornwall and in their own regions. This acts as an extension of the Packet’s 30,000-strong readership.


The Falmouth Packet is a member of Newsquest, which is the second largest publisher of regional and local newspapers within the UK.

Steve also stressed the importance of the Packet's magazine supplements as being profitable, whilst offering a wide market spread, an advantage to both the Falmouth Packet and its readers.

An example of this is 'Front Row' a yearly publication for Cornish Rugby fans which includes Fixtures, pictures, news and reviews for the forthcoming season.

Steve also mentioned that students serious about becoming journalists will also need an NCTJ qualification, recognised throughout the industry, for aspiring and junior print journalists.

As well as an NCTJ qualification Steve mentioned that most companies only employ journalists with shorthand speeds of 100wpm and above.

The job of a Journalist is constantly changing, meaning that potential journalists will need a good grounding in many aspects of the profession including being comfortable using multimedia devices.

These devices include the latest portable audio devices as well as digital cameras: "All staff now carry cameras after a huge development in technology over the past few years".

Word Count: 299

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Great work.