Vedika Bahl was a student on the MA – Television Journalism course at City, University of London. She graduated in 2018 and is now a news producer at France24.

What made you want to become a journalist?

I think I subconsciously always had my eye on journalism, always interested in print and TV. When I was doing my Bachelor’s degree in International Relations and French I signed up for the university newspaper as a reporter in my first week. I eventually went on to become the editor. I also had media based roles at other organisations – online magazines, etc. It was only towards the end of my degree that I fell out of love with print, and I realised my skills were more compatible with visual journalism and TV. I did lots of shadowing and as many internships as I could, and then I applied for the Masters of Television Journalism at City Uni. 

How did you decide which course to study?

I was raised in the south-east in Berkshire and it made more sense to stay closer to home. I did all my research and I thought City was the best choice for me; it was commutable, had a fantastic reputation for its facilities, resources and its excellent contacts with the London journalism sphere. 

My finances were tricky at that point and I couldn’t afford to move away from home. I don’t come from a background where there were sufficient financial resources for me to live in London while studying, so I commuted from Reading to London pretty much six days a week. I applied for various grants and bursaries, especially the George Viner Memorial Fund diversity grant but, although I got very close, I didn’t get it. I was really worried I’d have to spend a year working before I’d have the money, and that would be the end of it for a while. I worked all summer, and then someone generously topped up what I had as a loan. I made it work, but it wasn’t ideal. I’d really encourage anyone from a lower income background to try for every grant or bursary you qualify for. It’s important there is diversity in the industry. The rejection of the grant stung massively, but in the end I got the result I wanted. I look back with a real sense of accomplishment.

Tell me a bit about your time at university – what was it like for you in terms of preparing you for your future career?

I think it was the best decision I could have made. It was priceless. I learned things I hadn’t really considered before. Subjects like media law and journalism ethics totally changed my thinking. And then the real value was in the technical skills, guidance and mentoring. Learning editing, shooting and news-gathering gave me the strong foundation I needed to take away with me.

The newsdays at City were absolutely invaluable, because you put together a news bulletin every single week. You are all involved in a whole variety of things – onscreen, offscreen, production, rolling the autocue, creating news packages, finding interviewees, convincing people to talk to you – all of those things that gave me the foundation for what I do now. It’s a real skill to get people to talk to you – you need a lot of confidence and perseverance and you develop that over time. You hear a lot of ‘No’s before you get a ‘Yes’ and the course gives you a chance to experience that. 

It also really changed how I think. I think more critically now. When you first start you don’t necessarily think like a journalist. You learn how to do that at City; how to explore different angles, how to adapt to huge changes in a story. Things change so fast in journalism. When I was working on stories, the angle would change, and the story turns into something bigger than you thought, and you have to roll with it and explore the bigger picture. 

What were the things you found the most helpful, now that you have been in the industry for a little while? 

Video editing. I use a different software now, but what I learned at university allowed me to pick it up at France 24. Without that I would have really struggled. Also, learning to prioritise stories and sift through pictures to work out what is relevant and what isn’t. 

What placements did you do?  

I did two placements at City and two more off my own back. The first was at BBC Asian Network in London as a news intern. That was a very interesting first experience. They would send me out to get vox pops for their coverage. That taught me about mobile journalism and getting people to talk to you on the street. It’s a real skill, you have to have a method to go about it. Then I was a video producer at The Telegraph in London. That was awesome because I was directly contributing to their output. I’d create the videos for social media, put it all together and it would go on the website and social channels. I was also a Production Assistant at ABC news for Meghan and Harry’s wedding. That was paid. It’s important to get some paid placements when you are starting out, it convinces them you are a ‘freelancer’ and not a student anymore. And I also did some paid work for a small production house called Clover Films, helping them out with researching, transcription and logging. I learned different things from each one. Some of the skills I learned from the small production house helped me with the TV documentary that a group of us worked on that went on to win a BJTC Award. 

How did you tackle finding work?

It wasn’t easy. Journalism is ruthlessly competitive and it can make you doubt yourself. I applied for a plethora of different jobs, including traineeships at ITV and BBC, and got rejected. I reached out to my dream companies, but didn’t get any interest at all. It can be a massive blow to your confidence when everyone around you seems to be finding a job, but you just have to keep going. It was at this time that I did the placements for ABC and Clover Films, and I think they gave me the experience I needed to elevate my CV and my applications. They really helped when the opportunity for freelance work came up at France24, which has a very good relationship with City University. They were on the lookout for graduates who speak French or have lived in France before, so I went for it, and it worked out.

It was a massive shock to the system to leave the UK and I didn’t know anyone in Paris. I also hadn’t spoken French for a while. It did take a few months to adjust personally and professionally, and to master my role and stop worrying before each shift. But now I really love the job. I have no regrets about moving. 

I think it’s really important to go through that process of fear and doubt before you are starting a new job. It drives you to push yourself and to be better at it. It pushed me to soak in everything I was learning, to really master what I was doing. 

What do you actually do in your current role? What’s your day like?

As a news producer I manage all the images for the news bulletin. I identify, source, view and select the strongest and most accurate video elements, like images and soundbites. I edit all the video output for the bulletin. I gather and research archive video. I create the headlines and ensure all the best elements are on display for the bulletin. I also have to make sure accurate information is provided for the correspondents in the live coverage, like maps, names and places. I work in a team of three with our senior producer and our anchor. It can be quite stressful because sometimes things break when you are live on air. I also work as a news producer for our business programme on the morning flagship show. This is essentially the same role, but I do it for the French and English channels at the same time, so I’m working in two rundowns at once, managing all the elements for both. Recently I also started working as a social media journalist for the France24 channels. I explore trends, produce content and post the content. I’m a freelancer so I get to do all of these things. 

I love the variety of freelancing. No day is the same. I made that choice to go to Paris without a secure job and there are times when it’s not the most stable, but the more hands I have in different baskets, the more employable I am. I love the job, I love how different it is every single day. 

What would you say to new graduates, who perhaps feel that getting work in the industry is a huge challenge?

Try not to compare yourself to other people. It can be so disheartening. It can take a long time to find the right role for you. It’s not easy for anyone.

Continue to try every single door. The experience is what sets you apart – along with the education. If you have additional skills or interests, such as languages, use them. It can be a huge bonus. Look at me. Companies need multilingual journalists. Don’t be afraid to put it on full show.

Find your niche, if you have one. If you are super interested or have a passion for technology, sports, fashion, travel, or culture. Even better if you have side products – like blogs, or other interests. Put them on show. Those can lead to other opportunities and propel you to get the job you deserve.

If you have a BAME background, reach out to companies you feel you can bring something new to. Diversity in the media is very, very important and your insight is priceless to under-represented communities. You can see and find stories that may not be visible to others. You can provide context that may go unnoticed if you weren’t there. Newsrooms can hardly provide relevant news to everyone if their own employee makeup doesn’t represent that of society. There are a lot of voices to be heard and if you are a BAME journalist, you have a lot of new perspectives to offer. There are BAME media organisations that exist in their own right, you may also want to reach out to them to see if there is an opportunity there for you. 

Don’t rush applications, it’s really important to tailor them to every single role. No copying and pasting! Think about your answers in detail, then sleep on it. Try to match your application to the company’s ethos and promote yourself as a candidate that will work for them.

It’s important to use social media and create your own content, especially if you don’t have any connections in the industry. You need to have a Twitter and LinkedIn account and build your journalistic profile. Twitter has connected me to so many journalists that I admire. You need to put time and effort into your Twitter profile and be careful what you retweet. It’s not your job to express your opinion, it’s to inform. You are the medium – the bridge between the public and the political and you have to remain impartial.

What are your next challenges?

I’d really like to transition into more on-screen work. I’d like to make news packages. I’d also like to explore more journalism based on my own interests – like entertainment and technology. Eventually I’d like to do more longform storytelling. I loved doing the documentary that we won the BJTC Award for. You can explore a story in depth and get to know your interviewees. I’m always someone who is looking for the next thing, but at the same time I really enjoy what I’m doing. I have to remind myself there’s no rush and no pressure. It’s important to do whatever you are doing and do it well. You have to give 100 percent to what you are doing at the time.

What do you most love about the work?

I love the rush of news. France24 is a 24 hour international channel. It’s very fast-paced. Sometimes something I’ve been working on for two hours, my entire bulletin, can change in minutes, because a story has broken in the world. Initially I found this ‘down to the wire’ pressure very, very daunting. But now I can’t imagine life without it. It’s very exciting. 

I love the teamwork involved. It’s a very team-based job. There are a lot of cogs in a very large machine. You have to liaise with everyone. Mostly I love the rush. It’s a lot of stress, but you get a massive feeling of accomplishment when it’s over and the bell rings.

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This article was written in June 2020. To keep up to date with what Vedika is up to, follow her on social media.
Twitter: @VedikaBahl
LinkedIn: Vedika Bahl
And if you’d like to take a look at Vedika’s final year documentary, which won a BJTC Award, you’ll find it here: Defeated: The Journeyman boxers who survive by losing

We regularly catch up with our BJTC alumni to find out how they are going with their careers and what advice they might have to offer students embarking on their own broadcast journalism journeys. If you’d like to be considered for the Alumni Spotlight, contact us and let us know. We’d love to hear from you.