This Black History Month, we’re celebrating the trailblazers who have carved space in our industry by pushing for more inclusion, representation and accountability in journalism, with a special ‘How to be a Journalist’ podcast mini-series, hosted by Plamedi Mbungu.
In his first ‘How to be a Journalist’ themed series Plamedi interviews award-winning BBC producer Hannah Àjàlá, Channel 4 News sports journalist and podcast host Jordan Jarrett-Bryan, Global Citizen content creator and The Flo Journal founder Fadeke Banjo and Radio News Hub broadcast journalist Grace McIntosh.
The Black History Month podcast mini-series aims to highlight challenges, opportunities and pathways into journalism for aspiring Black journalists.
Expect anecdotes, laughs and insights from experienced journalists spanning all corners of our industry.
Plamedi’s first guest is Hannah Àjàlá, airing on Monday October 6.
Hannah is a journalist specialising in podcasting and broadcast journalism for the BBC.
Behind her work is her passion for sharing stories from marginalised communities.
She spent three years in West Africa creating documentaries for the BBC World Service.
She also presented the four-time award-winning BBC and CBC podcast ‘Love, Janessa’.
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In 2018, Hannah founded We Are Black Journos, a community platform dedicated to connect Black journalists with industry opportunities.
They organise networking events, work experience opportunities and collaborative media events to create space for Black creatives.
At her first media job, Hannah said she was the only non-white person out of 150 staff members. This experience of exclusion motivated her to create a place for Black journalists.
Since 2018, the platform has grown to more 7,000 members.
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Hannah said: “Media reflects society, but society is not reflected in the media.
“Black journalists, producers and creatives are not a monolith.
“We all exist in so many spaces and bring so much dynamite to the scene, making it so important that we have a platform/directory for our work to be highlighted.”
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Jordan Jarrett-Bryan is a sports journalist, founder of Blakademik, and host of ‘Jordan Jarrett-Bryan’s The World’s Coolest Disabled’ podcast.
Jordan was a reporter for Channel 4’s award-winning coverage of the London 2012 and Rio 2016 Paralympic Games.
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Jordan is a below-the-knee amputee and has lived with prosthetic legs since he was 18 months old.
He had a 25-year career playing wheelchair basketball for clubs in London, for Great Britain, and professionally in the Italian league for five years.
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His podcast ‘Jordan Jarrett-Bryan’s The World’s Coolest Disabled’ makes space for disability-positive stories and invites guests to bust myths about disability, tell stories about their experiences and prove that disabled people are cool.
Jordan said: “There are so many disabled people doing so many amazing cool things. I want to know if their disability has played a role in this really cool thing they’ve done. But sometimes it isn’t linked and that’s okay.
“I’m going to be the one to spotlight and big up the disabled people that came onto the podcast, because I have the confidence to do it.”
Blakademik is a platform and production company that spotlights Black British culture and thought.
They are a team of presenters, videographers, camera operators and editors that create content for a variety of clients and events spanning the creative, sports and social media spheres.
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Fadeke Banjo is a multimedia journalist working for Global Citizen as a content creator.
She creates engaging content of all types for this platform, dedicated to achieving the end of extreme poverty.
She covers topics like representation in the media, the climate crisis, gender inequality and activism.
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Fadeke is also the founder of The Flo, a pop culture, cultural commentary blog turned online platform.
One of the platform’s most viral posts explored the role of social media in the coverage of the Black Lives Matter movement and police brutality in the USA in 2020.
On Instagram and YouTube, Fadeke uploads exclusive interviews, film and TV reviews.
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She said: “The Flo Journal was my outlet to create my own opportunities.
“I’d interview, write blogs and make social media videos to get me closer to my dream career.
“You don’t have to go to a prestigious university, or even go to university at all to be seen as an established journalist.”
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Grace McIntosh is a broadcast journalist at Radio News Hub.
She studied media and performance at University of Salford before completing a part-time NCTJ course at News Associates.
She has a background in voice acting and played Eleesha Rashad in CBBC’s 4 O’Clock Club.
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During her time at Radio News Hub, Grace has covered national events including the Southport stabbings, the Harehills riot and tractor protests.
She also went to Washington DC to cover the US election.
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Grace also creates her own podcast, ‘Quarter-life Questions’.
This weekly podcast discusses topics that 20-somethings worry about like money, careers, mental health and much more.
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When asked about what advice she would give to young Black journalists entering the industry today, she said: “Be your true self. You bring lived experience, insight, and nuance that are too often missing or underrepresented in UK media.
“So bring your full self to everything you do – absolutely no code switching. Take up space, speak up and put forward your ideas.
“And if you’re not currently in a role, create your own space. Start a newsletter, podcast or make videos – anything!”
@aadd0.3 New friendships need effort. You’ve got to show up and make sure you’re checking in. This week on Quarter-Life Questions we’re asking how do you make friends as an adult with @girls on the go founders Caitlin and Steph. Listen to Episode 3 now #Spotify or #ApplePodcasts link in bio x #MakingFriends #adulting #AdultFriendships ♬ original sound – Grace McIntosh
News Associates Black History Month podcast host Plamedi said: “I think this mini-series is important as it shows that progress is being made.
“All four guests show the value of carving your own spaces as a Black journalist and telling the stories of the communities that they are a part of.
“I’ve taken away a plethora of lessons from each episode and one of my biggest takeaways is that the Black community is by no means a monolith.
“I’m excited and appreciative to have been given the opportunity to spotlight some of the industry’s best voices and hope listeners are able to get inspired by what they have to say.”
The four special Black History Month podcast episodes will air on each Monday in October, listen on Spotify, YouTube and Apple Podcasts. Follow us on Instagram @NewsAssociates and TikTok @NewsAssociates_