We're delighted to be partnering with Golden Hare Books to host former journalist turned author Ajay Close in conversation with WIJ Scotland co-chair Anna Burnside about her latest novel What Doesn't Kill Us.

Buy a copy of What Doesn't Kill Us from Golden Hare Books and receive a free ticket to the event - click here to purchase.

The event will take place on Wednesday May 22 at 6.30pm at Golden Hare Books, 68 St Stephen Street, Edinburgh EH3 5AQ

We will follow up on your booking with a confirmation email - please be sure to check your junk folder!

About What Doesn't Kill Us

A killer stalks the streets of Leeds. Every man is a suspect.

Every woman is at risk. But in a house on Cleopatra Street, women are fighting back. It’s the eve of the 1980s.
PC Liz Seeley joins the squad investigating the murders. With a violent boyfriend at home and male chauvinist pigs at work, she is drawn to a feminist collective led by the militant and uncompromising Rowena. There she meets Charmaine – young, Black, artistic, and fighting discrimination on two fronts.
As the list of victims grows and police fail to catch the killer, women across the north are too terrified to go out after dark. To the feminists, the Butcher is a symptom of wider misogyny. Their anger finds an outlet in violence and Liz is torn between loyalty to them and her duty as a police officer.
Which way will she jump? Ajay Close combines the tension of a police procedural with the power and passion of the women’s lib movement. By turns emotional, action-packed and darkly funny, What Doesn’t Kill Us reveals just how much the world has changed since the 1970s – and how much it hasn’t.

About Ajay Close

Ajay's first career as an award-winning journalist was followed by writer in residences in Renfrewshire and Perth and Kinross. She now works as a novelist, dramatist, and creative-writing tutor. Two of her five novels have been long-listed for major prizes. Recurring themes in her work include: feminism, politics, troubled family relationships, narcissism, victimhood and its ambiguities.

Picture: Craig Stephen

Women in Journalism Scotland is partnering with Pass the Mic and the BBC Scotland politics team to offer broadcast media training to 25 women of colour, to help improve gender balance in politics and news coverage. 

It’s important that journalism includes a diverse range of voices and perspectives. We’re holding a session to encourage the next crop of commentators and experts to step up.

If you’re an expert in economics, politics, law, business, international relations, climate change, or any current subject that is regularly discussed in the media, then we want to hear from you .

We’re looking for informed voices on subjects related to politics and current affairs, or specialist journalists who want to make the transition to radio and TV commentary.

Participants will undertake vocal training, a mock panel show interview, a mock radio interview and hear from reporters and producers on what they're looking for when they book guests for news and current affairs TV and radio shows. 

The workshop will take place at BBC Scotland, 40 Pacific Quay, Glasgow, G51 1DA, on Friday, March 8, from 1030 until 1730. 

The workshop is free. Lunch, teas and coffees will be provided. Funding is available for childcare costs.

Deadline for applications: 5pm Friday January 26th. 

To apply for a space on the workshop please fill in the form HERE.

Any questions, email: wijscotland@gmail.com

Join Art UK and Women in Journalism Scotland for this informal panel event about how to build a career in arts journalism. The event is funded by Creative Scotland and will be chaired by Anna Burnside, with Jan Patience, Arusa Qureshi and Ashley Davies on the panel.

The event will cover aspects of breaking into, building and maintaining a career in arts journalism, as well as exploring different arts specialisms and some of the practicalities of freelancing.

The event is open to anyone interested in pursuing a career in arts journalism as well as early-career journalists and writers considering specialising in the arts.

As a webinar, only the panel and the chairwoman will be visible on the screen, but there will be opportunities during the event to ask questions via the chat / Q&A function. The event will be delivered over Zoom and can be accessed via the event page once you have registered (it is recommended that you click the 'open in Zoom' option).

To reserve your place click HERE.

About the panel

Anna Burnside

Anna Burnside has worked in newspapers for more than 30 years, from the Gorgie Dalry Gazette to The Sunday Times and everything in between. She recently left the Daily Record to embark on a freelance career of copywriting, arts and lifestyle features, theatre reviewing, event hosting and developing her work as a humanist celebrant.

Jan Patience

Jan Patience has worked as a journalist and editor for over 30 years. After writing for The Herald about visual art for more than a decade, she joined The Sunday Post in 2021 and now writes a weekly art column for its magazine. A seasoned chair at arts events, Jan also appears on radio, podcasts and television as an expert contributor on visual art. She is co-author, with Louise Wyllie, of Arrivals & Sailings: The Making of George Wyllie. With support from the Eardley Estate, she is currently writing a book about Joan Eardley.

Arusa Qureshi

Arusa Qureshi is a writer and editor based in Edinburgh, and the Music Programme Manager at Summerhall. She is the current Editor of Fest and the former Editor of The List, and writes mostly about music, most recently Flip the Script – a book about women in UK hip hop, published by 404 Ink. Her work has appeared in The Scotsman, Clash, the Guardian, GoldFlakePaint, Time Out, The Quietus, NME and more. She chairs the board of the Scottish Music Centre, sits on the board of the Music Venue Trust and is the co-curator of the award-winning Amplifi series at Edinburgh's Queens Hall.

Ashley Davies

Ashley Davies is a freelance journalist who writes about comedy, theatre, visual arts, podcasts, music and more, and has regular pages in The Times Scotland's Alba as well as Metro. She's been a journalist for more than 25 years, starting off as a news reporter on trade magazines, and since then has done everything from section editing and writing columns to being a comedy critic. Her favourite work is interviewing comedians.

About Art UK and Women in Journalism Scotland

Art UK is the online home of the UK's public art collections. With more than five million annual visitors, part of Art UK's mission is to publish compelling stories, illustrated through the art in UK collections. Art UK showcases the work of underrepresented artists, and champions diverse voices and writers in the content it produces. Women in Journalism Scotland is a campaigning organisation open to all women working in the media in Scotland. It runs a hugely successful mentoring scheme for early and mid-career journalists, and a bursary in conjunction with the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. WIJ events range from glittering social occasions for networking and making new contacts across the industry to skills-building workshops and professional development sessions.

For any queries relating to this event, please contact rhona.taylor@artuk.org

Header image: Trompe l'oeil with Writing Materials (detail), oil canvas by Edwaert Collier (c.1640–c.1707). Photo credit: Victoria and Albert Museum, London

Would you like to meet more women in the media in Edinburgh? Would you like to build more of a community of like-minded people?

Now is your chance – with canapés, drinks and rooftop views to boot!

Join us for a fabulous evening at ‘The Bothy’, a beautiful private bar at the Johnnie Walker centre.

Women in Journalism Scotland members get a special discount, join us now.

To book a ticket click HERE.

With thanks to our sponsor, Diageo.

Agenda

19:00 - 19:30

Arrival - welcome drinks and canapés

19:30 - 19:45

A word of welcome from WiJ Scotland

19:45 - 20:30

Fun and low-key ‘speed networking’

20:30 - 21:30

Mingle, enjoy a drink and check out the amazing views!

The time has come to celebrate surviving another year in Scottish media.

Come and sip wine (or water) with us at Women in Journalism Scotland's winter social, held at Table Twenty Eight in Glasgow's Merchant Square, 71 Albion Street.

This will be a chance to network and chat with a broad range of women working in journalism, comms and higher education. The Women in Journalism Scotland committee will also be in attendance, ready to answer questions you might have about joining our organisation.

The night will run from 7pm until late and will be hosted on Twenty Eight's balcony area.

Ticket are priced at £15 for members and £20 for non-members. To join Women in Journalism Scotland now and take advantage of the member price, click here.

To book a ticket for the winter social event click here.

A welcome drink is included in both ticket tiers.

Join us for an empowering online event, 'Reporting violence against women'.

From Russell Brand to Sean Hogg having his rape conviction overturned, stories about violence against women are everywhere. These are some of the trickiest and most sensitive subjects we cover as journalists.

This Zoom workshop will cover all the issues that journalists need to understand how to do justice to these important stories.

Jo Zawadkza from Zero Tolerance will set the scene and outline all the issues that are classified as violence against women.

Claire Thomson from Rape Crisis Scotland will talk about sexual violence and the new justice bill.

Nyla Khan from Universal Truth will talk about the importance of including the voices of victim-survivors and how to work with charities and campaign groups in this area.

Chaired by Women in Journalism Scotland committee member Catriona MacPhee

To book tickets click HERE.

Kirsty Wark will be the special guest at a ‘Working Through the Menopause’ event at BBC Scotland on Monday 11th September, organised by the BBC’s Women in News project with Women in Journalism Scotland.

Kirsty made the taboo-busting documentary ‘The Menopause and Me’ back in 2017, which helped kick start conversations and stop women suffering in silence. She has, of course, navigated her own way through the menopause while working as one of the UK’s top television journalists.

BBC Scotland’s Editor of Long Form Journalism, Shelley Jofre, will host the free Q&A event which kicks off at 6.30pm on the 4th floor canteen at BBC Pacific Quay. Drinks and nibbles provided.

Please RSVP to wijscotland@gmail.com with any dietary requirements and let us know if you require parking on the night.

Women in Journalism Scotland is hosting a first-of-its-kind live event addressing the challenges and opportunities that working class women journalists face.

Held at the iconic Glasgow Women's Library, this will be an essential exploration of class dynamics in Scottish journalism and beyond, shining a light on the hidden hurdles working class journalists come up against in their careers.

Attendees will gain insights into the unique challenges that working class women journalists encounter when entering the industry, and why amplifying and championing the voices and careers of working class press is fundamental to the health of the Scottish media.

The event will offer a space to question and dismantle our preconceived notions and biases surrounding class, as well as learn how it can present in different cultures.

We will look at the intersection of class and gender, and how it affects the careers and personal lives of women working in Scottish journalism.

Our panel of speakers will share their advice and personal experiences on navigating the world of journalism without breaking the bank, and the audience is welcome to join in.

Their stories and insights will be compiled into an online resource, free for anyone to access, in a collective effort to provide support and empower individuals on their unique paths into the industry.

Our panellists are:

• Dani Garavelli, award-winning writer and columnist

• Jen Stout, freelance journalist and correspondent

• Dayna McAlpine, lifestyle editor at HuffPost

Chair and organiser: Iris Pase, Women in Journalism Scotland committee

The evening will have broad appeal, in particular to editors looking to recruit more diverse teams; middle and upper class journalists who want to support their working class colleagues as well as promote more inclusive media coverage; reporters of any background who wish to pass down practical knowledge to aspiring journalists.

A QR code packed with support and information from the night will be available for attendees.

Canapés and wine will be provided, and guests will take away a goodie bag.

To book tickets please click here.

The venue is fully accessible with level access from the street, lifts to upper levels and induction loops that can be set up in advance. Please let us know if you have accessibility needs. More info here: https://womenslibrary.org.uk/inspiring-resources/venue-hire/

The sun is finally making an appearance again, so we thought we'd celebrate with a summer social to get together again after our absolutely buzzing winter event!

Log off for the day, escape the newsroom and join us for a get together in the lovely new space within the Greater Govanhill x The Ferret community newsroom in Glasgow.

There will be drinks, snacks and plenty of opportunities to catch up with old colleagues, friends and new faces in media.

Tickets are also available for non-members and we'd love you to bring along colleagues who aren't members yet too, so they can find out all about the organisation and what we offer.

Spaces are limited for this event, so sign up here today to not miss out!

See you on June 23 - wine will be poured from 7pm...

Great interview skills are the most important tool in any journalist's kit. Nail an interview and you're on your way to making the most of a story. But it's not always as easy as that. Interview skills take decades to hone and refine. There's a reason why the UK's top journalists are also the best interviewers.

In this WiJS Zoom masterclass we will be joined by three of those journalists - Marion Scott, Audrey Gillan and Laura Kuenssberg. They will share their tips, tricks and advice on how to maximise any interview you do, no matter if it is a ten minute Zoom or an hour in-person.

THIS WORKSHOP WILL COVER

- How to put interview subjects at ease

- How to ask difficult or delicate questions

- Why sensitive interviews need a different approach - and how to do this

- How to get what you need within a short time frame

- How to pull out the tiny details that bring a story to life

- How to turn quotes into great copy

- What to do if an interview goes wrong

- Common interviewing mistakes and how to fix them

MORE ON OUR PANELLISTS

Laura Kuenssberg presents the BBC’s flagship interview show on Sunday mornings on BBC One. That followed a seven year stint as the BBC’s first female political editor, during which she reported for a wide range of BBC programmes, made a number of successful documentaries and won multiple awards

Marion Scott is a multi award winning journalist and Chief Reporter at Scotland’s top family newspaper, The Sunday Post. She has previously won Journalist of the Year, Reporter of the Year, Campaigning Journalist and The Nicola Barry awards at the Scottish Press Awards and has twice been runner up in the Prestigious Cudlipp award

Audrey Gillan is an award-winning journalist and broadcaster. Her recent BBC Scotland podcast Bible John: Creation of a Serial Killer won gold and silver at the New York Festivals. As a young journalist she was a recipient of the Laurence Sterne Fellowship and worked on the Washington Post. She was awarded the What the Papers Say foreign correspondent of the year whilst embedded with British troops in Iraq for The Guardian

The masterclass will be chaired by WiJS chair Gabriella Bennett

TICKETS

To buy tickets please click here. It is possible to buy a recording of the event. This will be sent to you the day after the masterclass has taken place. Please select the 'recording' ticket option.

A discount is available to WiJS members. Please select the 'member' ticket option.

Women in Journalism Scotland is partnering with the BBC Scotland politics team to offer broadcast media training to 16 women to help improve gender balance in politics and news coverage. 

It’s important that political journalism includes a diverse range of voices and perspectives. We’re holding a session to encourage the next crop of female commentators and experts to step up.

If you’re an expert in economics, policy, law, business, international relations, climate change, or you have the insight to help our viewers and listeners analyse the political road ahead, then we want to hear from you.

We’re looking for informed voices on subjects related to politics and current affairs, or specialist journalists who want to make the transition to radio and TV commentary.

Participants will undertake vocal training, a mock panel interview, a mock radio interview and hear from reporters and producers on what they're looking for when they book guests for news and current affairs TV and radio shows. Lunch, teas and coffees will be provided.

The workshop will take place at BBC Scotland, Inverness, 7 Culduthel Road, on Friday, May 19, from 10am until 3pm. Financial support is available for childcare costs.

Deadline for applications: 5pm Wednesday April 26th. 

For the application form in English click here.

For the application form in Gaelic click here.

UPDATE: This event has unfortunately had to be cancelled. All those who have purchased tickets will receive an email advising of the cancellation.

The WiJ Scotland Salon – a blend of book group meets book festival event - presents an evening with Kerry Hudson.

Kerry Hudson was born in Aberdeen. Her first novel, TONY HOGAN BOUGHT ME AN ICE-CREAM FLOAT BEFORE HE STOLE MY MA was published in 2012 by Chatto & Windus (Penguin Random House) and was the winner of the Scottish First Book Award while also being shortlisted for the Southbank Sky Arts Literature Award, Guardian First Book Award, Green Carnation Prize, Author’s Club First Novel Prize and the Polari First Book Award. Kerry’s second novel, THIRST, was published in 2014 by Chatto & Windus and won France’s most prestigious award for foreign fiction the Prix Femina Étranger. It was also shortlisted for the European Premio Strega in Italy. Her books are also available in the US (Penguin), France (Editions Philippe Rey), Italy (Minimum Fax) and Turkey.

Her latest book and memoir, LOWBORN, takes her back to the towns of her childhood as she investigates her own past and what it means to be poor in Britain today. It was a Radio 4 Book of the Week, a Guardian and Independent Book of the Year. It was long-listed for the Gordon Burn Prize and Portico Prize and shortlisted in the National Book Token, Books Are My Bag Reader’s Awards and the Saltire Scottish Non-Fiction Book of the Year.

The esteemed author will sit down with journalist Anna Burnside during the event hosted by Women in Journalism Scotland.

Alcoholic refreshments will also be served and there will be a chance to meet and mingle with the author after the event.

Join us for this hands-on workshop with Karin Goodwin, investigative journalist and co-editor of The Ferret, to learn about all things FOI requests and how you can use them in your reporting.

This will be our first in-person workshop in three years, and we are so excited to welcome 20 people to this exclusive event at the Greater Govanhill x The Ferret newsroom.

Throughout the evening, Karin will be sharing her top tips on all things FOI requests - why to use them, when to send them, how to turn information shared into stories, and how to tackle the appeals process – and there will also be space for you to ask any burning questions you may have.

Got data or information you obtained through an FOI that you would like to use in your work? Bring it with you on the day, and Karin will aim to share ideas on how to turn these resources into a story.

Snacks, tea, coffee and beer will be provided, and the event will be followed by a short social.

Spaces are limited, so sign up here today to get involved!

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About Karin Goodwin: Karin Goodwin is an investigative journalist and co-editor of The Ferret. specialisms include migration, housing and homelessness, and other social issues. She's also worked on a wide range of investigations that look at power and ownership in modern Scotland and recently set-up the Ferret's first community newsroom with Greater Govanhill magazine, with whom she is working on a year-long project about health inequalities.

This workshop will cover:

• Why we use FOIs in the first place. Perhaps the information is available in the public domain already. Or perhaps it can be gained from your sources. Karin will talk through the circumstances when only FOIs will do to avoid time-wasting.

• What an FOI covers

• What to do with the information you receive in order to turn it into a storyHow to turn meagre amounts of data into a story by combining it with information from elsewhere

• Why every journalist should be using FOIs, not just news reporters, for example feature writers to help toughen up features.

• How to navigate the FOI appeals process

Women in Journalism Scotland stands in solidarity with all journalists affected by redundancies.

In light of the news that hundreds of jobs are at risk across multiple media outlets, we are hosting an emergency redundancy support workshop on Zoom.

The first aim of the workshop is to empower attendees and provide information about redundancy processes. You will finish the session feeling clearer on what to expect and what your rights are.

The second aim is to provide support, guidance and confidence about life after redundancy. We will be sharing resources, tips, contacts and advice on how to prepare for the next job or freelancing.

In the session, we will hear from Kirsty Muir, an HR consultant and redundancy expert with 25 years' experience, about what to expect from the redundancy process.

We will also be joined by Natasha Radmehr, deputy editor at Homes & Interiors Scotland, who will speak about her experience of being made redundant in 2020.

There will be 20 minutes at the end for attendees to ask questions of the panel.

The workshop will be hosted by Gabriella Bennett, chair of Women in Journalism Scotland.

The session is FREE and open to ALL.

To book a ticket click here.

Our January digital journalism workshop aims to demystify the skills needed to produce high quality, attention-grabbing digital journalism.

Hosted by Mary McCool, digital journalist at BBC Scotland News online, it will provide insight into digital journalism’s relationship with its audience and discuss the benefits and challenges in pursuing a career in digital journalism.

If you’re a print journalist who wants to learn how to make their stories sing online, or if you’re a digital journalist keen to know more about your beat, this is the event for you.

Our panelists are:

Nicola Love, news editor at The Herald (print and online)

Lucy Small, digital video and social media journalist at BBC Scotland News online

Mary will be in conversation with Nicola and Lucy covering the following topics:

Who are we writing for?

What makes a good digital story?

What makes a good headline? (And why it’s different to clickbait)

‘It’s all about clicks’ and other misconceptions…

This will be an invaluable workshop for all journalists looking to upskill and add value to their stories in the digital age.

Tickets are £7 for non-WiJ Scotland members and £5 for members. If you cannot make the event but would like to be sent a recording of the workshop the following day, please select 'Catch-up recording' (£5). To book click here.

Our winter social promises to be a lively affair with fun, fizz and fabulous people.

As we didn't get the chance to get together last winter, we thought there was no time like the present to kick off the festive season in style.

A chance to get together with old colleagues, friends and new faces in media, the evening will boast a space to escape the newsroom (or your bedroom if you're still working from home) at the chic surroundings of Saint Jude's Glasgow on Bath Street.

As well as your £15 ticket including two drinks, there will be time for chatting (or dancing) into the wee hours in the private area exclusively for Women in Journalism Scotland.

There will be a raffle on the evening too and we'd love you to bring some spare change to participate. All funds will go back into our brilliant organisation to continue to develop and offer opportunities for women in media.

We'd love you to bring along colleagues who aren't members yet too so they can find out all about the organisation and what we offer. Tickets are also available for non-members, the more the merrier!

The wine will be poured from 7pm...

We've also created a fabulous playlist for the evening, so if you'd like to add your favourite song visit spoti.fi/3RsEsKc.

Don’t miss out! To book your tickets click here

Join Chitra Ramaswamy, Dani Garavelli and Eve Livingston for a workshop packed with tips and advice on how to be a successful freelance journalist.

Hosted by Women in Journalism Scotland chair Gabriella Bennett, this event will reveal how freelancing can work for journalists at various stages of their careers.

Three of the UK's best freelance journalists will be on hand to answer your questions including how they got started as freelancers, how to pitch to London and Scottish editors, how to make the jump from staff job to freelancer, and how to write for different publications.

More on our panellists:

Chitra Ramaswamy is a journalist and author. She writes for The Guardian, is the restaurant critic for The Times Scotland, and broadcasts for BBC radio. Her latest book, Homelands: The History of a Friendship, published by Canongate in April 2022, is a work of creative non-fiction, while her first book, Expecting: The Inner Life of Pregnancy, published by Saraband in April 2016, won the Saltire First Book of the Year Award and was shortlisted for the Polari Prize.

Dani Garavelli is a freelance feature writer and columnist working for titles across the UK.

Eve Livingston is a freelance social affairs journalist. She has written for The Guardian, The Independent and VICE among many others and has appeared on TV and radio including BBC Woman's Hour and ITV News. In 2018 she was one of Young Women Scotland's 30 under 30, and in 2019 she was shortlisted for an Orwell Prize and Amnesty Media Award.

Tickets for the event can be booked here.

(Graphic credit: Chloe Gardener)

Women in Journalism Scotland is partnering with the BBC Scotland politics team to offer broadcast media training to 20 women to help improve gender balance in politics and news coverage. 

It’s important that political journalism includes a diverse range of voices and perspectives. We’re holding a session to encourage the next crop of female commentators and experts to step up. If you’re an expert in economics, policy, international relations, climate change, or you have the insight to help our viewers and listeners analyse the political road ahead, then we want to hear from you.

We’re looking for informed voices on subjects related to politics, or specialist journalists who want to make the transition to radio and TV commentary.

Participants will undertake vocal training, a mock panel interview, a mock radio interview and hear from senior producers on what they're looking for when they book guests for political shows. Lunch, teas and coffees will be provided.

The workshop will take place at BBC Scotland, Pacific Quay, Glasgow, on Friday, September 30, from 10.30am until 5.30pm. Financial support is available for childcare costs.

Deadline for applications: 5pm Friday September 2nd. 

To apply for a space on the workshop please click here for the form. Any questions, email: wijscotland@gmail.com

The WiJ Scotland Salon – a blend of book group meets book festival event - will be hosted by journalist, Anna Burnside.

About this event

WIJ Scotland book salon with Louise Welsh

After a gap of 20 years, award-winning author Louise Welsh has returned to Rilke, the hero of her first novel The Cutting Room. In The Second Cut, Rilke has stayed the same while Glasgow, gay rights and the antiques trade have changed beyond all recognition. She discusses reviving a character, channelling rage into literature and why being a crime writer is the best gig ever with Anna Burnside.

Thursday March 31, Outwith Books, 14 Albert Rd, Glasgow G42 8DN.

Doors open 6.45pm, event starts 7pm and you can buy a ticket here.

Books will be available to buy on the night.

Picture credit/ Victoria Stewart, Daily Record

A question and answer session to encourage more women to enter the Scottish Press Awards.

About this event

Deadlocked on which entries to submit? Can't decide which category is for you? Want to know what the judges are looking for?

As part of efforts to encourage more women to apply for the Scottish Press Awards, we'll be joined by a panel of guests to help explain the judging process and answer questions about how to apply, how to decide what to submit and to give you the confidence boost you might need to throw your hat in the ring. 

Women in Journalism Scotland is also offering 20 entry fees for women who want to apply to the awards. This is to try and level the playing field for women journalists, in an industry where unequal pay persists and women still make up the majority of freelance and part-time workers. 

Our panel will comprise: 

Denise West - Denise West is Chair of the judges for the Scottish Press Awards. She was Managing Director of Trinity Mirror North comprising Media Scotland (including Scottish Daily Record and Sunday Mail Ltd.), Newcastle Chronicle and Journal Ltd and Gazette Media Company Ltd. More recently Denise was Chief Commercial Officer of DC Thomson Media before (semi) retiring. Denise is a former President of the Scottish Newspaper Society.

Catherine Salmond - Catherine is one of the judges and has held many roles in a 16-year journalism career. She is Editor of Scotland on Sunday newspaper. 

Susan Mathieson - Susan is Managing Director of Event Consultants Scotland which has been successfully running the Scottish Press Awards since 2004 on behalf of the Scottish Newspaper Society.

The free event will be hosted by Women in Journalism Scotland Co-Chair, Catriona MacPhee and you can register for it here.

If you'd like to submit any questions in advance or apply to have your entry fees paid, please email wijscotland@gmail.com. The deadline for entering the awards is March 3rd.

Women in Journalism Scotland is proud to be partnering with STV News in order to offer free broadcast media training to expert women, in a bid to help improve gender equality in the news.

The pilot event will take place on Zoom from 7-8pm on Thursday April 1st. It is for those working in the fields of healthcare and science.

Applications for this workshop are now closed.

Producers and senior journalists from STV News will provide a virtual training session for women considering being expert voices in the media. A number of STV staff will guide participants through an hour-long session, which will look at interview techniques and confidence building.

A recent study for International Women’s Day 2021 by Talat Yaqoob of Pass the Mic, Professor Karen Boyle and Melody House showed that over a typical sample week, just 30% of experts on television news were women, and in the wider media sample, just 24% were women. Women of colour accounted for only two percent of experts in the wider media.

STV News is trying to achieve a 50/50 gender balance in its news programmes and is very close to hitting its target. This project is part of efforts to support expert women and empower them to say yes when asked to take part in broadcast news interviews.

The first training session is open to women involved in healthcare or science. That includes journalists specialising in these areas and women working at all levels of the many professions related to these broad fields.

It is hoped that other sectors will follow. These will be announced in due course.

About this Event

Aberdeen

Gender balance has become a hackneyed phrase to most of us in the media, but the truth is that gender balance in broadcast media has some way to go. Broadcasters want to redress this imbalance as much as Women in Journalism Scotland, so we’re teaming up to take action.

We want to give women journalists and writers working within the media industry the chance to expand their existing skills into broadcast journalism. One acknowledged barrier is that women are more inclined than men to turn down broadcast media invitations.

There are many reasons for this but to tackle it head on, we’re offering a day of coaching, mock interviews, speakers, networking and familiarisation with broadcast environments to ensure that participants are primed to say YES to the next media opportunity.

Participants will hear from speakers from the industry before being given vocal guidance to build confidence. This will be followed by lunch at STV and then on to two training sessions with STV North News anchor, Andrea Brymer, and other senior broadcast journalists: on-camera news interviews and a live studio panel discussion.

These will be hosted at STV News at Craigshaw Business Park, West Tullos, Aberdeen, AB12 3QH, on Friday April 3rd from 1130 -1730.

The afternoon will conclude with a debrief and networking drinks, to which senior producers and contributor bookers will be invited to meet participants. There will also be a chance to watch the evening’s STV News being broadcast live from the production gallery.

The fee of £20 includes membership of Women in Journalism Scotland. Existing WiJ Scotland members can attend free of charge (please choose the free WiJ member ticket option when booking if already a member).