My Science School

I am not presentable in my looks. How can I go in electronic Media?

Looks do matter on TV, to a certain extent these days. You don’t have to be a beauty queen, but how you present yourself in front of the camera spells your success. Maybe, you are photogenic and work wonders in front of the camera. The best way to start is to give an audition tst for a TV channel. If you clear the audition, you will be called for voiceovers for TV programmes of that particular channel. In these voiceovers, you don’t appear onscreen, but record for a given news item or a documentary. Having stepped into an organization, you can prove your mettle and show an inclination for the area of your interest.

 

Each assignment, however small, is your chance to prove yourself as a conscientious worker and quick learner. Don’t miss any opportunity, even if it is in the form of a tiny news coverage. Face the camera with confidence. There are also openings in the research department and at the desk, where you can excel and gradually take on news reading assignments.

 

Picture Credit : Google

 

I have appeared for my standard X boards this year and aspire to become a war journalist for a TV channel. Please tell me which subjects I should opt for the 10+2 level, and in college. Also, which college should I join after 10+2. What qualities should a person have to become a good journalist?

It’s good to see that you are focused and have very clear goals. However, there is no permanent vocation like war journalism. As a TV journalist you will need to cover all kinds of happenings, perhaps war too.

You could either do a general degree course in the sciences or arts, go on to doing a post-graduate diploma in TV journalism, and then take the plunge. Meanwhile, subscribe to defence journals, read books on war history, visit the archives to see TV reportage on war, watch TV shows on wars and stuff the internet on related subjects.

If you are keen to take the plunge right now, join a degree course in journalism, which is offered by a number  of modules in the course, TV module being one of them. While doing your course, you can join a local news media organization to get a hang of how the media works. Since you are based in Nasik, you might have  to think in terns of moving to a metro for better opportunities in TV.

Since you are keen o joining the electronic media, you need to be fluent in a spoken language-Hindi, English or any regional language. You also need to be presentable. You need to have a nose for news. The media is a very competitive place and it’s who gets the story first that matters. Take a cue from Anita Pratap, who has been there right in the heat of the Afghan war, and was the first TV journalist to report from the Siachen Glaciet. The working hours may definitely be odd and that you will need to be daring and gutsy.

 

Picture Credit: Google