“The journalism industry appears to be moving backwards – retrenching into a world where only the most privileged members of society can gain access to the trade”, he writes.

“More publishers than ever are breaking the law by asking young graduates to work for months on end without pay, trading on the fact that in the current economy people will do anything to get a foot on the ladder into a media career.”

This is absolutely right.  I graduated with an MA in Broadcast Journalism last November, having completed my course in September.  Since then, despite my best efforts, I’ve struggled to find paid work.

Unpaid work, yes – but nothing with a wage.

As part of my course I was strongly encouraged to take up work placements throughout the year.  In fact, one of my lecturers suggested that my peers and I turn down work experience and only accept paid freelance work.  Chance would have been a fine thing.

The placements begin

So, as part of my MA I took a 3 week placement at the BBC.  I was lucky enough to be invited back the following month – albeit unpaid again.  Happily, some of those days turned into official freelancing – but that seems to have been a one-off incident.  Alongside all this, I was doing student and hospital radio in my spare time.

Post MA, I have taken up placements with Absolute Radio, (the station formerly known as) Trent FM, Lincs FM, sat in on shows at BBC 6 Music and Heart London and volunteered at my local BBC station.  I even went out to do work experience at a radio station in Dubai.

And still, there has been no paid work.

Ponsford continues: “Today’s graduates leave university with much greater debts than the current generation of editors ever had to incur. They need to pay for expensive MA courses, or at least the cheaper NCTJ-accredited short courses. And then they are racking up yet more debt in order to work for nothing in London to gain experience.”

Again, in my experience this is true.  I chose an MA that was in London for the sole purpose of it being in London and close to the biggest broadcasters.  Having been unable to find paid work, I had to move home to Lincolnshire because I couldn’t afford to stay in the capital.

Catch-22

So followed a catch-22 situation.  I wasn’t getting work because there’s not much going in local radio these days.  I couldn’t move back to London to find work because I couldn’t afford to live there without work.

Unfortunately, my placement with Absolute had been arranged whilst I was still at university – but took place after I’d moved home.  Luckily I have very generous friends and family who were willing to put me up for the four weeks I needed to stay – unlike my fellow intern who was also from the north, and had to pay for a hostel for the month.

Ponsford thinks that only the most well-off will be able to break into journalism now, because only those whose parents can afford to support them whilst they do all this interning will have the staying power to grab a job.

I’m lucky enough to have parents who support me somewhat; but not to the extent that I can do months of work experience without pay.  The blog highlights the ‘grey area’ of unpaid placements and the difference between being allowed to remain unpaid and doing sufficient work to garner minimum wage.  It is something that I believe should be looked at more seriously.  I and many of my friends who are trying to break into the industry are sure to be owed back-pay for the work we’ve done in the past.  I’m aware that the NUJ is addressing the issue.

Whilst many of my classmates believe that I was one of the more pro-active within the group in terms of gaining extra-curricular experience, I have met many other people from other courses, internships or at the Radio Festival all with at least the same, if not more, experience than I have.  All of us are trying to make our way into the industry; some with better luck than others.  All of us have a passion for music and radio; all of us have been working for free or very little pay for ages; all of us are desperate to get our break.

Ok, so things are looking up.  Sort of.

Finally, I should admit that I am currently back in the UAE at the radio station in Dubai.  I’m freelancing (with salary!) although it is on the admin side of things rather than programming.  I’m enjoying my time here, but took the work with the hope of it being a stepping stone to something more permanent – something that I’m not finding in the UK.  As well as that, I have had to pay for my own flights and accommodation, which in reality means I’m not really earning anything.

Whilst I’m not saying that this is a bad experience (far from it, in fact) it highlights everything that Ponsford mentions in the blog.  (Working abroad is also something that was discussed during the recent and rather interesting Guardian Careers Q&A on working in radio.)

Yes, I’m working in radio – something that I’ve wanted to do for a long time.  But I’ve sacrificed a lot to get where I am right now – particularly financially – and as more and more stations in the UK are being networked, and with the BBC cutting jobs left, right and centre, I can’t help but think the future looks bleak for young journalists.

I’ll end with what I took to be the main message from Ponsford’s blog, and something that I hope the industry takes note of:

“It’s time the journalism industry started treating the younger generation of job-seekers with a lot more respect.”

Youthless are a Portugese-based duo who provide your ears with some well needed garage-disco pop-rock.

They’ve been around long enough to have reached number four on Portugese MTV and have support from NME and XFM – to name a few – as well as recently supporting The Horrors and Crystal Castles.  Can’t get better than that.

Their thrashy disco is really quite good, and perhaps after listening to their last single ‘Golden Age’ you may add to that list of supporters.

Golden Age by onebirdrecords

Picture by Sarah Meadows

YACHT are a somewhat strange duo from Oregon who are apparently trying to break boundaries and traditions with their music and performances. For example, they claim they want to perform in odd spaces such as planetariums, underwater and on aeroplanes.

Their music is full of percussive beats and rhythms, with semi-sung vocals from Claire L. Evans, making for an interesting listen.

Their last single ‘Afterlife’ was released in April 2010, and sounds vaguely reminiscent of Desmond Dekker’s ‘The Israelites’.  Strange but true.

YACHT are currently recording their new album, which will be released in 2011.

They certainly look the part; skinny jeans, tight T-shirts and a hint of a quiff are sported by the majority of the band.

Mona sound a bit like Kings of Leon, but with more fight.  Frontman Nick Brown has declared that one day he’d be “bigger than Bono”, after all.

Pounding drums, heavy guitar riffs and raw vocals.  Sounds like a rock band to me.  Whether they’ll ever be bigger than Bono is another thing though.

‘Trouble On The Way’ is released on December 13.

A relatively new band (they’ve only been together for a year), the London-based duo is made up of 18 year old Emma Panas and Duncan McDougall (24).

Their sound is a sort of electro-goth mix – but don’t let that put you off.  Latest single ‘Stand Alight’ would sit nicely next to Paramore (although a more gentle version), Bjork (slightly more mainstream) – and even in the dubstep aisle next to someone like Ebola.

‘Stand Alight’ was released in October and can be downloaded from iTunes.  For more of their stuff check out MySpace.

As someone who has never read the books, I really look forward to the films; I still have no idea how the story ends (please don’t spoil it for me) – so each film is genuinely thrilling, scary and enjoyable.

The Deathly Hallows is no exception.  After the last film, I was thoroughly disappointed; it seemed like a real ‘filler’ in the series, building up to the next instalment.  But this had me hooked from the start.  Perhaps it was knowing that this is the last part of the story; but I felt that the acting was sharper (particularly by Emma Watson), the storyline more gripping (I was on the edge of my seat on several occasions) and the cinematography brilliant.  As well as that, there were some good people-spotting opportunities – look out for Rhys Ifans and ‘Dave Coaches’ along the way.

So what is it that makes people flock to Harry Potter?

It’s not just about the boy himself; after all, that’s just fantasy.  But it’s the classic story of good versus evil that shines through in every film – just like in the fairy tales we grew up with.  In each film, Harry and his friends, against the odds, battle through to survive another day.   And he wouldn’t be able to do it without his friends.

Ron and Hermione are at his side without fail, not to mention Hagrid, Dumbledore, the Weasleys et al.  Even Hedwig never deserts the wizard.  Yes, Hermione’s annoying.  Annoyingly cute and annoyingly smart.  And Ron is scared of practically everything -not great for the situations they get themselves in to.  But that’s what friendships are, aren’t they? You’ll always find something annoying about someone at some point.  But at the end of the day your mates will always come through for you.

There’s always hope

And at the end of the day, there’s always hope.  Hope that Harry Potter will survive.  Good will win over evil.  Who can argue with that? When things are bleak in the real world (recession, anyone?), films like Harry Potter enable you to escape for a couple of hours.  They give you a moment of hope.  If that feeling can stay with you after the film – even for just a moment – it can make life seem that bit better.

The attraction, then, to Harry Potter and his story is that it isn’t such fantasy after all.  Because we all have people we can rely on.  We all come up against it at one time or another.  We all hope that things will improve for us.

Harry survives because he sees the good in things.  After all, good always wins out in the end, right? With a little bit of hope….and magic.

Maybe it’s because of her voice.  Most probably it’s because of her feisty lyrics and fierce styling.  Honestly speaking, I don’t really like this song – but I’ve put it in because I like the video, love her make-up – and think she’ll probably be pretty big in 2011.

Jessie J is from Essex, and has already a had hit with ‘Party In The USA’, which she wrote for Miley Cyrus, as well as writing songs for Alicia Keys.  Already making a name for herself in the States, she’s won over a number of celeb fans including Justin Timberlake and Kylie.

Such is the hype surrounding her, the release of her debut single ‘Do It Like A Dude’ has been brought forward, and is now out on November 21.

Steady on kids – this is the explicit version.

They are, in fact, a female duo from Finland, who produce punky electro-pop in the style of CSS and New Young Pony Club. Formerly a trio, the band is now made up of sisters Emma and Mia Kemppianen, who hail from Helsinki.

This single – unsurprisingly, considering its title – has a hint of Bollywood in and is full of driving percussive beats, electric guitar riffs and the sisters’ harmonies.

‘Ghandi’ is out on November 29, but can be downloaded for free right now from their MySpace.

Full of synths and disco drum beats, the band have a knack of producing songs worthy of festival sing-a-longs; previous single ‘Young Blood‘ is an uplifting pop song, whilst ‘Punching In A Dream’ is a catchy and slightly punchier number – no pun intended.

‘Punching In A Dream’ is released on December 6.

It’s the second album for the Philadelphia-born 23 year old, who has written songs for the likes of Jennifer Hudson and Monica.

It seems Sullivan was destined to be musical – her mother named her Jazmine because she sensed that she would be a jazz singer.  A singer yes, but jazz not so much.  Her vocals are rich and soulful – although her lyrics don’t always match up.

This R&B number, ’10 Seconds’,  is a taster of what’s to come.  Love Me Back is released on November 29.