By: Aisha Lamidi
December 20, 2021, marked the start of my internship at Diamond FM. The media house owned by the University of Ibadan, and located within the university campus, received me with wide open and warm arms.
Before then, I had imagined what the experience would be like. Sitting in the live studio and observing how the buttons were operated; how the news was cast and things relating to being on air. Well, I hadn’t seen it all.
Getting into the system, I was to understand things I didn’t. There are 4 units in the media outfit: the reception, the secretariat, the newsroom, and the technical unit. I was to learn that, we IT students that aren’t physics students, who are permanently posted at the technical unit, would be rotated through the 4 units. I was surprised. What would a journalist need the secretariat and the reception for? Well, I found answers to my questions as the weeks unfolded.
Every day of the week was a day to learn something new at the station. One bright beautiful morning, I found myself at the reception. I was posted there for the week, my first week at the station. At first, I didn’t mind. But after the second day, I literally got bored. What am I doing here? I asked rhetorically. The first week didn’t do justice to the kind of energy I came into the station with, hence, I was discouraged. This reception gladly received me for almost 2 weeks. I was bored out of my skull. But thanks to my novels and my phone, It wasn’t totally gloomy.
Another bright Monday morning, seated around are IT students and staff members. The usual routine- the Monday meeting, where everything is discussed and certain skills are learnt. Well, along the line, I learned better how to write the minutes for a meeting. I never had to do that before, I’m not a secretary- Lol. This week, I had to be at the secretariat. The secretariat was not as bad as I expected. Instead, it was quiet, calm, and well, special skills also to be learnt. “Can you make a photocopy?” I heard that directed to me. I couldn’t exactly say, I had never tried it before. I got shown how to do it and boom, I now operate the machine well. The Secretary was also welcoming as she calmly answered different questions I asked concerning being a secretary and the secretariat. I indeed enjoyed my week there.
Finally, I got posted at the unit that actually brought me to the media house- the newsroom. Quite a lot of things going on here. I was amazed at the number of things to be learned. How news is sourced, how to edit, and of course, there was a major difference in writing for the print and writing for broadcast. Being in this unit is an adventure on its own.
The first time I had to write an article from a program on the radio, I learnt that broadcast style is usually very short, precise, and straightforward. And thinking it was just a normal style, my UCJ-UI News Editor had me write an article later and I used the broadcast style. You can tell why that obviously didn’t get published. Then I was to figure out the styles for different purposes. Sourcing for news also followed rules, some of which I had known, but not exactly witnessed. It was always great to be in the newsroom. After 14 working days, the News Editor told me I had gotten better with my news writing. I was really happy.
The recording studio and the live studio are the constituent of the technical unit. Just like the other units, the technical unit was glad to receive me. I had always looked at if from the outside, now I was to be in the inside. Such great development. Even though most of the time was spent at the recording studio, I still got a glimpse of the live studio.
The recording studio mainly deals with taking new recordings, editing the audios, doing a mixdown of the audio, and then sending them to the live studio as scheduled to be broadcast. After watching the technical students for a while, editing looked simpler and I got the basics.
I and some other guys posted to the technical unit would later make a recording, edit it and do the mix down. It was work mixed with pleasure. One bright morning, I had the honour of staying in the live studio till the DCA ( Duty Continuity Announcer) arrived.
It was an intriguing sight to behold. I could see the difference in the console at the live studio compared to that at the recording studio. And of course, to understand more, you definitely need to ask more. That, I did to my satisfaction. The technical unit was amazing. With the 2 weeks spent, I’m glad I can do what I can now.
It was now time to put to test all I’ve been learning. There was an event to cover : Bello’s Hall flag off. I and a team-mate were assigned the duty by Diamond FM. This was one of the biggest tasks I have undertaken. The program went on smoothly and we got our work done. But there was another lesson to be learnt.
The following morning, we submitted the news report and the technical manager complained that it was stale. We should have submitted the day before so it could be aired first thing the next morning. My left palm was always available to grasp the important things: lessons, corrections amongst others. It was still cast and I was glad I was part of that work.
“UI students to resume ……”, the news headline read. I knew it was time for me to round up at the station. After spending 7 weeks at Diamond FM, I have known that you can never finish learning. There are always new things to learn. We, the IT students were given the opportunity to pick up volunteer forms for those interested. Even though my line of field doesn’t fit the media, I have found the media much more interesting.
Now, I have a newly found love for radio programs and I listen more to the news broadcast on the radio, all thanks to two weeks learning at UI’s Diamond FM.
