A BUDDING journalist is in the news after reaching the final of a national media competition with a hard-hitting dateline to remember.
Darlington College student Krystal Starkey presented her feature package to industry experts on the pitfalls of internet dating, which is expected to be screened on ITV in the coming weeks.
The NCTJ Level 3 apprentice was selected as one of nine finalists in the ITV ITN Media Trust Breaking Into News project.
After spending a day with ITV Calendar in Leeds filming and editing her feature she travelled to London to pitch it to a panel of experts including Robin Elias of ITN and Symeon Brown of Channel 4 News.
She is now waiting to hear the result and whether she will get to work with the ITN news team.
“It has been brilliant; I have really loved every minute,” said the 21-year-old, of Huby, who works for a community newspaper in York.
“It gave me the opportunity to work with some top journalists and I now realise that what had been a pipedream is a realistic proposition. Once I have completed my apprenticeship next June I plan to apply for training schemes with the big news channels.”
She said she had enjoyed interviewing a woman who had fallen foul of internet dating. “She went on a date, including a meal, but then had to fight off unwarranted advances and had to make her escape,” said Krystal.
“I conducted interviews in person with the victim and down the line with a dating association and completed a voxpop, which was fun. It took a while to perfect the voiceover as my Yorkshire accent really came through – and I kept missing off my gs.”
Darlington College journalism tutor Sue Calvert said: “Krystal has done incredibly well to reach the final of such a prestigious national competition, which must have attracted hundreds of entries.
“Regardless of the result, it has been an amazing experience for her, she has made some very useful industry contacts and now has a clear insight of the media opportunities available to her.”
For more information on opportunities at Darlington College log on to www.darlington.ac.uk.
