Young journos at the NUJ

Last night I was privileged to give a short talk at the National Union of Journalists in London to a group of young black and Asian students who have been awarded bursaries to help fund their postgraduate journalism degrees. The NUJ's George Viner Memorial Fund is an amazing scheme that has helped countless journalists get a foot on the ladder, when they might otherwise have struggled.

Of course, journalism isn't in great shape right now, what with cuts and redundancies left, right and centre, but (call me an optimist) I feel like the digital revolution has nevertheless been good for minorities in the media. For one thing, nepotistic editors can be bypassed with something as simple as a blog. If someone won't give you a voice (and, let's face it, black and Asian journalists are still heavily underrepresented in the media), then you can do it yourself. Sites like Sunny Hundal's religiously-followed Asians in Media and Pickled Politics prove how great the Internet can be at providing forums for fresh ideas and perspectives.

Not only that, people who might otherwise have been bypassed by mainstream media are able to launch careers online - The most notable success story on this front is Salam Pax, the Baghdad blogger. And journalists are no longer limited to local media... In an interconnected world, we can sell stories to any paper, TV channel or website in any country.

So, while jobs may be few in this weakened media industry of ours, take heart - There are other opportunities to be had. Good luck to the fresh cohort of George Viner awardees. Their names are: Faarea Masud, Antonya Allen, Hind Hassan, Zahid Lalani, Saadeya Shamsuddin, Nabeela Zahir, Oliver Laughland, Scott Roberts, Sade Laja and Rowena Ibare Mbanu.