Tessa Neal completed two work experiences - one at Pollstation, a startup opinion sharing website, and one at Newsquest, a local media group. At Pollstation, she helped write poll questions and analyze results, struggling with staying objective on issues she felt strongly about. During her Newsquest placement, she wrote news articles, took phone interviews, and covered local stories, but found it difficult writing about uninteresting topics and working remotely without feedback. Overall, the experiences highlighted areas for growth like researching topics more thoroughly and gaining confidence to ask for guidance from other journalists.

1. Tessa Neal

2. - Dates: August 1st – Present
- What is Pollstation?: A start up website and app and opinion sharing network,
seeking to neutrally inform the public about issues and asking them to vote.
- Audience: UK public
- Team: currently 9 contributors
- Competition: YouGov – which has a community of 4 million voters worldwide.
- Circulation: for the demo poll 148,261 voted, however as site has not yet
launched the number is uncertain.

3. The Demo EU referendum poll ran from 23rd March to 23rd June 2016
http://euref.pollstation.uk/eu-referendum/briefing/

4. - Dates: October 31st – November 4th
- What is Newsquest?: Newsquest is a media group, I was based at its Sutton
office which covers the following papers:
- Croydon Guardian
- Streatham Guardian
- Wandsworth Guardian
- Elmbridge Guardian
- Surrey Comet: Circulation: 5,777 Press day: Friday
- Team: currently 12 reporters
- Competition: Get Surrey – circulation: 20, 801, Press day: Friday
- Epsom Guardian
- Sutton Guardian
- Wimbledon Guardian
- Richmond & Twickenham Times

5. The Sutton Team held a 14 day strike, prior to
my work experience.
- I was unaware of this strike, which was
embarrassing, I looked uninformed, and as a
journalist that is the worst way to present
yourself, so I have learnt the importance of
researching your work place.

6. - Researching, Pitching & News Sense -
what was in the UK’s public interest and
poll questions catered to this with a long
shelf life and/or adaptability.
- Poll writing and staying objective - I was
writing about issues I had strong opinions
about, therefore remaining neutral was
difficult.
Struggles:
- Working remotely – I found it difficult not
receiving on the spot feedback
Roles & responsibilities:
- Feature writing, News writing, NIBs
- Telephone Interviews
- Taking constructive criticism
Struggles:
- Writing about areas I’m not
interested in
- The ‘ethics’ of journalists
- Finding my own stories.
- Confidence and asking for :
feedback, to be shown how things
work or to go out to get stories with
other journalists.

7. Should Misogyny be classified as a hate crime in
the UK?

8. Staying objective?

9. - Researching, Pitching & News Sense -
what was in the UK’s public interest and
poll questions catered to this with a long
shelf life and/or adaptability.
- Poll writing and staying objective - I was
writing about issues I had strong opinions
about, therefore remaining neutral was
difficult.
Struggles:
- Working remotely – I found it difficult not
receiving on the spot feedback
Roles & responsibilities:
- Feature writing, News writing, NIBs
- Telephone Interviews
- Taking constructive criticism
Struggles:
- Writing about areas I’m not
interested in
- The ‘ethics’ of journalists
- Finding my own stories.
- Confidence and asking for :
feedback, to be shown how things
work or to go out to get stories with
other journalists.

12. Stories I enjoyed most at Newsquest

13. - Researching, Pitching & News Sense -
what was in the UK’s public interest and
poll questions catered to this with a long
shelf life and/or adaptability.
- Poll writing and staying objective - I was
writing about issues I had strong opinions
about, therefore remaining neutral was
difficult.
Struggles:
- Working remotely – I found it difficult not
receiving on the spot feedback
Roles & responsibilities:
- Feature writing, News writing, NIBs
- Telephone Interviews
- Taking constructive criticism
Struggles:
- Writing about areas I’m not
interested in
- The ‘ethics’ of journalists
- Finding my own stories.
- Confidence and asking for :
feedback, to be shown how things
work or to go out to get stories with
other journalists.

14. Personal action plans and the future?
- I must exploit every opportunity I get.
- I’m capable of becoming a journalist but unless working on The River
changes my mind, I don’t want to work in local news. I lack the
enthusiasm.
- I really need to be working in an area I’m passionate about.

15. Thank you for listening.