Tag: Radio ENRG

Student journalists go live on radio for 24 hours in aid of Ukraine

Radio ENRG is delighted to present the return of its annual 24-hour Charity Broadcast Extravaganza, with funds raised going to support those affected by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Student journalists at Edinburgh Napier University will be on air from 12pm on Wednesday 4th May right through until noon on Thursday.

A range of dynamic and exciting shows will keep listeners entertained right through the night, with dedicated slots for musical lovers, indie fans and dance ravers.

There will also be special quizzes, live phone-ins and fierce debate, all produced by current journalism students.

Radio ENRG’s sister websites will also contribute to the broadcast, with political discussion from ENRG Debrief and all sporting needs catered for by the team at the award-winning ENRG Sport.

This will be the first time since 2019 that Radio ENRG has been able to hold its annual charity broadcast, due to the pandemic.

Students raised £625 for Endo Warriors West, a charity supporting women with endometriosis, in the most recent edition of the 24-hour charity broadcast. 

This year’s event has been organised by ENRG Editor Seán McGill and Radio ENRG Station Managers Jessica Matthewson and Arran Proctor.

All four year groups will be represented on the event, with some fourth year students using it as a way to bow out of their radio shows ahead of their graduation.

Editor of ENRG, Seán McGill, said: “The decision to send this year’s money to Ukraine was an easy one. By the time the 24-hour broadcast is live, we’ll have passed 70 days since Russia’s invasion began, and more and more people are suffering every day because of it.

“Being on the radio is great fun, but if we, as a group of students, can also do some good while being on air, we see that as a real privilege.”

Co-Station Manager, Jessica Matthewson, said: “Due to the pandemic, we have been unable to conduct our annual charity broadcast for the last two years.

“We’re all so excited to be back in the studio this year, especially due to the fact that we are raising money for such a worthy cause.”

Co-Station Manager, Arran Proctor, said: “Radio ENRG is an amazing source of gaining skills in broadcast journalism. Doing this charity broadcast means that student journalists are advancing their talents for good!”

A social media team will be working hard throughout the night, taking song requests and posting updates at @RadioENRG.

Radio ENRG’s Charity Broadcast Extravaganza will be live from 12pm-12pm tomorrow (Wednesday 4th May into Thursday 5th May) on the Radio ENRG website radioenrg.net.

JustGiving link:

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/radioenrgnapier

Journalism students will provide Scottish election coverage

ENRG platforms will carry interviews, analysis and results

A group of students from Edinburgh Napier’s Journalism department are to provide live coverage of the Scottish election results.

And they have already gained an exclusive interview with First Minister Nicola Sturgeon.

Third year Journalism BA student Steven Brown is editor for the event, which will be staged on Friday, May 7 as the results from the previous day’s election are revealed.

Around 20 students will take part in the Merchiston campus event, which will feature eight hours of live broadcasting on the Radio ENRG platform plus online support on the ENRG Debrief website.

Steven said: “We are really looking forward to the event. We have secured a number of interviews already, with virtually all of the party leaders in Scotland agreeing to talk to us. We aim to provide expert analysis too as the results happen.

“It will be a great experience. Radio ENRG and the Debrief website have established real credibility and are treated pretty much like other professional media.”

The event follows the hugely successful live coverage of the US elections back in November.

That ambitious enterprise caught the attention of the BBC’s North America Editor Jon Sopel, who tweeted his support, saying: “Have a great night. When I was a journalism student, it was me and Steve Richards (another well-known UK print and broadcast journalist) commenting on the Peckham by-election (of 1982). Glad to see you guys starting with the most consequential presidential election in decades.”

This time round, another top BBC journalist will be involved. Edinburgh Napier journalism graduate Nick Eardley, one of the corporation’s leading political commentators, will give his thoughts on the elections in an exclusive interview with ENRG.

Steven said: “It was fantastic to get support from Jon Sopel last time. It’s great to know that people like him started out in exactly the same way we are. And this time Nick Eardley will be helping us out. Just ten years ago he was himself a student in these same classrooms.”

Hours and hours of preparation – agreeing the broadcast and online schedules, sourcing story ideas, sorting out interviewees – will be done before even an article is published on the website or any audio hits the airwaves.

The live coverage itself will begin at 10am on Friday (May 7) on Radio ENRG and run through to 6pm, while the ENRG Debrief website has already begun publishing content.

Steven added: “These events are incredibly inspiring to work on and offer students a unique and invaluable opportunity to learn and gain knowledge and understanding of what it’s like to work as a journalist on huge events.

“To be able to publish our coverage in two mediums, on the radio and online, will give the event a true industry-like feel. It’s going to be an amazing experience.”

Students taking part come from all four years of the Journalism BA plus the Masters programme.

Radio ENRG is a student-led broadcasting platform, organised from Napier’s journalism department. Since its launch in 2014, it has gone from strength to strength, winning numerous national awards for the quality of its content.

Over the years, the ENRG family has grown to include three websites – Debrief, Sport, and Music & Arts – all of which are led by student editors and publish new content most days. More sites are due to come online in the next few months,

Tune in to Radio ENRG from 10am on Friday, May 7 to hear the live coverage at:

https://radioenrg.net

While the ENRG Debrief website can be found here:

https://enrgdebrief.wordpress.com