Find and tell stories and inform the public.
This occupation is found in media businesses such as TV, radio, online, social media and print (newspapers, digital publishing and magazines), public relations and communications.
The broad purpose of the occupation is to inform the public- either through news and current events, or through the creation of authoritative features, opinion or analysis.
In their daily work, an employee in this occupation interacts with colleagues within the same organisation, representatives of other businesses/organisations and members of the general public.
An employee in this occupation will be responsible for finding, researching and creating journalistic content tailored to brand needs and target audience in a deadline driven environment. The content can include: news, features, reviews, documentaries, covering live events, researching data, shooting, recording and editing video, recording and editing audio interviews and creating podcasts.
The content could be used to inform or entertain on TV, radio, online, social media or in print. This could be across multiple genres; from crime to politics, to technology to sport to fashion. A journalist will source material, speak to contacts, conduct interviews and produce content as required in a timely way.
They will talk directly and engage with the audience in what can be unpredictable and testing circumstances. They understand the need for audience/reader engagement and evaluation of audience analytics. They will also source contributions to stories through verified user-generated content and the public.
Throughout, good editorial judgements must be demonstrated with a clear understanding and application of the law, relevant codes of practice and ethical principles.
A journalist will typically report to a senior colleague within their area of working. Typically, work will be completed in an office or in varied locations, including remotely from home, and will usually involve unsociable hours or shift working.
| Duty | KSBs |
|---|---|
|
Duty 1 Create journalistic content for publication on any platform, using brand tone rules and conventions. |
|
|
Duty 2 Ensure work and professional practice complies with legal, regulatory and ethical codes, guidelines and principles. |
|
|
Duty 3 Apply and review equality, diversity and inclusion best practice in all aspects of your work and consider the impact on the audience. |
|
|
Duty 4 Assess and select the most appropriate platforms in line with brand priorities, to achieve maximum audience engagement. |
|
|
Duty 5 Interpret and apply audience analytics to inform content development to meet brand strategies and objectives. |
|
|
Duty 6 Source and maintain diverse contacts to develop current and future content. |
|
|
Duty 7 Conduct sufficient primary and secondary research to produce error-free content. |
|
|
Duty 8 Adopt appropriate strategies and techniques for effective interviewing in a wide range of settings. Demonstrating empathy and making a connection with interviewees, while applying legal and ethical principles. |
|
|
Duty 9 Create and publish content from a variety of settings, such as the scene of an event. |
|
|
Duty 10 Shoot and record video and audio and produce images which are turned into engaging video stories, audio stories and content for multi-platform journalistic use. |
|
|
Duty 11 Research and interpret data to inform journalistic content creation. |
|
|
Duty 12 Verify and curate user-generated content. |
|
|
Duty 13 Work collaboratively with others to produce content and achieve results required by the brand. |
|
|
Duty 14 Undertake continuous professional development to aid career progression, maintaining a wide industry awareness. |
K1: Own role within the business, the brand's business model and target audience, both in terms of demographic and sociographic profile; and understand audiences’ needs from the media.
Back to Duty
K2: The relevant legislation affecting journalists: defamation; contempt of court; reporting restrictions; privacy, copyright, confidential sources.
Back to Duty
K3: The relevant regulations and more general ethical issues and how they can affect a journalist’s work including; the codes of conduct/practice and relevant regulatory bodies to comply with such as the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO), the Ofcom Broadcasting Code, BBC editorial guidelines and employer guidelines.
Back to Duty
K4: How to identify, find and establish physical and on-line contacts/sources to inform and contribute to content.
Back to Duty
K5: How to use audience analytics to inform content selection and story telling.
Back to Duty
K6: The techniques for planning and structuring content narratives, including working to a brief, which adopt the brand’s tone and follow brand rules and conventions.
Back to Duty
K7: How to generate original and exclusive content, and the contexts within which the content can be used.
Back to Duty
K8: How to identify and use techniques to extract data which will support content creation.
Back to Duty
K9: Interviewing techniques, strategies and lines of questioning to extract the maximum, relevant information from interviewees whether face-to-face, by telephone or electronic means in many settings, including press conferences, formal one-to-one interviews, on-the-doorstep and in the street.
Back to Duty
K10: How and when to obtain specialist subject knowledge selecting appropriate research techniques to ensure accuracy.
Back to Duty
K11: The theoretical and practical uses of social media platforms, the issues/risks of these and how this aligns with the employer’s target audience and protocols.
Back to Duty
K12: The technical requirements and use of multi-platform digital/social journalism recording equipment, editing and publishing applications/programs.
Back to Duty
K13: How to shoot and edit video and audio to meet standards for publication on different platforms.
Back to Duty
K14: Own employer’s recording and editing protocols and programs; how to proof read content and edit as required.
Back to Duty
K15: How to maintain professional ethics and practices and keep abreast of new developments within the media industry.
Back to Duty
K16: How clear, timely communication contributes to productive working relationships.
Back to Duty
K17: The value of brands, how they are developed and enhanced and how they can be damaged.
Back to Duty
K18: The requirements of health and safety legislation in day-to-day work.
Back to Duty
K19: Own workplace terminology, equipment and programs.
Back to Duty
K20: Procedures for dealing with complaints.
Back to Duty
K21: How to integrate equality, diversity and inclusion in the workplace.
Back to Duty
S1: Undertake research before reporting to ensure that journalistic content/material published or broadcast is accurate, impartial, balanced, engages the audience and is verifiable with industry standard use of English.
Back to Duty
S2: Identify, select, and verify multiple sources of information, including people, reports, data and social media, cross-checking and corroborating when necessary.
Back to Duty
S3: Take accurate, relevant notes when and where needed, use shorthand where required by your employer.
Back to Duty
S4: Assess the strengths/weaknesses of available platforms and where and when journalistic content is likely to work best.
Back to Duty
S5: Assess and produce journalistic content in accordance with legal and regulatory requirements; ethical issues and organisational specifications, alerting senior managers when necessary.
Back to Duty
S6: Make decisions and judgements at speed and when under pressure, on the way stories are researched and presented, aiming to lead when breaking news.
Back to Duty
S7: Find and use contacts to create journalistic content and exclusive stories which meet the needs of the target audience. Verify information from contacts and critically review its short and long-term implications.
Back to Duty
S8: Use audience analytics to evaluate the success of the journalistic content and how that can inform future decision-making.
Back to Duty
S9: Monitor relevant social media on a systematic basis. Proactively seek, verify and curate sources of user-generated content that will help improve targeted content, grow the audience and the depth of engagement.
Back to Duty
S10: Produce journalistic content using language which resonates with the audience as measured by audience analytics, social media interaction and reach or other internal "tools" used by employers to understand audience sentiment.
Back to Duty
S11: Produce journalistic content in multimedia combinations as required which "draw in" the viewer/listener/user to tell the complete story.
Back to Duty
S12: Report live to the audience from the scene of an event using remote technologies.
Back to Duty
S13: Publish journalistic content, using all available tools to enhance the user experience.
Back to Duty
S14: Undertake different types of interviews to extract information, identifying and selecting the right interviewing technique to suit the interviewee and seeking to make a connection with the subject.
Back to Duty
S15: Evaluate answers from interviewees to inform further questioning, probing for detail and inconsistencies in replies given. If needed, identify other people to speak to.
Back to Duty
S16: Check and evaluate own work in relation to industry standards, adhering to employer guidelines. Ensure it is of a quality to maintain the organisation's reputation in the industry.
Back to Duty
S17: Seek constructive feedback from relevant people about your performance; taking action as required.
Back to Duty
S18: Consider the impact of equality and diversity practices on individuals and groups and ensure those practices are inclusive.
Back to Duty
S19: Locate, clean and interrogate datasets to inform content generation.
Back to Duty
B1: Proactive and is curious, forward-looking, and open to change and emerging trends, to enhance the overall experience of the reader, viewer, or end-user.
Back to Duty
B2: Work on own initiative to prepare accurate journalistic content in the most eye-catching and compelling manner, getting it ‘right first time’. Takes responsibility for seeing the "big picture" amidst a mass of information or data.
Back to Duty
B3: Work ethically and with integrity and knows when to seek advice from more senior staff.
Back to Duty
B4: Work in a transparent and open way; making judgements free from bias.
Back to Duty
B5: Act to build and enhance the brand (employer’s and personal) and considers the consequences of any actions.
Back to Duty
B6: Works collaboratively with stakeholders and colleagues, developing strong working relationships to achieve common goals and promote mutual respect.
Back to Duty
B7: Recognises and complies with equality, diversity and inclusion in the workplace.
Back to Duty
B8: Is empathetic, builds trust and contact networks, recognising a duty of care may be owed to sources/contacts, and is a good listener while still critically evaluating the information being received.
Back to Duty
B9: Adapts positively to changing work priorities and patterns, ensuring deadlines continue to be met.
Back to Duty
Apprentices without level 2 English and maths will need to achieve this level prior to taking the End-Point Assessment. For those with an education, health and care plan or a legacy statement, the apprenticeship’s English and maths minimum requirement is Entry Level 3. A British Sign Language (BSL) qualification is an alternative to the English qualification for those whose primary language is BSL.
Level: 5
Ofqual regulated
The NCTJ Diploma in Journalism is the Gateway qualification for the apprenticeship.
5
14
Contact us about this apprenticeship
| Version | Change detail | Earliest start date | Latest start date | Latest end date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.0 | Approved for delivery | 13/12/2021 | Not set | Not set |
Crown copyright © 2024. You may re-use this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. Visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence