Journalist / Presenter / Racing Driver

Key skills/talents cont...

To become a TV Presenter you will need:

• Confidence! With a film crew watching you, you can’t shy away.

• Great memory - to remember lines and cues

• Knowledge of media production and execution

• Excellent verbal communication skills

• The ability to accept criticism and work well under pressure

• To be flexible and open to change

• Good concentration skills

• Ambition and a desire to succeed - ‘snowflakes’ need not apply

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To become a Racing Driver you will need:

• Exceptional driving skills, including precision, control, and the ability to push the vehicle to its limits.

• High levels of physical fitness to withstand the G-forces from high speed and endure long races.

• The mental resilience to handle high-pressure situations, focus, and make split-second decisions.

• A strong drive and determination to succeed in a highly competitive field.

• The ability to bounce back from setbacks and learn from mistakes.

• A good understanding of the mechanics and technology of the race car to provide effective feedback to the team.

• Collaboration with the whole racing team and effective communication are crucial for success.

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Qualifications required

Many journalists start out as Editorial Assistants, or as apprentices, but even junior journalist roles would require some degree of work experience, either from school, college or university (school newspapers etc).

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You can study for an A-Level in Journalism and, although it isn’t necessary, most (successful) journalists have a university degree, and certainly professional media outlets will expect a degree-level application now.

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There are many different types of degree course available, it simply depends on which career path you would like to head into. Check out these two links as a starter for ten:

UCAS

The Complete University Guide

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There are many different routes to becoming a TV presenter. Individuals could go to university or college, enrol on a course with a private training provider; or even apply for a production-type of apprenticeship. Again, evidence of some work experience, either with a small media outlet or via your own channels (social, YouTube).

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Below is a list of some of the degrees you may wish to study for journalism and/or TV work:

• BA (Hons) Journalism

• BA (Hons) Journalism (Broadcast)

• BA (Hons) Journalism, Media and Culture

• BA (Hons) Journalism and Communications

• BA (Hons) Television Production

• BA (Hons) Media Production

• BA (Hons) Drama

• BA (Hons) Performing Arts

• BSc (Hons) Media and Communication

• MA Broadcast Journalism

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The British Racing & Sports Car Club has detailed advice on how to apply for a motorsport UK ARDS licence, which you will need to start officially racing.

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There are several places around the UK where you can also do an ARDs training course. Motorsport UK gives a definitive list here.

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Rules and regs

Ofcom is the regulator and official authority for the UK communications industry.

The National Union of Journalists has a code of conduct that has been set out since its inception in 1936.

The Independent Press Standards Organisation is the independent regulator for the newspaper and magazine industry in the UK. They hold newspapers and magazines to account for their actions, protect individual rights, uphold high standards of journalism and help to maintain freedom of expression for the press.

And the Society of Professional Journalists has a printable copy of their code of ethics.

The Information Commissioner's Office details data protection within journalism.

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Ofcom also publishes a Broadcasting Code for TV Presenters.

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Motorsport UK are the official body for all racing related matters and detail all ruels and regs for racing on their website.

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Apart from Professional Indemnity insurance (which as always, is a MUST), journalists and tv presenters would be best advised to carry Public Liability (PL) insurance as they meet members of the public. PL insurance will provide cover in case you damage someone else's property or cause an accident and injury to a member of the public in the course of your work.

 

Remuneration framework

The average salary for a journalist is between £20k and £40k a year, but location is always highly prevalent (London journos can get nearly double those in the North). Editors tend to earn between £50k and £80k a year and then Managing Editors can earn up to £100k a year.

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Freelance writing rates can vary and often the media outlet will have set rates that they pay. Generally speaking and with solid experience, you could charge around 50p a word, so for a 500 word article, that’s £250. Really highly sought after writers can even charge up to £1 per word.

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According to Google, the average salary for a tv presenter is between £40k and £100k, but as we all know, the big-guns can earn that per show, so it really depends on how big (geographical reach and viewers) the show you’re presenting on is. Generally speaking, you will agree to a ‘contract’ per ‘series’ and this gets renewed after the agreed amount of episodes (i.e. 10). And usually the deals are done with production companies, not the TV channel itself, because shows are usually concepted and owned (IP wise) by the production company, meaning it can move between TV channels, should it wish; and just like Fifth Gear has done. Having started on channel 5, it moved to Discover and then Quest.

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Racing Drivers can, of course, earn HUGE amounts, but this is mostly through sponsorship deals. The idea is to get signed to a team (if it’s a professional race car series) and then the team will pay you a base fee for racing for them. Sponsorships are then negotiated (usually by an agent) on top of this, and these include both team/race car sponsorships that extend to the driver, plus solo driver sponsorship deals. And of course, the better you are and the higher profile you become, the more sponsorship swag is available to you.

 

How to get started

Depending on what area you want to go into - and no matter how experienced you think you are - do a course (base-level, or degree). You WILL learn vital information that can either be showcased to a legit media outlet, or can be utilised through your own content.

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We have already given UCAS links above, but in addition to that, the National Council for the Training of Journalists has a website with vast resources to help you get started and qualified. Some media organisations insist on you having studied with NCTJ and, in fact, 81% of qualified journalists hold an NCTJ qualification.

The School of Journalism is situated in central London and their courses are NCTJ accredited.

And while you’re doing your course, practice. Write, present and if/when you're confident enough in your style, self-publish it on your own social channels, so that you can get the feedback you need to refine and progress.

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Then, whether you decide to continue on your own, or go and work for a specific media outlet, you have both the qualifications and the published portfolio to stand out from the rest.

As a TV presenter and once you have your qualifications and a base portfolio of presenting experience (even if on your own social channels), you will probably want to try to get an Agent, who will work on your behalf to negotiate contracts and salaries. There are many agencies in the uk. Vicki’s agency is Gordon Poole Agency.

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There are many ways to get started as a racing driver and the most common is via Go Karting and then progressing up through the ranks. However, Motorsport UK have great intel on getting started, here.

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Associations or official bodies to register with

The British Association of Journalists (BAJ) is a UK Press Card Gatekeeper and a non-political trade union founded in 1992 for journalists, both staff and freelancers, working within broadcasting, newspapers, magazines and online media. They welcome members who earn an income from being part of an editorial workflow process. These include broadcasters, reporters, hyperlocal editors, photographers, writers, sub-editors, page layout artists, and many other roles associated with journalism. They are an independent trade union and not associated or affiliated with any political organisation or cause. By joining the BAJ you can apply for a UK Press Card.

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BECTU is a UK union for workers within the media and entertainment industries.

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As we’ve already said, Motorsport UK are the official body for all racing related matters.

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Job site links

A number of job sites list writing/journalist roles:

The Guardian

Journalism

NCTJ

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TV jobs tend to be managed through agents and/or posted on casting sites like Backstage. However, do you research with production companies as well; know which production company owns/manages which shows and then make yourself known to them. A simple google search of your favourite shows will give you the production company behind it and then you can quite easily find and contact them directly, so they know of you for future castings.

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As for racing drivers, sadly there are no job ads for this. It is a strict case-by-case basis, and you either go through the process and land a job, or you don’t, and as Vicki says in the chat, for every one Formula 1 racing driver, there are another 20 that are just as good, but perhaps didn’t have the right funding set-up to progress and get noticed.

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Progression pathway

For a journalist, with experience, you can progress up the relevant career ladder and go from a  junior writer, senior writer, assistant editor, editor etc. Depending on which field you specialise in, i.e. news or hobbyist (magazines).

As a freelancer, gigs will simply become more frequent, higher profile and better paid. And like Vicki’s career, it is also possible for journalists to go on to become tv presenters; in Vicki’s case doing them side-by-side for most of her career, and on a freelance basis.

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For a TV presenter, you may be able to move from freelance contracts to a full-time buy-out deal with a set ‘show’. You could also move from smaller or regional TV productions to national and international TV work. And with an established TV career, you could move into other media work like radio or even acting. It is also common for presenters to hold writing ‘gigs’ alongside their TV work, with national newspapers and lifestyle magazines.

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A lot of highly experienced presenters also get to a point where they start their own production companies, in order to control the full process of their careers and increase their all-round earning potential.

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The progression for a racing driver tends to be through the racing series, and going from lower known/watched race series and progressing up to national (British) series and then world series. And of course there are also different styles/types of race series, from supercars, rallying, formula 1, even formula e now. It is possible to switch from one race series to another, however, most racers tend to ‘stay in their lane’ with race series and go as far as they can in their field.

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A lot of racing drivers also go on to be tv or even radio presenters and commentators, usually towards the end of their racing careers. It’s also common for them to have writing gigs/columns in national papers and magazines.