Words: Claire Spencer
Photography: Jannica Honey
Described as ‘a real sleuth’ by veteran journalist and newsreader Jon Snow, the future looks bright for Natalie, 22.
“Jon Snow is amazing. He lures you in with his jazzy ties, and then you realise how much of a pro he is,” remarks Natalie Whelan on one of her key inspirational figures. “You can tell he still enjoys it.”
The much-loved Channel 4 anchor was impressed after seeing one of her reports on a student house party that ended in chaos after the police sent in the heavy squad. “I wasn’t actually at the house party,” she admits. “I had been out, and lots of the roads were closed around where we lived.”
“The next day, there was a lot of talk on Facebook about the party and what had happened with the police. I managed to track down footage of police violence and photographs of injuries sustained by students, as well as comments from the police and the boys who organised the party. It was all a bit of a rush to get the story to air [on student station LSTV], but it was worth it. It was the story everyone was talking about.”
Natalie never had a moment of realisation that pushed her into journalism. But her love of writing and inherent fascination with the news made it a natural progression. “When the rolling news channels broke news of disasters I would watch transfixed for hours,” she recalls. “Journalism was a great way to combine the two.”
She studied Broadcast Journalism at the University of Leeds, followed by placements with the BBC, MediaGuardian and Sky News, which she describes as “a nice way of knowing what you’re letting yourself in for.” Luckily her time at Sky News led to paid work.
The reel she submitted to the 4Talent Awards included various reports from Essential, her news programme on Leeds Student Television. “I feel they represented me not only as a reporter, but as a producer,” she asserts. “I also submitted some blogs I’ve written for MediaGuardian online. It’s always important to move with technology.”
