Queen Mary English student Seren Morris makes news with London citizen journalist competition win

Queen Mary student and Tower Hamlets citizen journalist Seren Morris was awarded Third Prize in the 2017 London Voices journalist competition sponsored by The Media Society and London Learning Consortium at a high profile event at the London Reform Club last week. 

Seren’s written entry considers the problems of London students trying to earn a living wage, and was part of a competition designed to encourage new talent into journalism.

Dubbed London Voices, the competition aims to promote emerging journalism talent across the capital and to generate a range of new perspectives and ideas about London. Aspiring citizen journalists submitted articles, videos or photos which debated and challenged the ways people think about their communities. The competition was launched against a background of discussion about the proliferation of ‘fake news’, and is part of an attempt to fight back by encouraging citizens to become part of reporting ‘real’ news about their communities and issues.

Seren has just completed her second year at Queen Mary, University of London, where she studies English Lit.  She interviewed six London students about the vexed issue of trying to earn a living wage for work and internships, and the problems they face surviving economically while needing to take low (or no) paying work relevant to their studies and future work prospects. Her magazine-style entry can be watched on the London Voices website at http://www.londonlc.org.uk/london-voices/.

Media Society judges Patrick Barrow and Barney Jones loved Seren’s “beautifully presented” article and felt it was, “detailed, thoughtful and clear, with some great photos and graphics”. She was presented with her award by President of The Media Society, Richard Peel.

Seren credits her interest in journalism to both the Welsh tradition of celebrating arts and literature, and her mum and grandmother’s talent for creative writing and poetry.  She also values the encouragement her father gave her around photography, which has impacted on her love of media in general. She hopes one day to work in print journalism and independent magazines, concentrating on women in the arts.

Published by

All Things SED Editor

I am the Web and Marketing Administrator in the School of English and Drama. Amongst my various roles, I run the School's website (www.sed.qmul.ac.uk) and its Twitter feed (@QMULsed). I also manage the running of the School's Open Days and draft promotional materials.