Two graduating UBC Journalism students have received 2016 Joan Donaldson CBC News scholarships. Michelle Ghoussoub and Daisy Xiong will work with the public broadcaster in newsrooms across Canada for four months beginning in May.
The Donaldson scholarships are paid internships with CBC awarded to outstanding students who have shown strong skills and academic performance. The scholarships for aspiring journalists “provide the CBC with an opportunity to assess high-potential individuals for future employment.”
Numerous UBC Journalism alumni have been awarded the Donaldson scholarship and many continue to work in various roles across CBC.
“Once again, our students have proved that they are among the most promising young journalists in Canada,” said School of Journalism director, Alfred Hermida.
Ghoussoub: Excited about investigative work
Ghoussoub is a journalist with local and international reporting experience who spent six weeks at CBC Ottawa’s Parliamentary Bureau in 2015. Her work has focused on topics ranging from human rights in the Middle East, Syrian refugee resettlement and health care in South America.
She previously reported from Beirut and her work has appeared in local and international publications including Daily Star Lebanon, Now Lebanon, Beirut.com, the Ubyssey and TV5 Monde International. She also spent a total of three months working on CBC television programs in Ottawa and Vancouver last summer.
“I’m excited to get the opportunity to work on multiple shows in different cities,” Ghoussoub said.
“I was fortunate to get to work in the Parliamentary Bureau right before the federal election and it was a very exciting time to work at the CBC.”
Ghoussoub recently returned from a reporting trip to Chile, where she was the producer for a major VICE News documentary project in collaboration with the School of Journalism’s award-winning International Reporting Program.
“After this field work I’m really excited about doing more in-depth investigative work, as well as getting more of a chance to work in radio. I didn’t have any experience working in radio coming into j-school. Since then I’ve come to realize it’s something I really love.”
Xiong: Find unreported stories
Xiong is a Chinese-born journalist who has worked in broadcast and online news on two continents. She interned with CBC’s The Current last summer and subsequently worked as a freelancer, producing an investigative piece that appeared on The Current in fall 2015.
Xiong also travelled to Chile as part of the International Reporting Program in February, working on a project for VICE News.
“I’m hoping to get more hands on experience in different areas, like in digital,” Xiong said. “I’d also like to use my language skills to find stories that might otherwise go unreported.”
Her internship and work with The Current gave her a strong start in working on CBC programming.
“Now I know how the newsroom works, the work environment and the procedures for radio news. I feel like I’m more prepared and confident now.”
“I think this is a good way to step into the industry after graduation. I’m hoping to get more of my work published, it’s an opportunity to prove myself as a journalist — this gives me the platform to do that.”
