About Me

I’m a journalist with a lot of experience in national and local radio and TV, as well as online. In 2011, I began teaching part-time at universities, and I’m now taking up a full-time job as a lecturer at the University of Huddersfield.

If you want to get in touch, send an e-mail to richardwilliamsjones@gmail.com

Here’s some things that I’ve done:

2013-date: Lecturer in Journalism and Media, University of Huddersfield

In summer 2013 I’m going to be taking up this new full-time position at the University of Huddersfield.

2012-2013: Broadcast Journalist, Freelance

I did regular freelance shifts at BBC Radio 5 Live in Salford, mainly on their online team and 5 live Breakfast. I’ve also contributed some articles to The Guardian.

2011-2013: Visiting Lecturer, University of Leeds

I taught broadcast journalism students about online, through a mixture of practical sessions, seminar discussions, and lectures.

I also did guest lectures and practicals about online at Salford, Blackburn and UC Oldham.

2010-2011: Editor, Saddleworth News

Founder and editor of a hyperlocal multimedia news website for Saddleworth, something I worked on around my commitments as a stay-at-home dad to my young daughter.

As editor I did everything from reporting to selling ads, and I successfully used social media to help build an audience of more than 22,500 readers per month in an area of just 24,000 people.

The site’s in-depth coverage of the Phil Woolas affair and subsequent by-election helped it win the 2011 Talk About Local/Guardian award for Hottest Story of the Year. Saddleworth News was also nominated for Best Media Website in the 2011 How-Do Awards.

In partnership with The Oldham College I worked with and helped train their media production students, as they produced monthly video bulletins for the site.

In October 2011 I handed over the running of the site to journalism students at University Campus Oldham, part of the University of Huddersfield.

2006-2009: Broadcast Journalist, Freelance

After relocating to Manchester, I worked as a radio broadcast journalist in both the north of England and London, mainly at Xfm Manchester and Sky News Radio, but sometimes at a wide variety of other stations.

Through 2008/2009 I balanced my freelance work with doing an MA in International Politics at the University of Manchester.

2002-2006: Broadcast Journalist, Sky News

I spent more than four years working full-time at Sky News. To begin with I worked on the TV channel as a text producer, writing lower-third straps and the ticker from the gallery. I also supplied text updates from the field at major events such as the Hutton Inquiry and Soham Trial.

Before the 2005 general election I worked as a researcher in Sky’s political unit. I produced the Reality Check feature, which involved turning dull data into graphics sequences and packages.

After the election I went to Sky News Radio to work as a broadcast journalist, preparing content for commercial stations around the country. I did regular shifts as duty editor, and read national bulletins on stations including talkSPORT.

EDUCATION

2008/09: MA International Politics, University of Manchester (Thesis topic: UK Counter-terrorism law 1974-2005)

1999/2002: BA Broadcast Journalism, University of Leeds (Dissertation topic: Hard-left socialism in the UK)