Chasing Sunshine, Stories, and Jazz Tunes: My Aussie Adventure Begins
Hello everyone, I’m Ryan! I’m a journalist who hails from the US state of Maryland and I just started here at Eastside FM to bring a fresh perspective and work on projects to help the station this summer and autumn. I’ve always wanted to live in and work in Australia, so I’m very happy to be here. I hope that in my time at this station, I can help you all understand a little more about your country and current events that shape your world, as well as give you a little taste of Spanish music.
A little bit about me:
I grew up in a suburb of Washington, D.C. in the state of Maryland. Think of it as living in NSW directly next to the border with the ACT, not living directly in the capital but close enough to it that you feel like you do. Naturally, because of the proximity, politics, news and world events were always present in my life. Seeing monuments and buildings like the White House or the US Capitol were completely normal. It will be interesting to see what Canberra is like since it is also a planned capital city like DC is. In my free time I love to exercise, swim, read, go out on hikes or explore cities and towns, and practice the languages I am currently learning: Spanish and French.
Why journalism and radio?
Originally I was a historian, that is what I studied in uni, but at the beginning of Covid when we all were stuck inside, I realized I wanted to change careers after some soul searching. I realized one of the main ways history is shared and documented was through journalism and the media. So, I took the plunge and went back to school getting a masters degree in journalism! During my time at school, my favourite classes were podcasting and radio! I loved recording tape and mixing sounds to tell stories in a format that is still very popular with the rise of spotify and streaming platforms.
During my time in journalism school, I worked on Capitol Hill as a Reporter, covering Congress, walking the halls, and pressing important questions to the politicians! Eventually, I began working for PBS and NPR stations in D.C. and in Philadelphia.
What brought me to Australia
If it wasn’t obvious already, I’m quite nerdy and academic and love learning about history and politics. Back in 2011 when I was in high school, I remember reading a news report about the political drama here in Australia about the abrupt replacement of Prime Ministers. I was fascinated by this and wanted to know more. I started following Australian news regularly, watching Question Time, listening to radio, and following blogs. I’ve been following news in this country since then and its been interesting to watch the nation grow and evolve as an outsider looking in. My last internship in Philadelphia ended in December, I began thinking about where I wanted to go. I decided to go to Australia!
What I hope to do
My main goal, first and foremost, is to learn about Australia and Australians. I want to learn about who you are and how you all consume news, radio, and music. We all have interests and dreams of going to places and we sometimes think we “know” a place from all the research we’ve done. But we don’t truly know a place until we’ve been there, and now that I am finally here, I can’t wait to learn about you all and this country/ continent. I also want to learn more about radio and produce my own content as well.
These first few days at the station have been interesting and I’m appreciating the mix of music along with reporting on arts, culture and current events.
What about music?
Along with my reporting for Eastside, I’d love to delve into arts and music. I’m Latino, so naturally I listen to a TON of Spanish-language music. My favourite artists are Mexican singers, Jósean Log and Julieta Venegas. They were on top of my Spotify wrapped last year. I also listen to artists from Argentina where I have family connections. If I get the chance, I’d love to make a podcast of play some Spanish music on Eastside. Here are two songs I like:
What keeps me going and what I hope to learn
Coffee, swimming, the sunshine. I absolutely despise winter and I am happy to be back in summer. Although, its going to take me a bit to learn your espresso coffee culture when I’m so used to a nice big pot of American drip coffee. However, my absolute favourite drink is yerba mate from Argentina!