June 2022 – Event: AMPLIFYING VOICES IN PUBLISHING

‘Amplifying Voices in Publishing’ was an event hosted by the Media School at LCC in June 2022. The event was curated by LCC staff and students, looking at industry issues in terms of navigating inclusion as well as exploring employability topics. It was put together by Dr Laura Little and Dr Frania Hall from the Journalism and Publishing programme and students Sanika Joshi from the Media School and Emma Crampton-Thomas from the Screen School at LCC.  The discussion was hosted by Gulsum Altinbas a current student on MA Publishing.

A panel of women publishers and CEOs from diverse backgrounds were invited for a discussion on working in the publishing and wider creative industries, and they shared their journeys in the publishing industry; this was followed by a question and answer session at the end.  

The primary theme of the panel discussion was to talk about diversity and deconstruct the barriers that surround the publishing industry. The discussion ranged around a variety of issues – from the challenges that these entrepreneurs faced to the changes they would like to see within the industry in the near future. The event also aimed at building a rich network of creative entrepreneurs at UAL helping the participants (students from a variety of courses and backgrounds from UAL and further afield) to learn about different avenues available to them to begin their careers in this industry. 

The three panelists were: Ekta Mahajan, the founder and CEO of Creatives for You – an exciting digital hub connecting emerging talent between education and creative businesses, Esther Molyneux, the content marketing director of Little Feminist, a book children’s subscription service focused on diversity and inclusion, and Kim Onasile, the SEO & Content Manager for BBC Good Food and Olive Magazine, working at Immediate Media. All three panelists shared the diverse knowledge that they possess about this industry and outlined their personal and professional achievements with the audience, reflecting on the challenges they have overcome and on the nature of inclusion within the industry; they were all very concerned to instill confidence in students about entering an industry in their own terms. It was an exciting and informative event for all those students who want to have a career in the field of Publishing and especially for students who belong to ethnic minorities.   

With thanks to the LCC EDI fund for supporting this event. 

A recording will be made available of the event.

By Sanika Joshi, MA Publishing 

Creatives for you: https://creativesforyou.com/ 

The Little Feminist: https://littlefeminist.com/ 

Olive magazine: https://www.immediate.co.uk/brands/olive/