23-year-old Ashley Thom explains how her program, which explores current headlines, issues and travel destinations in the Middle East, became a success and discusses the struggles of reporting on sensitive issues in the media.
"This is so important, and something that's constantly on my mind during production, especially while I'm writing the episode content" said Thom when asked if she feels pressure when reporting on such topical and complex debates.
Despite these nerves, Thom manages well and says....
“it is really exciting…I feel like the reporting of the Middle East can be quite generalised, and so I try really hard to include the context of issues and a variety of viewpoints so that the series is balanced in the information its presenting.”
'The Modern Middle East' Season 1 was aired on Channel 31 in Melbourne, Australia on Monday nights in a prime time slot, despite its low budget. Each episode is half an hour long and consists of regional news headlines, an editorial on a topical issue, an interview with a related guest and a travel package – Thom writes all the scripts herself.
Thom became interested in the Middle East when she was in high school.
"I remember watching the Arab Spring on the news and thinking how interesting it was that populations across the region were capable of overthrowing leaders that had been in power for decades."
After graduating university in with a Bachelor of Creative Arts (major in Film and Television and minor in Middle East Studies), Thom developed the idea and pitched it to Channel 31, who agreed to broadcast the season once she received a grant from the Community Broadcasting Foundation.
“I'm really grateful that I've figured out that what I like doing and what I feel like I'm good at, happen to be the same thing. Even though it's a lot of work I feel really lucky to be able to spend most of my time writing and producing something about a region I find really interesting.”
Season 2 is in pre-production at the moment and will air on Foxtel's Aurora Channel from the July 12th to the end of September in 2018.
"Having already had a season go to broadcast feels so strange, I'm not sure that I've ever actually processed the idea that people I don't know are sitting in their lounge rooms and watching the show.”
Thom’s final goal is to work as a producer in a television newsroom in the U.S. because their industry has a lot more opportunities, and because she has always been really interested in American politics.
Her advice for anyone who wants to work in a similar position is to “build really strong relationships with the people you attend university with.”
Thom said she is excited to continue producing season 2 of the show and can’t wait to show everyone what she has been working on.
