Grassroots priority for journalist

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Nicole Robertson was exposed to journalism at a very early age by her father who would faithfully watch the news and follow world events. Names like Knowlton Nash and Lloyd Robertson were familiar to her long before she made the decision to be part of the world of news media.

Her first real exposure to journalism came when she was 14 years old when she and a group of students were selected to attend a conference at a Native journalism weekend in Saskatoon. It was during this conference that Robertson decided to look into what journalism was all about.

Shortly after moving to Calgary from Saskatchewan when she was 18 years old, she enrolled in a Native journalism program through the Calgary Aboriginal Media Society. During this time Robertson volunteered with Shaw Cable and gained experience in front of the camera and behind the scenes at a television studio. She attributes her experience and method of study to her instructor Leon Anthony.

"Leon had this idea of, literally, throwing us students into the action itself, and this is what taught me my skills," said Robertson. While completing her courses she worked for a newspaper as a sports reporter profiling National Hockey League players.

Upon graduating she moved to Lethbridge and worked at a television station, but after seven months she decided she wanted to move back to her mother's home in northern Sask-atchawan. She then worked as an announcer at a radio station called Missinipi Broadcasting in LaRonge, Sask.

But it was not to last because Robertson liked city life, so she moved back to Calgary and began working with A Channel in Calgary where she worked on the show The Sharing Circle and the North of 60 television series.

Journalists must posess the quality reaching the public with images and words, and reporters have to be tenacious, said Robertson.

"I hope I bring awareness to people - not the mainstream's idea of what we are, but of who we really are," said Robertson.

This past summer Robertson took a few months off to decide what her next step would be and may have found her calling. She is applying for a grant through the Canada Council for the Arts to produce a video documentary on Aboriginal youth.

She is presently attending Grant MacEwan Community College in Edmonton as a journalism student.