Veteran broadcaster and author Bimbo Oloyede recently spoke on ARISE News about her 50 years in media. The conversation touched on many issues including how women were once boxed into certain roles on air, how far the technology has come, and what she still thinks matters most for anyone trying to build a real career in this industry.
Below is the transcription of the interview by our intern Obianuju Nwabueze Obianuju
Looking back at your five decades in the industry, what’s the biggest shift you’ve seen in how women broadcasters are treated compared to when you started out?
Oloyede: When we first started, women newscasters were mostly given the stories that had video reports to go with them. There was this idea never said outright, but understood that we shouldn’t be the thing viewers focused on. So we made an impact, we did solid work, but it was always in service of the visuals, not instead of them.
Meanwhile the men would read straight copy live, even on stories that had no reports at all. That was just how it was set up. It’s a completely different world now. These days it’s about everybody looking their best, making their own impact, and giving a proper account of themselves full stop.
Beyond who got which stories, how else has the actual craft of broadcasting changed since those early days?
Oloyede: Back then, there was no such thing as a live interview. I honestly couldn’t tell you the exact year that changed but in my early years, none of it was live. Everything was pre-taped, and we rehearsed before we ever went on air. I’m not convinced people rehearse the way we used to.
Now it’s a mix of everything live, pre-recorded, online. And obviously, there was no internet back then, so we weren’t pulling in interviews or contributions the way you can today. None of that existed.
With all of that change, what would you say to women in broadcasting today?
Oloyede: Honestly, I don’t see it as a competition between women and men. What I’d say to women is: keep learning, keep improving yourself, and carry yourself professionally in everything you do.
Yes, you have to look good. You have to sound good. But you also need to actually know what you’re talking about because if you don’t, you’re not just letting yourself down, you’re letting down the people you work with, your station, and other women coming up behind you.
WHAT WE’RE TAKING FROM THIS
1) Know your subject, always. Looking the part gets attention. Knowing your material is what keeps people listening.
2) Don’t get comfortable. The industry won’t wait for you to catch up treat learning as part of the job, not something you finish and move past.
3) Skip the rivalry, focus on the work. The strongest case anyone can make in a newsroom is good, consistent output not proving a point.