Jonathan Moore

Loras College Study Abroad

Ireland Portfolio

Introduction
My name is Jonathan Moore and I am a junior at Loras College. I am currently working towards a double
major in Media Studies and Marketing. My goals after college are to find a job, love, and happiness.
My internship is at 103.2 Dublin City fm Radio. The number for the station is +353 1 865 8020. My
supervisor at the station is Mick Hanley, CEO and station manager. I would say there is more of an
informal chain of command than there is a true structure to the station. Everything runs through Mick, and
then it trickles down from him. If there is going to be a policy change or an important decision made,
there will be a few people involved but at the end of the day it comes down to what Mick has to say.
103.2 Dublin City fm is both a talk radio and music station. Because it does both and because there is
such a wide variety of shows on the station, it is in competition with basically every other radio station in
Dublin. This can be a good thing and a bad thing. It is a good thing because there are such a wide variety
of shows, talk, and music that there really is something for everyone at 103.2. On the other hand,
however, having such a great number of different shows can spread things pretty thin. So while there is
something for everyone, that something might only come around once every couple of days.
103.2 Dublin City fm aims to provide a special interest radio service which stimulates, informs and
entertains listeners in the greater Dublin area. The strong blend of talk and music based programming
reflects a broad base of Dubliners concerns, interests and opinions. Program themes and materials are
sourced from local communities, special interest groups, local authorities, and to a limited extent, national
and international public service broadcasters, who reflect the stations core values and ethics.
103.2 Dublin City fm is a very interesting station in the fact that it is almost all made up of volunteer
workers. There are only three people who are paid to work at the station and everyone else is volunteer.
Because it is a special interest radio station they are able to provide many different programs. There are
different hosts for almost every program so it is difficult to count the exact number of employees at the
station.

Learning Plan
I. Decide whether or not radio is a career that I would like to pursue.

A. Explore the radio work environment and find out what working at a radio station is like on a day to
day basis.
B. Shadowing someone who works on the technical side of things such as a technical producer, and
someone who has more to do with hosting the radio show.

Means: Seek out tasks and activities that will give me a better understanding of the radio work
environment.
Understand the roles of an executive producer who acts as the technical producer for many of the shows.
Understand the responsibilities of the host of the show.
Discuss the career paths with the executive producer and show host. What qualities and skills are needed
in these positions vs working in the TV industry.

Assessment:
Compare the qualities/skills needed for success in this career with my qualities/skills
List advantages/disadvantages of working in radio vs tv

II. Improve my communication skills, both written and verbal.

A. Learn to write a News Update that goes out live on air every hour. I have already presented the
news update on air, but it was written for me.

B. Improve my on air communication skills. This would involve things like interacting with others
on air, inflection and tone in my voice, and being able to think on my feet.
Means: Sitting down with a regular news update anchor and learning how to write my own update.
Shadow a host of the show to learn how they prepare for shows and their methods to interacting with
others on air.

Assessment: Write and anchor my own news update for the station. Have a greater understanding for how
the host of a show prepares for a show and what steps they take to make sure the show runs smoothly on
air.

Week 2 Reflection
What assumptions are you making about the people involved in this experience, including yourself?
What did you observe about your behaviour and actions and those of others?
As I move into my second week of my internship, I am trying to get a feel for how the station operates
and how people go about their daily routines. I had a similar experience at my last radio internship at
WSCR 670 The Score. When I first arrived there I was advised by my supervisor to stay out of the way
for the first couple of weeks until I got a feel for how people interact around the station. I am trying to
take that same attitude and philosophy into this internship.
So far it seems that there are three main people who are in charge of everything and everyone else falls
under them. Although, it is not a situation where they put themselves above people or think they are
better, they just seem to be the ones who make sure everything is operating smoothly. These three people
are Mick Hanley, Heather McCloud, and Michael Glynn. Mick Hanley is the man who hired me, but I
work mostly under Michael Glynn. It is interesting that these two men are both in command because they
have such differing personalities. Mick seems to be a very serious, no-nonsense type man who is
interested in getting work done efficiently and effectively. Michael is also focused on getting work done
but he seems to have more of a care free attitude and he is always good for a few words of
encouragement. Heather is somewhat of a mix of the two.
Everyone here whether it is Mick, Michael, or any of the other employees, are extremely nice and always
looking to help which makes for a great work environment.

Week 3 Reflection
What does this experience point out to you about you own attitudes, biases, or preferences?
What are you learning about yourself through this internship?
I try to be a very optimistic and positive person at all times. Very rarely will I catch myself feeling down
or negative about something. I think I learned that from my parents. They taught me to always try to see
the bright side of a situation. I feel that it is much easier to work with someone who sees the positives
rather than the negatives. So naturally I prefer to work in an environment where positivity is encouraged.
I brought a positive attitude with me when I first started here at Dublin City fm and I could not have
received a better response from my co-workers. Everyone at the station brings that same positive attitude
to work every day and it is truly refreshing. They are always looking for the good in things. It seems like

this is the norm in all of Ireland in general. Everyone I encounter whether it be my co-workers,
roommates, a taxi driver, or anyone, they all have a very bright outlook on life. No one ever has a
negative word to say. I am glad and very lucky to have been placed at this station where I am able to feel
comfortable and grow in my professional skills and social skills because of the great environment my coworkers have created.

Week 4 Reflection
Reflect on your cultural experience; think about an attitude or opinion, a social situation, learning a
new word, a new food and response in one or two paragraphs.
I have had many different unique cultural experiences during my time in Dublin so far. One of the most
interesting to me is how relaxed and laid back the work environment can be. I'm not sure if it is like this
in all work environments in Dublin, but at my radio station everyone is very laid back. For example, I
have seen people come in up to 45 minutes late to work with what seems to be no excuse at all other than
the fact that they are simply running late and no one makes a fuss about it. They have more of a positive
outlook on things where they don't focus on the negative fact that you were late to work, but they focus on
the positives as in, 'Don't worry about being late, you're here now, let's get some work done.' This style of
work is actually quite refreshing. It makes for a very stress free work environment and to my knowledge
it has not affected the daily routine of the station in any way.
Along with the relaxed work environment I have noticed that people will go out of their way to make sure
someone else is doing ok and having a good day. I get asked, 'How are you doing?' and 'Everything going
alright?' at least 5 or 6 times per day. And I get asked if I would like some tea or coffee even more than
that. And they are not just being nice to only me because I am new at the station, everyone is like this to
everyone else. It is a genuine concern for the well-being of others. People seem genuinely interested in
how your day is going or what you did this past weekend. It is a nice change of pace because you don't
always get this type of genuine care back in the US.

Week 5 Reflection
How does this experience contradict or challenge your academic knowledge?
What, if anything, do you feel uncomfortable about in this situation?

This experience doesnt necessarily contradict my academic knowledge it is merely different than my
academic knowledge. Back at Loras, I am very involved in the media studies program which consists of a
lot of video recording and editing and television broadcast. I havent learned any skills that have to do
with radio at Loras ever before, even though I would consider radio inside the media studies spectrum.
Its just not what Loras teaches. My first real radio experience was in the summer of 2013 when I had my
internship with WSCR 670 The Score. I learned more about radio in those three months than I previously
had in my entire life. I feel that I have learned some new things while working at Dublin City fm since I
have been here, but not nearly as much as I learned at my previous radio internship.

I have had a good experience so far at Dublin City fm. The only thing that I could say I have been
uncomfortable with is the down time that I have at the radio station. I understand that there are going to
be slow days at the station, and really there are only so many things you can do as an intern at a radio
station, but there are some days when I have nothing to do after I write my blog. It is not really an
uncomfortable feeling, but more of a I wish there was more I could be doing feeling. At the same time,
however, I can look at this in a very positive way because during this downtime is when I have been able
to talk with, learn from, and form friendships with countless numbers of people that work at the station. I
have learned so much from just having conversations with my co-workers, and the majority time it isnt
even about radio. I think my experience at the station so far can be summed up like this: I have learned a
little bit about radio, but I have learned a lot about Irish life and culture.

Week 6 Reflection
What are you learning about yourself? About others? About the world around you?
From being in Ireland and working with Irish people every other day I have gained a whole new
perspective and respect for differing cultures. Being the only American working at the station makes me a
minority, which is something I have never experienced before when it comes to nationality. It is a very
interesting place to be in. For example, everyone at the station loves my accent. But in my head I am
thinking, Im not the one with the accent, you are! There are other little things that I do or say that my
co-workers will be interested in or point out how I am different. It is not to single me out or make fun of
me or anything negative, they are just genuinely interested in these differences. Most of the differences
come with my accent, or the words that I say and how I choose to use them. It has definitely been a new
and exciting experience from that perspective.
Now that I have pointed out some differences between my employees and me, I think it is important to
note that there are also a lot of similarities. My best friend at the station is named Aoife and she has
recently finished grad school and is now working at the station. She is only a few years older than me and
we get along great together. We are able to make jokes, talk about movies and TV shows and sports,
understand each others sarcasm, and work together with no problems. This reassures me that even though
the world is a very big place, there are many things that bring people together no matter where they live
or what their culture happens to be.

Week 7 Reflection
What emotions and thoughts does this experience trigger in you?
What are you observing about your work environment? If you could, what are two things you
would keep and two things you would change?

Having an internship in a foreign country has triggered a lot of emotions and thoughts since I started back
in January. It is quite amazing how much has changed since my start. I remember my very first day at the
station I was filled with a nervous excitement as I made the commute from my apartment to the station. I
didnt know what to expect. Comparing that to now, it is a very different feeling. I have a comfortable and
confident feeling when I head into work now. Ive made so many strong relationships with my co-workers
and I fully understand my position and responsibilities at the station which gives me a sense of certainty
when I go to work.
The work environment at the station is still as calm and laid back as it was the first day I arrived. If I was
going to keep two things about this work environment it would be the laid back attitudes of the majority
of people here and the genuine friendliness amongst co-workers. These two things go hand-in-hand when
it comes to Dublin City fm. I love the way people operate around here. I think everyone works in a very
positive manner. If someone messes up a task or job they were responsible for they are not going to get
yelled at. Someone might tell you to realize the mistake you have made, and try not to make it again, but
youll never be put down or made to feel like youre incompetent or incapable. In my opinion, I think this
is a great way to run things. People beat themselves up enough for their mistakes without having someone
standing over their shoulder scolding them.
The only thing that I would think about changing about the station is the organization. I understand that
they have their ways of doing things, but sometimes I feel that they could be a bit more organized. There
are several small things that they could clean up in order to make things run more smoothly. For
example, when there are guests on the show, the process of getting them in the building, then into the
studio for their interview, and then back out of the building could be handled a lot better. A lot of times
guests are left waiting in the break room, hurried into their interview at the last second, then hurried back
out the door once it is over. The whole process doesnt seem very smooth. It is little things like that that I
think could be more organized.

Week 8 Reflection
You will soon have to represent this internship on your resume. Write three bullet points about this
internship now, while it is fresh in your mind.

Responsible for gathering information and updating the sports and entertainment blogs on the stations
website.

In charge of constructing a two-minute news update and reading it on the air at the top of every hour.

Received a behind the scenes look at how radio shows are prepared, presented, and critiqued.

Week 9 Reflection
What gaps do you recognize in your knowledge and/or skills related to this experience?
What is a challenge you have been presented with? How did you handle it? What, if anything,
would you do differently if presented with the challenge again?
This internship hasnt necessarily advanced my knowledge of radio by a great amount, but it has given it
a strong reinforcement. There haven't been any hands on or technical task that I have been presented with
that has been out of my range of knowledge. In other words, I haven't been given a task that was too much
for me to handle or where I didn't know how to do something.
One challenge that I have been presented with during my time at Dublin City fm was, and still is, the
blogs I write for the website. Dont get me wrong I love to write these blogs, but they can be very
challenging at times. When Mick first gave me these blog assignments, he didnt really present me with
any real guidelines. He gave me some brief examples of things that could be included in the blogs, but for
the most part the content was up to me. This was very new to me. When I write things back at Loras it is
all very controlled. I know the format, the length, exactly what its supposed to be about, etc. This is more
freelance writing. There is a lot of responsibility that comes with it because I get to pick and choose what
I include in the blogs, but I also have to remember that I am writing on behalf of the station.

Week 10 Reflection
How would you describe this internship to an adult relative (e.g. aunt or uncle) using only three
sentences?
If you were describing it at an interview, what would you tell them?
What are the differences between those descriptions?
To an adult or relative I would say, I worked as an intern for 103.2 Dublin City FM radio station for
nearly four months while studying abroad in Ireland. I met a number of fascinating people and received a
lot of hands on experience with radio equipment. This experience will be a big help down the line if I
decide to pursue a career in radio.
In an interview I would say, I worked as news/blogging intern for 103.2 Dublin City FM radio station. I
read the news for the station once per week, shadowed the sound engineer daily, and wrote two blogs for
the stations website. I received a lot of hands-on work at the station and gained experience that will
benefit me in the position that I am interviewing for with you.
The difference between these two descriptions is that the description in an interview setting is much more
detailed. When talking to a family member, they are interested in what you did, but they wont necessarily
follow along too well if you get too detailed. So you tell them enough so they know what you did without

getting them confused. In an interview, you want them to know exactly what you did. You want to be as
descriptive as possible and show them that the experience you gained will benefit their company in some
way.

Week 11 Reflection
What have you learned from the tasks (about yourself or more generally)?
How does this cultural experience fit into your personal and professional goals?
From my work at Dublin City FM I have learned a few things about myself. One is that I am more
creative as a writer than I thought I was. I have never had the responsibility of writing something that
actually had an effect on another entity like I do at the station with my blogs. I may have touched on this
before, but there is a certain feeling of pressure that you get when you are writing with someone elses
reputation on the line and this was very new to me. They gave me a lot of freedom with my blogs. There
werent very strict guidelines on what I was supposed to be writing about and in what format. This is
where my creativity came in to play. Each day I blogged I had to come up with something interesting and
exciting to write about. I wanted to take pride in my work at the station and I wanted to put something out
that the station could be proud of. I learned about my self-confidence during these stages as well. It takes
a lot of self-confidence to come up with something original and then put it out there for others to see and
be proud of it. I thought I did a good job of this.
I am glad I was given this responsibility because I think it will carry over to my professional career no
matter what field I choose. Being able to have confidence in your work is a huge deal. I learned that at my
internship. At the end of the day if I felt like I had given my best effort with my work at the station, than I
could be confident and proud of it no matter the outcome.

Week 12 Reflection
What connections did you expect to find between your classroom work (USA and Ireland) and the
real world of the workplace?
How have your expectations and reality been the same or different in the international setting
compared to what you might find in the US?
Coming in to this experience I really didnt know what to expect in the classroom in Ireland compared to
the United States. Being here now for a few months, I can now say the classroom is significantly
different. As I have touched on with the work environment, the classroom setting is much more laid back
as well. Students seem to come in ten, even twenty minutes late with no consequences. The students have
side conversations while the professor is talking and they seem to go overlooked. It is a much different
feel than back in the United States.

As far as the workload for the class, it is quite light compared to back home. I have been told that in
Ireland the final grade rests mostly on how the students perform on their final exams. This means that the
workload throughout the semester is not as drastic. In the US it is not uncommon to get homework
assigned every day. This was not the case in Ireland for me. There may have been the occasional reading
assignment outside of class but outside of that there were not many day to day assignments. There were
more big-picture type assignments like projects and presentations.

Week 13 and 14 Reflection

What are you doing during the break?
How is this contributing to your international experience?
Describe a cultural experience with the same questions as Week 7.
During my Easter Break is when I am doing most of my travelling outside of Ireland. I, along with a few
of my classmates, am going to Barcelona, Spain, Rome, Italy, and Crete, Greece. I am beyond excited for
this trip and to get out and see what these places are all about. These cities are so rich in history,
especially Barcelona and Rome. I am very eager to get there and learn and see as much as possible. This
trip will contribute to my international experience in a big way. One of my main goals coming in to this
semester was to travel. I have already travelled a great deal around Ireland and now I am getting the
opportunity to see other places in Europe.
Since I am already on the topic of travelling I will talk about a cultural experience that happened recently.
A few weeks ago my brother was over from the United States and we took a weekend trip to Paris. I had
heard some negative things about Paris from my Irish friends but I decided to go in with an open mind.
When I got there, however, it was tough to stay positive. The city of Paris itself is amazing. There are
some incredible sights and museums to be seen. I loved the city of Paris. But the people of Paris were a
different story. I know I didnt meet every single person in Paris so I am generalizing, but the Paris
natives that I did come in contact with werent very welcoming. If you didnt speak French, or at least
attempt to speak French, it was unlikely they were going to talk to you. It just seemed that if you werent
French, then the people of Paris really wanted nothing to do with you. So while I enjoyed seeing the
sights of Paris, I felt a little bit uncomfortable basically the whole weekend because I felt as though I
wasnt welcome in many places.

Conclusion
My internship at 103.2 Dublin City FM was a beneficial experience that I will take with my and use in my
professional life, and my personal life as well. Coming in to this internship I was a bit nervous as to how I
would fit in at the station and what my responsibilities would be. All of those nerves disappeared in the
first couple of days. The employees at station were extremely welcoming of me and they made it an easy
transition for me to feel like a member of the group.

At the beginning of the semester I made a learning plan regarding goals that I wanted to achieve this
semester, objectives and means of how I would reach those goals, and how I would assess myself when it
came time to decide if I met those goals. My first goal was to use my time at Dublin City FM to decide if
I want to pursue a career in radio. Some of my objectives included figuring out what radio life was like on
a day to day basis and also shadowing some people at the station to get a feel for what certain positions
did and what responsibilities they had. I definitely accomplished these objectives during my time at the
station. I got a great understanding of the day to day operations of a radio station and was constantly
working with and learning from a number of a people with various jobs at the station. I have a much
greater respect for the radio industry and could see myself pursuing a career in radio after this experience.
I am now considering getting involved with Loras Colleges radio station and maybe coming up with my
own sports talk radio show. I have always been drawn to sports talk radio and I think this experience has
given me the inspiration to try it out for myself, which would be a big step on the track to my professional
career.
My second goal was to improve my communication skills, both written and verbal. My objectives for this
goal included writing my own news update for the station and improving my on-air communication skills.
I feel like I achieved half of this goal. I definitely improved my written communication goals through my
work on my blogs and my work with writing news updates once per week. I didnt see the same
improvement in my on-air communication skills, mainly due to the fact that my on-air time was basically
limited to reading news updates. I didnt really get the chance to get on air on a show where I could talk
freely. Perhaps I just wasnt in the right setting where I could hop on a show and start giving my opinion.
I still think I improved my communication skills, but not to the extent that I was hoping when I made that
goal.
This internship has given me an experience that I will take with me and use in many areas of my life. It
has definitely changed me as a person for the better. I stepped out of my comfort zone by studying abroad
and getting an internship with a company where I would be the minority. I believe I thrived in this
situation and became the best version of myself. I lived out the Loras mission statement through my
internship. I was an active learner each and every day I stepped foot in the station. I was constantly
learning from a wide variety of people the ins and outs of the radio industry through hands on work. I was
a responsible contributor when I put my best effort into my work and made sure it was something both I
and Dublin City FM could be proud of. I got so much more out of this internship than I ever thought I
would. I received knowledge and made friendships that I will take with me for the rest of my life. This is
an experience that I will not soon forget.

Jonathan Moore =================================================

555 Fremont Avenue, Dubuque, IA 52003

563.451.7408

jonathan.moore@loras.edu

Education

Loras College, Dubuque, IA

Student working toward degrees in Media Studies and Business Marketing
Majors: Media Studies, Business Marketing
Deans List Fall 2012
Graduation: May 2015

Sports

Member of the Mens Tennis at Loras College

Captain of the Mens Tennis team

Experiences

Reporter for Loras College News and Sports Shows (LCTV, SportsZone)
Responsible for going to games and events to film, edit, write a script, and
complete by a deadline.
Technical Director for Loras College SportsZone show
Operational role as part of the production crew by controlling the vision
switchboard.
Ensure all vision sources are maintained at broadcast quality.
Study Abroad Spring Semester 2014, Dublin, Ireland
Studied media-related classes at IADT and interned as a writer and news
reader for 103.2 Dublin City fm.

Volunteer

Student Ambassador at Loras College (2011-2012)

Encourage prospective students to attend Loras by giving tours, answering
questions, hosting overnight stays and representing Loras in a positive
manner.
Loras College Dance Marathon Family Relations Committee (2011-present)
Organizing and planning events and activities as well as fundraising for
families associated with the Childrens Miracle Network.

Work

Programming Internship
WSCR 670 The Score Radio Station, Chicago, IL-Summer 2013
Responsible for editing and recording highlights, interviews, and sound bites
to be used on the various radio shows.
Received full understanding of job functions of different positions in the
programming department and how they tie together to form a radio
broadcast.
Radio Intern
103.2 Dublin City FM, Dublin, Ireland, January-May 2014
Responsible for gathering information and updating the sports and
entertainment blogs on the stations website.

In charge of constructing a two-minute news update and reading it on the

air at the top of every hour.