Ep 8: Barbara Woolsey - Canadian Freelance Journalist (Reuters, Guardian, Telegraph, Lonely Planet Guidebooks)

Barbara Woolsey is a Canadian freelance journalist currently
based in Berlin, Germany and our guest for Episode 8 of the So
This Is My Why podcast. 





Who is Barbara Woolsey?


Barbara Woolsey was raised on the Canadian prairies in a
culturally-vibrant family. She is of Filipino, Scottish and Irish
heritage - a unique background that meant that she was quite
unlike anyone else she knew while growing up!





We explore the question of identity, particularly as a first
generation immigrant in Canada, as well as her first exposure and
reconciliation with the Filipino part of her identity while
carrying out an internship with Bangkok Post - Thailand’s leading
English daily. 





Prior to becoming a freelance journalist, Barbara worked for the
Bangkok Post, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) as a
television and radio reporter, and In Channel (formerly True
Visions 92), a former English-language channel in Bangkok. Some
of the things we discussed included: 


working in a country where she was not versed in the local
language; and 

the realities of being on camera and being exposed to harsh
criticism concerning her looks on social media. 






Life as a Freelance Journalist


As a freelance journalist, Barbara has covered a wide range of
topics, including lifestyle, culture, food, travel, and politics,
for a variety of publications: Reuters, The Guardian, The
Telegraph, USA Today, AFAR, Condé Nast Traveler, Tasting Table,
Thrillist, Time Out, Roads & Kingdoms, Vice, and others.





She has also interviewed a wide range of people including
politicians, Berlin DJs, hotel maids, Venezuelan gang members,
transgender sex workers in the Netherlands & Bernard Trink
(who wrote weekly column “Nite Owl” for 40 years in Bangkok World
- a publication then known as Bangkok Post)





If you have ever wondered what it’s like to become a freelance
journalist, then this is the episode for you!





Other Topics Discussed:


How Barbara reinvented herself time and again while living in
Thailand and therefore, Germany;

How she submerged herself in the local journalism scene;

How she uncovered writing opportunities for herself &
established herself as a journalist; 

Fees generated as a freelance journalist; 

Some of her more “dangerous” writing assignments (hint:
hanging out with Venezuelan gang members!); 

How she crafted a work/life balance for herself; 

How Barbara stands out with her writing; 

The impact of COVID-19; and

Whether journalism work done virtually is as good as when
done in person. 






Fun Fact: Barbara has also emceed the Digital
Innovation Awards (DIA) in Bangkok in 2013, and participated in a
panel on travel journalism in 2014. And in 2018, she moderated
the Digital Science Match, a gathering of over 1,000 science and
tech specialists, put on by the German daily newspaper
Tagesspiegel in Berlin.



Show Notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/8