Who is Joni Ayn?

I’m a trained journalist… and other things. From old media to new media, I’ve been at it since 1997. Combining all of my experiences in the media, I now:

• run communications and campaigns for the National Union of Students (NUS) Wales
• lecture in online journalism at the University of Glamorgan
• freelance as a multimedia journalist and social media trainer

Connected on both sides of the Atlantic, I began my career in Prescott, Arizona, as the youth editor for The Daily Courier newspaper. After cutting my teeth as a correspondent for the national Teen People magazine, and as a reporter and editor at The University of Oklahoma’s Oklahoma Daily, I became a skilled editor and designer for The Oklahoman, the state’s largest newspaper. Then, America’s national newspaper came knocking.

In 2004, I joined USA Today’s graphics department where I helped manage the in-house team of artists. With the print and online newsrooms merging into one, my knack for building goodwill throughout the newsroom made me a shoo-in as an online travel editor. While managing the range of travel blogs — some of the most read on the popular website — I also oversaw daily publishing and monitored audience engagement.

But my love for travel and learning — and a $26,000 scholarship — led me across the ocean in 2007 to study for a Master’s in International Journalism at Cardiff University, one of the UK’s top media schools. With a focus on television documentary, I rounded out my media production skills and took my first film to Hot Docs, North America’s largest documentary festival, in 2008. As luck — and love — would have it, I made Britain my new home.

Since settling in the UK, I started up a hyperlocal news blog, Llandaff News. This experiment led me from working in university communications at UWIC, to a role as a multimedia journalist at WalesOnline.co.uk. As a freelance journalist and teacher, I’ve taught online journalism to students at City University and the University of Glamorgan, trained ITV Wales journalists on the ins and outs of Twitter, and trained the Daybreak news team on live blogging.

Currently, I teach online journalism to master’s level students at the University of Glamorgan, and train journalists on digital media skills through NUJ Training Wales.

To see my full CV, check out my profile on Linked In.