Samantha Barry is one of the biggest names in digital news - the Irish journalist, Head of Social Media and Emerging Content at CNN, shared her vision for the future of journalism at RTE MoJoCon.
At a relatively young age, Barry has built an impressive CV.
"I've always loved news - from a very young age," recalled Barry, who studied English in Dublin before going on to do a Masters in Journalism.
"My first job was with RTÉ and I was working overnights, I used to write and read the news for 2fm and I was terrible when I started! I remember my Mom having these tapes of me doing the news and my voice is... it's bad!"
"But I had great sub-editors and a great boss that would spend a lot of time with me and not only on my writing, which served me in every part of my career. Being able to write well is something you learn really well in radio.
"I could not have asked for a better learning curve."
Such a pleasure interviewing @samanthabarry at #mojocon What an inspiring role model, thank you for your time!@LifeStyleRTE @MojoConIRL @rte pic.twitter.com/un0Vn3Bqoc
— Becky Stiffe (@becstiffe) May 4, 2017
Career changes in Digital & Journalism:
"My job didn't exist when I was at university.
"There was no head of social at any news organisation so the people coming up through the ranks now and the people starting out, I think they can't even imagine the job in journalism that they'll be doing," she said.
"Will they be the head of 'VR' at The Irish Times or are they going to be the 'AI' News Journalist at RTÉ? I don't know what their job looks like but it's kind of exciting to think about it."
Barry returned to Ireland for MoJoCon to join a panel of speakers answering the question on everyone's mind - has journalism run its course?
"I don't think journalism is dead, but I think people and mobile journalists, in particular, can really push the top level of media executives towards understanding news habits," said Barry.
"Real journalism and the way you tell it needs to change."
The future of MoJo?
Barry revealed what she believes lies next for the mobile journalism revolution, with a particular interest in the application of Artificial Intelligence, 360 and Virtual Reality in the newsroom.
"I'm really interested in the type of content that mirrors what people's habits are when they consume information," says Barry.
"So what does tappable, vertical video look like? If you're an Instagram user, you're used to Instagram stories which is this beautiful tapping, vertical experience, so what are newsrooms doing in that realm?"
Barry runs a team of almost 40 journalists across the globe who are split into three teams covering everything from verification of user-generated content to a dedicated social discovery unit responsible for finding new topics and conversations the network hasn't tapped into yet.
The benefits of VR?
Last year her network produced a 360 virtual reality of a refugee camp.
"There's something really empathetic about the VR experience when it comes to news and it kind of felt like you were in that refugee camp, at least to a greater extent than through a 2D video."
Combining her love for news and travel, Barry's CV features over 25 countries - something that has helped her carve a career with some of the largest media giants in the world.
"I actually got exposed to a lot of different places where mobile was just making an impact and just changing the news environment," she said.
"I spent a lot of time in Papua New Guinea in 2009 where radio was king, then mobile came and it changed everything."
While working with ABC in 2012, Barry experienced first-hand the power of technology when the sanctions were lifted in Burma and people started buying phones for the first time.
"It just changed how that whole country communicated," said Barry.
"It's been a fascinating front-row seat to some of those things and I think that's helped me in my career - working in a big news organisation [and] to think about things in a global sense."
By Rebecca Stiffe, Final Year Journalism and Media Student, University of Limerick.
@becstiffe
