August 1st, 2015 — Over the two months that I worked at Joy FM, I have been surrounded by some of the most talented journalists I may ever meet. I will miss them very much.
George — Tall and wearing solid-colored shirts that makes him look a bit like a cowboy, I will always admire the laid-back and cheerful way that he presents sports news on the radio. Off air, he is a very caring man — he was always looking out for people in the office, and if he sensed that something was troubling someone, he would talk to them and try to find out what was the matter. He would lean back in his chair, focus his eyes on the person, listen to their feelings, and try to help solve their problems — he did study psychology in college. He was also possibly the best bass player I have ever met, and he would show videos that he would film when he got home after a 17-hour workday where he would play very advanced bass lines from jazz, funk, and afro-beat tunes. He also showed me videos of him jamming with his church band. On my list of things to do on my return to Ghana is to jam with George.
Gary — Gary has a more energetic presence on the radio, which I also really admire. He is also a fantastic writer and an absolute genius when it came to global sports news. When I would be studying the soccer transfer window and writing scripts and posts based on it, I would often find 11 transfer stories which I felt were newsworthy and not based on factless rumors. Gary, in much shorter time, would find 23. He also had a deep sense of understanding of what transfer news interested Ghanaians, which is quite hard with so many transfers happening over the summer. His writing was also very entertaining to read, “Sam Groth, who holds the record for the fastest ever delivery in tennis, regularly launched 140mph missiles against Roger Federer, but the Australian was taught that you need more than bullet serves against the big boys.” he wrote once about the Wimbledon match between Sam Groth and Roger Federer.
Kwaku — Although quite a reserved man, he is an absolute mastermind in Ghana League Football, and he would publish very in-depth analyst content regarding upcoming and finished match-ups. He is often the go-to man for interns who would want to confirm if their information was correct about Ghana soccer.
Kwasi — Also an intern at the station and a sophomore journalism school student just like myself, Kwasi interests me because he has similar passions and ambitions as I do, only we live on opposite ends of the Atlantic ocean. It was interesting to learn about the life of a journalism college student in Ghana and see that what they were learning in school has many similarities to what we learn. For example, many were just starting out in undertaking group projects where they would film and edit audio, much like I was doing last term in Gateway III. He also has an eagerness to make use of his new skills much like many of us have, as he used multimedia to promote a micro-granting dinner he organized called “Accra Soup.” It was also his first time doing sports journalism compared to reporting on news, but I would’ve never been able to tell. The content he was producing online was fantastic, and he would write very thought-provoking articles on a range of subjects which addressed current concerns. My favorite was one he wrote on Mario Balotelli, who currently having trouble finding a club that would accept him, where Kwasi reminded the public that only last summer, Balotelli was the most sought-out talent.
Benedict — He took me under his wing the first day I arrived at the station. He constantly looked out for me, and he made it much easier for me to be a proactive intern. If I had an idea, he would provide me with the tools I needed to see it through. He provided me with phone numbers of people to interview and hooked me up with people I could attend games with. He has an interesting voice on the radio; while many other personalities at Joy FM take on a slight English accent, his sounded youthful, crisp, and very local. Only two years older than me, I really admired how he would take charge in board meetings and how he would always come up with a cornucopia of ideas every day.
Eric Asante — The commentator I worked with was very kind. Primarily a girls’ school teacher, he had a part-time job with Joy FM where he would commentate games. He taught me much about covering sporting events. I was delighted to hear from him one last time when he called me and wished me a safe journey.
Comments by jaclynr