First day at WHYS and half the job was learning the lingo. A 'jive' is an article that invites listeners to get in touch, a 'postform' is like an email form for the same purpose, at the morning meeting if an idea doesn't make it, it's 'biffed'...

What I like most about the job is that I was instantly taken seriously. Both my ideas may have been 'biffed', but they were both seconded and backed by staff before their biffing and put on the website as possible suggestions. In fact, it's not necessarily the most hard hitting or up to the minute ideas that get taken on, but the ones that will provoke the most debate.

Three discussion topics made it into today's programme: whether giving to charities is effective; freedom of the press in Morocco and whether you have to be a parent to have the authority and understanding to send soldiers to war. I was working on the latter, which came following the comments Senator Barbara Boxer made to Condoleeza Rice.

I was researching and booking guests all day, nervous to disturb mostly men and women who had sons and daughters fighting in Iraq or had even lost them. My head was also spinning from working out the timezone difference, I woke one at least one poor Californian up. I scored a point in getting Nancy Lessin on the show, but was a bit dubious about my other caller Laura Knight-Jadczyk at first. After reading her blog about Rice (coincidently also called Signs Of The Times) I did some research on her and read some claims that she was the head of a cult that believes,

that inter-galactic reptilian shape shifters have invaded human 'organic portals' (otherwise known as psychopaths), in order to engineer 9/11. link

However, she was an great caller and spoke eloquently about the subject.

Twenty minutes before the show I learned I was to blog it live. Now, i'm good at multi-tasking but typing a live precis of the show, checking emails and texts and including them, HAND CODING the type AND periodically updating the SLOOOW loading blog proved a little difficult. The result was that, unfamiliar with their blog software and ENPS, I put up my long blog, with mistakes, on their front page and presenter Ros wasn't impressed. I was the last to leave the office.


So tired now, can't be bothered to tidy this blog up. Good night.

P.S. Ran into Shaima, she had started her day by interviewing one of the chief judges in the Saddam Hussein trial! Go girl!