The “new Irish” do not have red hair. They don’t drink pints of Guinness or spend the morning coffee break scanning the headlines of the Irish Times. Instead they speak Latvian, Lithuanian and Polish.
They rise early, building the country’s rapidly developing infrastructure, caring for the next generation of workers and serving our tourists in hundreds of restaurants and hotel receptions. They come here to make money. To start a new life. To benefit from the open borders of the European Union. In the evenings, when they return home for dinner, many settle down with a copy of the “Polski Herald”, to read about news at home, news here and news abroad. The “new Irish” are creating a new media landscape across the country.
The Polski Herald was first published in 2006 as a once-weekly supplement to the daily Evening Herald newspaper, adding 3,000 readers to the paper’s circulation figures. Seeing its success other publishers have capitalized on the market launching the glossy magazine, Polski Express and the tabloid newspaper, Zycie w Irlandii. English language publications that target ethnic audiences also exist, with the popular Metro Eireann still generating substantial sales. The national broadcaster, Radio Teilifis Eireann (RTE) has also widened its programming to encompass the changing Ireland with 26-year-old Zbyszek Zalinski hosting the Sunday radio show “Spectrum”.
Journalism is renowned for being a difficult field to break into. But these difficulties are trebled when living in a foreign country where the main language is different to your own. Iwona Krauze came to Ireland in 2002. From Warsaw, she had been working as a freelance journalist in Poland before her arrival here. At that time, Poland had not yet joined the European Union. Arriving in Ireland, she was determined to continue her work in the media field, but as a foreign-speaking non-EU resident, she faced many challenges. Today, she is one of Polski Herald’s sub-editors, proving that determination is key in the journalism world. “I always wanted to work as a journalist, and I never gave up on that idea”, she states matter-of-factly.
Iwona’s first plan was to sign up for a Diploma in Journalism, which gave her an insight into how journalism worked in Ireland and improved her language skills. She also started to make contact with local and national newspapers. In 2006, Evening Herald Editor Stephen Rae made the decision to publish the Polish supplement, employing a full-time editor and two sub-editors. Iwona was chosen as one of the sub-editors. “Polish people like to be up-dated with polish news and know what’s going on in their country. That’s one of the reasons why they need polish newspapers here”. The publication has also been credited for providing vital information to the “Not every Pole speaks English so they need to be informed about legal issues, employment rights or tax rules”, Iwona explains.
Iwona’s success is inspirational for any young journalist determined to make a career against the odds. She offers this advice. “Remember your ethics. Think about why it is your want to work as a journalist and don’t sacrifice ethics for fame, money or other things”. Finally she comments, “and don’t believe the internet that much! Use original sources, talk to people, go outside!”.
