“The Gwangju News Helped Launch My Career”: An Interview with Former Volunteer Shay Meinecke

Written by Karina Prananto
Photographs courtesy of Gwangju International Center,
Gwangju News and Shay Meinecke

No pain, no gain. Shay Meinecke came from the U.S. to Korea in 2011, like many others before him, to find new adventures. He’d taught English for some time when he felt the need to find more activities and to make use of his knowledge in public relations. He found the Gwangju News by chance. As one of the Gwangju News volunteers and the assistant editor at that time, Stephen Redeker invited him to join in as a writer. Shay said he was nervous at first, with the Gwangju News being his very first publication to write for, but he built up his courage to apply. “Everyone I met told me I should be a writer. I don’t know if they meant a journalist, but that’s how I took it. So when I came to Korea, I saw the opportunity to learn how to be a journalist and to launch my career.” Shay was on assignment to Korea and the Philippines last November when he took the opportunity to visit Gwangju, the city that has always had a special place in his heart. “After I left Gwangju, I missed the food, especially chamchi bibimbap [tuna bibimbap], mandu [dumplings], and tteokgalbi [grilled short rib patties]. I missed the people. Seeing old places and recovering old memories is kind of cool.”

To Shay, his first piece in the Gwangju News, about a rock climbing gym in Buk-gu, is the most memorable to date. “This gym was inside a very small building…a room in fact. The ceiling was lower than this (pointing to the ceiling inside the Gwangju International Center), which didn’t seem to be a great place to have a gym, but it was a great experience. The guy didn’t speak any English, and we didn’t really speak much Korean. It was cool to somehow make the article work and see him climbing up and down his wall. The owner was really nice. He had a 10-year-old daughter who would move like Spiderman around the gym, and that was by far the most memorable experience.” Later on, Shay focused more on sports-related articles, even founding the Athletic Supporters volunteer group in the process. With the group, Shay held athletic events for charities and organizations that needed additional funding and exposure. Shay’s commitment and enthusiasm to the Gwangju News earned him the position of assistant editor in 2013.

At that time, Shay had been expanding his experience around Korea by becoming a host for the Gwangju Foreign Language Network (GFN) in 2013, and as his specialty, he also hosted programs on sports in Korea and abroad. Later on, Shay also worked for Arirang TV until 2014. “Working with Arirang was pretty memorable. Every weekend, we would go around Korea to interview locals and experience festivals. We would sometimes travel for 24 hours at a time to just put together a three-minute show. I would often go from Gwangju to Seoul, and then up and down the coast, and back to Daegu all in one day. It was wild! Working with foreign languages as an English speaker is always a challenge. They sort of assume that you speak many different languages. As far as difficulties traveling abroad to finish a story are concerned, these were probably the most challenging aspects.”

Shay saw the opportunity to be an international journalist when an opening at Deutsche Welle (DW), Germany’s public international broadcaster, appeared in August 2014. The rest is history. Although he was sad to leave Korea, Shay thought that working for DW would help him achieve his career goals. At DW, “I work for a podcast called ‘Africa Link,’ where I’m the international news broadcaster. The podcast is 30 minutes long, and I have to write a news script and a global roundup of the news of the day, and put in audio clips for three and a half minutes. It reminds me of my time at GFN, though this is far more serious. I broadcast a dozen to 15 times per month. I really enjoy collaborating with everyone on the show, which we do every weekday. It’s live and fun. It’s demanding, challenging, and sometimes stressful, but I really enjoy it. My new thing is the environment department, which is kind of a step up in my career. I went to Cancun, Mexico, last year to follow a story on the Nature Conservancy. They have a global fund to restore coral reefs and to sort of limit the reduction of hurricane damage. I will also do a feature story in Cebu, the Philippines, about swimming with whale sharks and its impact on the environment. I will be going there after leaving Korea.”

Although one can say that Shay has achieved most of what he’s dreamed of, he never forgets his roots at the Gwangju News. “When I first applied for work with DW, I told them about the Gwangju News and that it was a volunteer magazine. The Gwangju News really helped me launch my journalism career. It laid a foundation for what it means to be a journalist. The whole experience here at the Gwangju News was extremely educational. The magazine is a community driver. It brings people together not only to help each other, but also to learn about the community we’re living in.”

For those who dream of becoming an international journalist, Shay commented that finding different opportunities for getting involved and moving towards your goal is what’s best. “For me, I never thought I’d be on the radio. Working with the Gwangju News would help connect me with GFN, and now I love working on the radio. I came here to experience Korean culture and just live abroad, but I really had the mindset to also do as much as I could to use my experience to launch my career elsewhere, and that’s what has happened. I put in the work where I should have, and it worked out for the best. It’s just something you can never pay back. I will always be indebted to the Gwangju News. This type of opportunity was so special for me. This is what launched my career! So, I’m forever thankful to the Gwangju News.”

Even with lots of things happening in his life at the moment, Shay still thinks that he’ll be working abroad as an international journalist in the next five years. He said he always wanted to be a better journalist. We’re sure he will be. The Gwangju News wishes him all the best and we can’t wait to hear more success stories from Shay in the future!

The Author
Karina is from Jakarta, Indonesia, and has been involved with the Gwangju News since 2007. She feels so lucky to be part of the Gwangju News’ transformation and is very thankful for all the opportunities to meet new people and learn many new things at the Gwangju News.