Phillipa McDermott

In short, always ask what the deadline is and meet it! 

Having studied communications and journalism at UTS, I learned the hard way that you should always find out the deadline and either meet it or get your work in early, just in case you have to change it at the last minute or add any new information! 

When I was 21, I travelled overseas for about a year and during that time I met so many people my age who knew so much about their country, their political system, their rights and general civics, and I was embarrassed and ashamed that I didn’t. So that motivated me to go to university and study communications and journalism, as well as social and political theory. 

I left school in year 11 so I had to go to TAFE to finish high school and then apply to university. I wanted to better understand why Australia was the way it was, and why my people were treated so badly. I really didn’t understand Australia’s true history until I went to UTS and learned about the policies and injustices that have led to my people being in the situation they are in today. Since then, social justice has been a driving force in all that I do. 

I never really studied hard at high school, but after that overseas trip I knew I had to do more with my life, so that’s when I started applying myself. The thing I most enjoyed about UTS was learning new skills and meeting other students. I’m still friends with many of them today. 

Flexibility, a thick skin, and digital/technology skills.

My goal is to get as many Indigenous and diverse people working in the media industry as possible. The Australian media and entertainment landscapes do not often represent diversity, so we must push hard to make those industries look and sound like Australia. We need our stories to be told by us.

In communities, I would like to see as many Indigenous people as possible (a) gain higher education and then (b) gain stable and permanent employment doing something they love. Poverty is one of my people’s biggest challenges. Getting a job lifts people up and out of having to be chained to welfare and the whim of government policy.  

In society at large, I would like to see Australia come to terms with its true history, which might go some way towards eliminating systemic racism. This history needs to be taught in schools properly, and not just be left up to the school to navigate or integrate Indigenous perspectives into the existing curriculum. 

I would also like to see some sort of truth telling commission, and for treaties to be settled. I think the same rings true in other countries across the globe – truth telling might help break down some barriers and create more equitable societies.  

Trying to break down institutional biases and racism. Across Australia’s democracy we have many great institutions like the legal system, universities and the media, including our national broadcaster, where I work. Part of my job is to unpack decades and centuries of entrenched policies, practices, mindsets and ways of working that don’t support diversity. 

Many of these things stop people from feeling like they belong in a place. I try to dismantle these systems and attitudes and rebuild the workplace to be as inclusive and non-biased as possible. It’s the hardest part of my job and it’s exhausting, but the wins are worth it. We’re not there yet but we’re on a journey, and luckily most people at the ABC are on board. 

I initially thought I knew exactly what I wanted to do, which was to be a journalist. But my first job out of uni was as a media officer at what was then the Office of Aboriginal Affairs. I have done some journalism and broadcasting, but have mostly worked on that they call ‘the dark side’ – that is, in media and communications. 
I also moved into economic development and employment, and now I’m back doing employment but in a media organisation. So I’m actually using both skills, which I never really thought were compatible. Take the twists and turns – it’s more fun and you never know where they will lead you.