Lauryn Friar 
Angel Idowu, Arts Correspondent for WTTW, recently joined True Star for another episode of Session with the Pros to give some advice to youth thinking about entering the journalism/broadcasting field.
Idowu, a native of Chicago, attributes a lot of her success to finding interesting stories to report on from growing up in Chicago and having many connections to the city. She attended Mother McAuley High School and graduated from Beloit College and attended Northwestern University for grad school. Idowu majored in political science and obtained a degree in broadcast journalism.
Growing up, Idowu always had a love for the arts. She participated in her school’s choir and musicals, did plays with the park district, and danced with ASM in the summer during high school. Her love for art drew her to journalism; she saw it as a means to perform.
While in grad school, she met a friend in NABJ who connected her to other Black women in journalism. Idowu then decided she would take Journalism seriously and make it a career.
After graduating from Northwestern University, Idowu moved to Mississippi. She was initially hired as a reporter, but her position was changed to a producer. Idowu had no prior experience with producing. She says working as a producer has helped her to “understand how to tell a story fully.” During her time in Mississippi, Idowu learned what it meant to work hard. She worked seven days a week, five days at the station, and on the weekends when she’d go out and report on her own. Idowu’s hard work paid off, and she landed a job with WTTW in Chicago.
When asked what advice she would give to youth entering into the field of journalism and broadcasting, she shared these main points: Stay true to yourself, have a support system, always strive to be better, push the envelope/think about how you can do something different and stand out while continuing to do the work.
Watch the full interview with Idowu below. If you’d like to keep up with her, you can find Idowu on all social media platforms at @ArtWithAngel.
By Lauryn Friar, Senior, Gwendolyn Brooks College Prep
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