Figures from the world of journalism training will take part in a Radio 4 programme about the importance of shorthand to be broadcast today (10 May).

Kim Fletcher, chairman of the National Council for the Training of Journalists, will feature on the Word of Mouth programme at 4pm, where presenter and poet Michael Rosen takes a look each week at how we use words.

He also speaks to MA course leader David Holmes and shorthand tutor Kaye Carl, who teach on the NCTJ-accredited courses at the University of Sheffield.

The programme is produced by Luke Hollands of BBC Bristol, a journalism graduate from the university, who uses shorthand regularly on the job.

He said: “As someone who began their media career as a local reporter I know only too well the importance of shorthand. I used it every day as a newspaper journalist and still use it now for taking notes and writing memos.

“When I was handed the job of producing an episode of Radio 4’s Word of Mouth, I thought it would be a fitting topic, I was surprised it hadn’t been featured before.

“The programme begins where my personal shorthand journey began, at the University of Sheffield’s Journalism Department. It is a place I have very fond memories of, and I don’t think I could have broken into the highly competitive media world without their brilliant teaching and expert advice.
 
“We then hear from NCTJ chairman Kim Fletcher before heading on a tour around this mystical art, from Ancient Rome to the Elizabethan age, a pit-stop for some Dickens and then an appearance by Sir Isaac Pitman himself, recorded in 1891.”