‘I HAD TO WORK FOR FREE’
GETTING HER FOOT IN THE DOOR WASN’T EASY FOR THE STUDIO 10 STAR
The first time Narelda Jacobs read the news she was just a child, but she knew she’d found her passion. “I loved writing, I loved telling stories and journalism just seemed like a natural thing to get into,” Narelda tells New Idea, just minutes after coming off air at Studio 10 where she’s been a panellist since 2020.
Each morning, the eager schoolgirl would excitedly recite that day’s headlines to her classmates. Some 30 years on, she’s still reading the news!
“I looked forward to it every day. In fact, I’d want things to happen so I could go and tell the class about it,” she chuckles.
“I had no idea decades later I’d be in Sydney at the headquarters of Channel Ten doing heaps of different things
on air and working with people at the top of their game.”
Breaking into the industry was anything but easy for Narelda, 46, a proud Whadjuk Noongar woman. Initially, she did free work experience to get her foot in the door. Eventually, she landed a job at Network 10 in Perth, where she stayed for almost two decades, before heading to Studio 10 in Sydney.
“I got my first reporting job in Bunbury – a story about grape growing. I was standing amongst the vines, and it was a real pinch yourself moment because I was lik, ‘Oh, wow, I’ve realised my dream.’
“I bought myself a cheap suit to celebrate the occasion – I’m fairly certain it was probably from an op shop!”
Narelda also juggled her responsibilities at work with being a young single mum, after welcoming her daughter Jade at 18.
“I had incredible family support, but in the newsroom, I was the only parent of a young child and that brought with it some challenges.”
While Narelda has come a long way from her classroom in Boorloo (the Noongar name for Perth), her love of sharing
stories has never wavered. As a queer First Nations woman, Narelda proudly represents her communities in mainstream media, and is a voice for both indigenous and LGBTQ+ communities. “I always had the visibility there as a queer First Nations woman on TV, but to add to the visibility you need the substance,” says Narelda, who explains that as a newsreader, you’re taught to be unbiased and prevented from sharing opinions.
“On Studio 10, being able to talk about the things that I’m really passionate about, that’s where I get my biggest rush!
“To be able to talk about ending discrimination and just giving a different perspective that people may not have considered before, it’s fantastic.”
Reflecting on her incredible career, Narelda says that if she could give her enthusiastic younger self advice, it would be to “totally back yourself ”.
“My thought was, ‘Why would people be interested in hearing from me?’ and I think we’ve all probably had that thought. It’s about listening to and surrounding yourself with people who have faith in you and just back yourself.”
Now, she’s excited to help young girls shine by throwing her support behind women in sport as an
‘I WOULDN’T WANT TO CHANGE MY JOB FOR THE WORLD’
ambassador of Football Australia’s Legacy Program.
In the lead up to the FIFA Women’s World Cup in 2023 and beyond, Narelda hopes to encourage increased indigenous participation in football, following in the footsteps of Kyah Simon and Lydia Williams.
“There’s a stereotype out there that First Nations people got the sport and art. But sport and art, I think, are the first to be the most inclusive and to encourage diversity,” says Narelda, who is also on the National Indigenous Advisory Group for football Australia. “We’re good at everything, we just need to feel welcome in that space.
“I think that if the round ball game [soccer] was introduced into those grassroots community levels, we would definitely have a First Nations player that’s as good as
Ronaldo!”
And while she is a passionate fan of the sport,
Narelda is happy to leave strapping on the soccer boots to the professionals!
“When I had COVID with my partner, we were isolating at home and we had an indoor soccer ball. We were trying to do the most amount of ‘knee ups,’” Narelda laughs, insiting she’s happy to stick to news reading.
“I like to think that I could probably be a superstar if
I did play ... but I wouldn’t want to change [my job] for the world.”