Kilcar woman tackles ‘fake news’ in new role at Euronews NBC

Donegal woman Angela Barnes has begun a major new presenting role this week broadcasting to 160 countries in a ground-breaking project on Euronews NBC.

The journalist has joined the international news programme Good Morning Europe to host a dedicated social media segment called The Cube.

In a media world full of ‘fake news’ Angela will guide viewers through the verification process journalists use with online sources.

This appointment is a remarkable step for Angela, who has spent the past 10 years at Sky in London. Her career began in production, before she progressed to become a reporter and presenter. Viewers will recognise Angela most recently from the Sky News technology segment Swipe and Sky Sports.

Angela’s new role at Euronews NBC places her at the frontline of breaking news.

Angela told Donegal Woman: “The Cube is an industry-first. The segment I’ll present is about breaking down the floods of information that is on social media and presenting live breaking news.

“We’ve found in a time when fake news is spreading that our audience are all too aware of it. We want to draw the curtain back and give a behind the scenes look at how we verify information.”

Angela added: “It’s an exciting promotion to move from broadcasting in the UK to the rest of Europe. Euronews NBC is broadcast in 160 countries, and NBC in America will be dipping into us for breaking news from Europe.

“I had my send-off from Sky on Monday and they gave me a nice big bunch of flowers and gifts and I got a nice speech from my former boss. It was an emotional day. I’ve loved working at Sky, I’ve been there since finishing University.”

The position also involves Angela relocating to Lyon, where Euronews NBC headquarters are located. France may be far from Kilcar, but Angela sees it as a ‘home from home’.

https://twitter.com/SkyAngelaBarnes/status/1028628849477775362

Angela was born in Winchester in the UK and spent all her summers and holidays in Donegal, where her father has family roots.

Angela’s parents Sue and Stephen retired to Kilcar 15 years ago, and she loves the area so much that she is hoping to buy her own house there soon.

She said: “I love to get back to Donegal. I love surfing at Tramore and Muckross and hiking at Slieve League.”

The adventures don’t stop in Donegal though. Angela recalls a project in Iceland as one of the many highlights of her career at Sky, while covering tragic events such as terrorist attacks have shown her how important quick and accurate information needs to be.

Now is an exciting time for Angela be part of an innovative and transparent news show such as The Cube. The role of a journalist has changed a lot in the past ten years to involve sources from social media, and Angela’s new role reflects this advancement. She also hinted that more big news is in the pipeline.

For viewers wanting to tune in from Donegal, Good Morning Europe can be watched on Euronews NBC from Ireland on Sky under the news channels section and also live online.

Angela has always wanted to be a news presenter. She remembers her school days when teachers asked her what she wanted to do and she did not hesitate to reveal her dream job.

Her advice for anyone wanting to follow a similar path is simple:

“It’s like anything, if you work hard you can make anything happen along the way.

“I’m really grateful to be setting out to do what I wanted from a young age,” Angela said.

Featured image: Une Herzer / Light Hackers