Charlie Demetriou
Community Radio Presenter, 4EBFM
Written by Kristina Sariyiannis on 2011-10-30
Charlie Demetriou is a radio presenter for the Greek/Cypriot program on Radio 4EB, Friday nights at 7pm. Charlie Demetriou was born in Milia, a small village on the Greek island of Cyprus. He grew up with a love for his mother country and his Greek culture. Since his childhood he has continued to love and share Greek music and culture with friends and family, which lead to his current position at Radio 4EB. Along with radio presenting, he is the Managing Director of Steelman, a steel fabrication company. Mr Demetriou loves what he does at Radio 4EB and plans to continue for years to come.
Do you offer internships/work experience at Radio 4EB?
We welcome students wanting work experience, because Radio 4EB is a community driven ethnic radio station and relies on training new people. However, radio 4EB prefers bi-lingual people as most of the programs are in another language. The best way to go about gaining work experience is to become a member of the Radio 4EB community and contact an ethnic community explaining that you wish to volunteer.
What do you find is the most common mistake a graduate can make?
Not getting enough work experience. It is very important to gain as much experience as you can before the end of uni. This shows that you are eager to learn. Employers regard this highly.
If someone could have given you one piece of advice at the beginning of your career at Radio 4EB, what should it have been?
To be confident and have a good network. Especially because Radio 4EB is community driven, it is important to know your community because they are the people that keep the program running.
What are the significant steps you took in creating the career you have today at Radio 4EB?
It is all about who you know. I am lucky to have a broad network in the Greek community and was able to work with Radio 4EB through a friend who was already working there. That is how I started working with Radio 4EB.
What is the best and worst part of your job at Radio 4EB?
The best part is that I enjoy my work and I feel good when I get positive feedback. The worst part would be the odd hours of work. Radio is a 24 hour business and the time of starting and finishing can be an issue.
Why do you think it is important to have a Greek community radio station in Brisbane?
It is important to have a Greek radio program because some of our listeners cannot fully understand the English radio. Our listeners can keep up to date with current affairs happening in Cyprus, Greece and Australia. Also these people connect much better with the Greek program, presenters and music, because they can understand what is being said.
What can we expect from the Greek segment of Radio 4EB in the next 12 months?
The Greek segment will bring to listeners local community news, interviews with local community members and also news from their mother country and the world. Of course we will also be playing lots of old and new Greek music.