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From Pen to Policy: Caroline Jones' Journey from Journalism to the Mayor's Office

By Jillian O'Connell

Caroline's job title: Communications Advisor
Organization: City of London

While Communications Advisor to the Mayor of London may not have been on Caroline Jones' vision board, this unexpected career path has turned out to be the perfect intersection of creativity and storytelling she always hoped to find.

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As a child, Caroline Jones dreamed of being a fashion designer. She knew from an early age her strong suit was creativity—and definitely not math. While her idea of a dream job changed many times growing up, she never considered that a career in communications could allow her creativity to flourish.

“I don’t think I even knew what communications was when I was a kid, but I knew that creativity was something that was important to me,” she recalled.

Caroline graduated from Western University’s Media, Information & Technoculture (MIT) program in 2022. During her upper years in the program, Caroline began to recognize her enthusiasm for the hands-on production courses.

“I realized I really liked creating tangible multimedia projects and I really liked using storytelling as a way to connect with people,” she said.

“During MMJC and my internship, I would say 'I am a sponge.' Soak up all the information you can and ask lots of questions.“ - Caroline Jones

These newfound passions led Caroline to the Master of Media in Journalism & Communication (MMJC) program offered by the Faculty of Information and Media Studies at Western University. She credits the MMJC program for teaching her how to communicate messages effectively—in both the work she produces independently and when working in collaboration with others. This would prove to be a valuable skill when it came time for her summer internship as a journalist working for Global News.

“That internship was fantastic; I had a great mentor. I was given a lot of freedom and kind of tossed right in—I was doing streeters on day one,” Caroline recalled.

But by the end of the summer, Caroline began to consider that journalism might not be for her. She decided to give another storytelling avenue a try, landing her current role as Communications Advisor to the Mayor of London.

“I joke that as the Communications Advisor, I am the gatekeeper of the mayor. I decide what media interviews he will do and when. I also write a lot of press releases and manage his social media accounts.”

Fun Fact

Caroline is obsessed with Lady Gaga. She can sing every lyric to every Lady Gaga song and has seen her perform live three times.

In the Mayor’s office, Caroline leverages the transferrable skills she learned in MMJC and during her internship to “think like a journalist”, allowing her to make informed communications decisions and build trusted relationships with the local press.

“When I am writing a media release from the mayor’s office, I know what the journalists are looking for and I am able to effectively present all of that information to them.”

One aspect Caroline loves about her role as a Communications Advisor is how every day is different. When the mayor is attending events, she has the chance to step out of the office and into the community—something she finds extremely fulfilling.

When asked about her experience navigating this transition into politics as a recent grad and young woman, Caroline admitted experiencing feelings of imposter syndrome.

“I think imposter syndrome is very common for young grads, especially women. That little voice in the back of your head saying ‘you’re not qualified for this. You shouldn’t be here.’ But when I was having those thoughts, I just reminded myself that I was hired for a reason.”

For now, Caroline hopes to stay in politics. While a job in the mayor’s office was never on her post-grad radar, Caroline continues to be a trailblazer in this role, guided by her creativity and desire to use storytelling to connect with the local London community.

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Profiles in the MMJC Career Success blog are written by students in the Master of Media in Journalism & Communication program, who are enrolled in MMJC 9604 - Professional Writing.