wanted: inspiring news

Is this “philosophy” still prevail: bad news is a good news?

Sometimes, I’m just so tired of watching or reading news in the media. So when I wake up in the morning or when I go back home from office, I prefer not to watch news channel or read newspaper. I once noticed that the news program on TV, the whole evening news program, only filled with crime, conflict, crisis, intrique, gossip, enmity, struggle for power… As if that’s the only thing happen in this world.

Then one morning, I saw a program on TV that broadcast only for positive news from around the world. There are people from Burundi who rise from the scar of war for years. There’s an organization that help young unemployed people got job by recycling garbage. And then there are people from Senegal who replanted the damage mangrove forrest. There are also people from Seychelles who conserve 35 hectare area for magpie robin which is at the brink of extinction.

Those are not extraordinary things. However, those kind of news become an oasis amid all those so called bad news. Unfortunately, media give only little portion for such a news that generate inspiration, moved heart to extend help, or invite people to do good things. Perhaps, just in my opinion, those news are not “sell like hot cakes”. Is it…??

(this piece is also posted on http://foeda.wordpress.com)

celebrating differences

As a journalist, I have a "privilege" to travel to many places and to meet new people. This, of course, has to be in line with open-mindedness. Nothing is the same, that's why I have to be ready to accept everything that comes.

Recently, I traveled to Egypt to attend a workshop entitled "Reporting Across Culture: Freedom of Expression in Digital Era". The workshop was good, give me much more ammunition to cope with the changing world. What's best from the workshop was to meet around 40 journalist from many countries around the world: Pakistan, Israel, Italy, US, Lebanon, Syria, Ireland, France, Belgium, and my country, Indonesia.
In 2007, I attended similar program in Taiwan, also meeting with many journalist from Africa, Latin America, Asia, and Pacific.

I really love my job because of this. Why? First of all, I always have my own mindset about people from other countries. I read books or articles about them and it created something like stereotype in my back mind. Some misunderstanding might happen. But, all is gone when I myself meet those wonderful people. They tell me a lot about their countries, their culture, their life, their misery, their joy, and so on and so forth. This, of course, really open my eyes!
Moral of the story: reading books is not enough!

Second, from exchanging experiences, thoughts, knowledge, ideas, and hopes, we learned from one another and enrich ourselves with new ideas and thoughts. We brought it home and there we'll have abundant souvenirs that we won't trade for anything. The souvenirs would still prevail in mind long after the program ended.

And third, the most important thing, is I admit that we're different. But, we're not afraid to be different. Yet, understanding and common ground could be found when our mind is open. These differences often lead to deadly conflict, war, enmity, that take one's life. Being different is beautiful. That's what make our world colorful. Just imagine, every people in this planet has same skin, same hair color, same thought, same language. For me, it's boring!!

keep barking, keep biting...

When newspaper industry is in the lowest point, especially in US, the New York Times managed to win five Pulitzer Prize in 2009. This is the most prestigious award in the US for journalism. The prize is 10.000 dollars or IDR106 million!!

It's not merely about the amount of the prize. According to the organization of the prize, this proved the strength of newspaper and whoever work in it. New York Times is in the brink of collapse, thanks to the global financial crisis. It has already cut a significant number of staffs and probably it only wait for time to close.
However, those facts didn't make them discourage to make outstanding works. Print media as watchdog, like Sig Gissler, manager of Pulitzer Prize, still barks, still bites.

In all but instant era like today, who still have time to read newspaper. If the newspapers has no interesting, spectacular, and well-writen stories, people will leave them. There are television, radio, internet, that give you abundant information, even for free.
That's where the strength of newspaper to display something different from other medias is tested. In that place too, the capacity of journalist is tested whether he/she can make qualified stories.

In Indonesia, print media industry is not as gloomy as those in US. Let's hope that in the "better" circumstances, journalist works in Indonesia has the same -or maybe more- quality as those who win the Pulitzer. Last but not least, let's hope that newspaper will always be the watchdog which is keep barking, keep biting...

Can we, guys????

who read the newspaper?

As if to give more gloomy picture from US media industry, the US Circulation Audit Agency released a report on how sharply the daily newspaper readers had declined. Almost all top 25 newspaper in US report circulation decline on average 7,1 percent. The USA Today, on the top of the list, report its circulation decline 7,5 percent to 2,11 million copies. The New York Times, which recently got 5 Pulitzer Prize, had its reader declined 3,6 percent to 1,03 million copies. Only the Wall Street Journal which had its circulation increased around 1 percent to 2,08 million copies.

It had been known that newspaper circulation decline already started in early 1990's. It's getting worse and worse this recent years. In that time, internet hasn't been that into someone's life. Some said that internet played a big role in declining the number of newspaper reader.

When I read the report, my editor said: wow, it's declining and still it's more than 2 million readers. What about us? (read: Indonesia)
A survey conduct by AC Nielsen released in November 2008 showed that newspaper readers in Indonesia declined as well, around 4 percent compared to the previous year.
My newspaper, which has the biggest circulation in this country, had only 500.000 copies. Just a daydreaming: when will our reader reach the number 2 million people? Or at least, 1 million people?

Now, Indonesian has more than 200 million population. Compare to US, it has around 300 million population. What can be done to double the reader here? It's not a matter of business at all, but newspaper, however, is one of tools to make people get more knowledge from their community or the world.

Or should the journalist work harder to serve the reader with stories that make them impressed and interested. Or the circulation section that have to work harder selling the product? Or what? Any suggestion?