* Any views expressed in this opinion piece are those of the author and not of Thomson Reuters Foundation.
The problem with some of today’s journalists lies in their conviction that they have reached the ultimate state of perfection. Try to criticize their work and expect storms of scorn coming your way!
Developing journalistic skills is a never-ending journey, even for those categorized as fully-fledged. The thought of “I’m flawless” crossing a journalist’s mind is tantamount to the thought of “I’ll witness my career plummet soon”. For a journalist to survive, he/she should enjoy the will to embrace evolving media, change thinking, improve content and innovate. But most important of all, bear in mind that learning is a journalist’s infinite friend.
Being a wife, mother of twins, and an online news editor at the National News Agency-Lebanon, I thought I had it all. My excuse of not having time to squeeze anything into my daily routine did come out with some extra “me-time”, but that sure left me standing in the same place I last reached in my career hike.
“Where there is a will, there is a way”
Almost a year ago, I attended a “Writing and Reporting News” course with Thomson Reuters Foundation (TRF) in London. Thanks to this five-day training course, I discovered that life went on leaving me behind. It was a great eye-opener for me. I had a lot to catch up with, a lot to change, and a lot to learn. I felt as if I had huge career-debts that I needed to pay-back, or else my journalistic profession was doomed to file for bankruptcy!
Ever since then, I decided to seize every opportunity designed to extend my knowledge. I also found out that “me-time” could be spent in many different ways, depending on what and who you aspire to be.
Here I am today joining another Reuters’ course on “Making Television News” as a reward for finishing the Writing and Reporting News modular training! So far, I am treasuring every minute further guiding my skills towards professionalism, at the hands of real, yet very modest experts.
Nothing compares to the bliss of seeing your polished skills shine through your work. That is the treat I cherish whenever I get more training; going back to work armed with new ideas, waiting to color my work.
Ever since I started training with TRF, I found myself looking at things differently. Now, I thank whoever criticizes me because this makes me grow. I never suffice with the info I have, but always seek more. I pay more attention to professionalism, credibility, clarity, objectivity, ethics and most importantly my audience’s expectations.
