By giving us the opinions of the uneducated, journalism keeps us in touch with the ignorance of the community.
– Oscar Wilde, Irish poet and playwright
Six years ago, RTM’s Jennifer Lau interviewed me on REDfm radio station and we had a roaring time.
The topic was “Celebrating the life of a Journalist” which was launched by Tan Sri Adenan Satem.
As the author of more than 30 books, she asked me candidly if I was minting money and I told her: “You must be joking!”
In fact, being a writer can render you in the category of “poor” professionals. It’s true! Reporters are among the poorest-paid members of society.
It’s not their fault because not many people read the newspapers nowadays, especially written in English — no thanks to the education system. Neither do they buy newspapers anymore.
Ironically, it was former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Sarawak’s Minister of Education who changed the education system in the early 70s from English to Malay.
Today English has been relegated to a second or third language whereby Mandarin is still the lingua franca, especially in Sarawak in the non-Malay business fraternity.
In fact, many natives prefer to send their children to a Chinese school because of the discipline the teachers instil in their students, and systematic and organised way of teaching.
And to confuse our younger generation even more, our education system keeps on changing so frequently with some strange proposals.
For example, we had an education minister who tried to introduce swimming at hotel swimming pools as a curricular activity!
So, if you ask me whether our children are going to suffer because the schools have been closed because of the Covid-19 lockdown, I think they are better off being monitored by their parents at home.
On the other hand, Sarawak should be praised because of the policy of our previous chief ministers.
One of the fervent champions of the usage of English is the late Adenan, who like his predecessor Tun Abdul Taib Mahmud, scored distinctions in Senior Cambridge examinations.
Speaking at the 80th birthday celebration of Taib, who is now Sarawak Governor, Adenan said Sarawak prioritised English because it was the world’s lingua franca.
“We are prepared to give support to private and mission schools to pursue this objective and there are already schools which have been approved.”
Adenan said even though Sarawak recognised the need for uniformity that the national education policy was set to achieve, “uniformity does not necessarily mean unity.”
“We need to have some kind of freedom to be able to do things to suit our needs,” he stressed.
In this respect, Sarawak is far ahead of the other Malaysian states in terms of flexibility and allowing its citizens to think out of the box.
Now on the subject of what it takes to be a good reporter, here are some tips I would like to share with those who are interested in the profession.
Firstly, you must have “a nose for news” — which means you must have news sense and to be able to sniff out an exclusive story, at a boring press conference.
You cannot depend on assignments or daily schedules but show initiative and look for stories like a rat sniffing out food in the streets.
When I was a crime reporter in Kuala Lumpur, I would find a way to join some of the major police operations or visit the scene of a brutal murder after an early-morning tip-off for my “scoop”.
In fact, scoops or exclusive stories that make the headlines will help sell your newspaper.
Apart from initiative and a passion for writing, the reporter must have the basics — a good command of English, be able to work fast, have correct grammar, punctuation and spelling and write in simple and clear language.
Another aspect of journalism is being knowledgeable and that means using the library or other resource centres for the bare facts.
There must be balanced reporting and if you must criticise, think of the legal aspect if you defame an individual or leader.
Last year, almost 50 journalists were killed across the world — the lowest record in 16 years!
In Sarawak, it’s quite safe for reporters who enjoy the patronage of generous VIPs and rich people who need the publicity.
Last but not least, journalists must use their conscience when writing a story.
It will hold you in good stead in the public eye, no matter what your adversaries may say!
The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the New Sarawak Tribune.
