Our 2022 Global Grantees have returned

Taiwan Public Television Service Foundation started its digital transformation in 2017 through launching the streaming video platform named PTS +. In 2023, the board of the PTS officially announced that it would like to accelerate the transformation process in the next three years. The foundation would allocate more resource to support PTS+ to make it the most user-engaged streaming platform in Taiwan.

Users can choose the freeway to stream the shows and movies, plus live TV from across Canada on CBC GEM.  Those who subscribe to the Premium service can experience the ad-free on demand and gain access to CBC News Network. Three types of the membership tire are available on CBC GME.

BC’s performance metrics are evolving as the media industry continues to undergo a digital transition. Canadians usually consume content on multiple platforms from an ever-growing array of service providers. When media consumption habits change, measurement suppliers and CBC are redefining and introducing new metrics to guarantee accuracy and completeness of data.

Yang found his trip to CBC very informative and was honoured to receive the grant to pursue his research. He was able to understand how to develop an effective audience measuring instrument for OTT service in Taiwan to ensure streaming service achieves public value.

On my first day, I learned that pre-production meetings are held every morning and are essential in bringing out the best news production. This is a platform where the producers, reporters and editors, come together to discuss and share ideas in order to cover quality stories engaging with reporters from 14 regions in Namibia

I worked with news producers and learned that before covering news, it is a producer’s responsibility to find out what the story is all about, research it and brainstorm ideas that will help the reporters to come up with interesting angles.

This was a very interesting moment since we do not have producers at LTV.

NBC TV newsroom works on shifts, there is a morning shift that prepares for 1pm news bulletin and the evening shift that is preparing for 8pm prime time news bulletin.  After working on news production, I joined one of the reporters on her afternoon story where the Development Bank of Namibia, in collaboration with Namibian Trade Forum, signed an agreement aimed to finance Small and Medium Enterprises SMEs.

I learned tactical ways of asking questions meant to strengthen stories in this regard. I was then able to I write a story about the event and report it. This was the first exciting moment for me at NBC as I was able to pick the most interesting and impactful part of the event to share as a story.

I continued attending different events for news coverage and I got a chance to write for a radio news item.  I also learned that summarising skills is highly needed and essential. I also wrote for radio current affairs, which is more like for TV but we included sound bites to make the news more interesting. I enjoyed this part mostly as it was my first time writing for radio.

On my final day, I got a chance to share my experiences at NBC, which was later broadcasted in the news bulletin. We agreed to share our stories especially those that have an impact or can benefit SADC countries.

I would like to pass on my sincere gratitude to the Grace Wyndham Goldie (BBC) Trust Fund and the Public Media Alliance for giving me the opportunity to explore and widen my scope in news coverage from a renowned Television Stations. I would also like to thank NBC team, mostly the Sub Editor Mrs Laimi Hainghumbi, for welcoming me warmly and dedicating their time to help and guide me throughout the two weeks programme.

I am therefore positive that I will apply all the techniques and creativity I acquired from NBC to improve our news production and making our news more interesting to our audience.

I would also like to extend my gratitude to PMA, my bosses Acting Director General of Lesotho National Broadcasting Services Mr Dyke Sehloho, Head of News and Current Affairs Mr Ntsane Molemohi and my News Editor Mrs Nts’epase Heshepe for their support and helping through my entire trip. Despite challenges we had in my organisation and the lack of resources, I am looking forward to sharing my experiences with my colleagues and bosses for the improvement of our news production.

Firstly, the welcome from the Sveriges Radio team was very nice. I thank them very much. Lisa Hegelsson, editor in chief of the investigative team of the radio, welcomed me and allowed me to observe how her team worked. It’s a small team, and they seem to do a lot of work. What I found exciting was to talk with the colleagues, who do a job like mine, but in a very different way. Indeed, in Canada, journalism is based on the data that are available and that one goes to find. But it is mostly based on sources, people who are willing to talk to us.

In Sweden, what Sven and Sascha, two investigative reporters, explained to me is that the amount of public data available allows them to carry out investigations quickly, simply thanks to the available data. For example, Sven explained to me that if he wanted to know more about the income of a certain businessman or woman, all he had to do was to send an e-mail to the Swedish Revenue Agency, which would then get back to you with the person’s income. It is also possible to subscribe to a directory that provides everyone’s income by county. Seen from Canada, this is incredible. But that’s not all. When a citizen or journalist wants to know more about the expenses of an elected official, he or she can write directly to the Registrar of Parliament. For example, if they want to know the last cab expenses of their MP, they can do so. The registrar is supposed to provide this information as quickly as possible.

And that’s not all! Sven and Sascha told me that in Sweden, everything the government produces is considered a “document”. And all these “documents” are accessible for citizens, or journalists. So, if I wanted to, I could ask, for example, what is the content of the exchange between the minister of justice and a businessman or woman. The government department in question would have to send me the content of the correspondence between these two people.

In Sweden the personal identification number is very useful for journalists. It is public. During elections, they can ask for the personal identification number of the candidates and they have access to data such as: does he have debts or a criminal record?

This transparency, which seems surprising from the outside, impressed me. It is also reflected in people’s daily lives. For example, the tax return is not complicated, it’s a text message: your bank and employer send the balance of your income, which you validate by text message, and your tax return is done. It may seem so simple, why not do it elsewhere?

But this transparency is not to everyone’s taste. For example, the omnipresence of the personnumer, the personal identification number provided to every person who lives in Sweden for one year, annoys many. Without it, it is not possible to have access to a bank account, except in some establishments. Gyms also require this number to reserve time slots. Some restaurants too. The omnipresence of this number, which contains a lot of data on the person (notably his or her medical history) poses a problem for foreigners, and also for an association for rights in Europe, which believes that those who are refused to obtain a personumer (because they have not been in Sweden long enough) experience daily discrimination.

On the other hand, Sascha, from the investigative team of Sveriges Radio, explained to me that the transparency was incredible towards people but much less towards companies. And so, they have used a lot of imagination to manage to provide only the minimum of information. And that the laws preserving “business secrecy”, for competition reasons, did not help their work. Transparency has its limits, then.

Also, they observe that in recent years, when they write to government departments, it is the press relations department that answers them, rather than the people concerned, as if there was a filtering barrier that did not exist before. This happens all the time in Canada and seems to be happening in Sweden

All this made me think about my practice of the profession, but also about the practice of democracy. Because Sweden is impressive in that respect too.

On the other hand, Sascha, from the investigative team of Sveriges Radio, explained to me that the transparency was incredible towards people but much less towards companies. They have used a lot of imagination to manage to provide only the minimum of information. And that the laws preserving “business secrecy”, for competition reasons, did not help their work. Transparency has its limits. Also, they observe that in recent years, when they write to government departments, it is the press relations department that answers them, rather than the people concerned, as if there was a filtering barrier that did not exist before. This happens all the time in Canada and seems to be happening in Sweden.

All this made me think about my practice of the profession, but also about the practice of democracy. Because Sweden is impressive in that respect too. Lisa, who welcomed me for this internship, told me that trust in journalists was very high in Sweden. There is not the same mistrust that you can find in other Western European countries, or on the other side of the Atlantic. But the level of trust in political institutions there is also high. In the last legislative elections, nearly 84% of people voted. From what I understand, high transparency leads to high trust in journalists and political representatives. It’s not all perfect, and there are questions about privacy. But, on balance, it is amazing.

I cannot thank enough – The Grace Wyndham Goldie (BBC) Trust Fund and PMA for giving me the opportunity to discover this world, this journalism, and these talented colleagues. The passion for public service is felt in every person I met there. Thank you to PMA for existing, for giving young journalists the chance to continue learning the profession by going to rub shoulders with reality elsewhere in the world. I will try to live another experience of the same type, because this one will bring me a lot. As planned, I am making a web report about this experience, as well as a 15-minute podcast “Ca s’explique” about the importance of transparency in Sweden. On my side, I’m spreading the word to many colleagues about what this experience has brought me and what it can bring them.

I visited Mediacorp broadcaster in Singapore. It is the largest content creator and media network of Singapore – operating as a TV channel and on multiple digital platforms. It pioneered the development of Singapore’s broadcasting industry with television broadcasting in 1963.

During my visit I met Mr. Timothy Tan Choon Hwee, Head of Media, at Mediacorp. He briefed me about Mediacorp’s program production strategy, promotion, studio setup, editing and lighting setup and other activities.

Then Mr. Berry Toa, Assistant Lead, Strategic Partnerships, Audience & Partnerships informed me about Okto. Okto is a unique kind of programme production style specially for children. Okto is primarily a children’s programme project. Its programmes are broadcast in 4 languages; ​​English, Chinese, Malay and Tamil. It works with the children by dividing Okto into 2 groups. For example; one for pre-school children aged 4-6 years and a second for the age of school going children 7-12 years.

Okto also produces and broadcasts 30-minute programs in Mandarin for children aged 9-12 years. Okto operates in two ways – one by producing a programme themselves and two – purchasing a programme. Okto has animation programmes and live action programmes within 52 hours broadcast in the English language. Animation programmes are usually about 15 minutes long, including the opening and closing credit. Animal-related programmes are based on zoos. In this, children can get ideas animals. Children can learn to spell in live action shows. Programmes like Rapid Action/Quiz for children aged 7-12 years are produced in their own studios. Due to covid-19 this programme was suspended but will start again very soon.

Finally, I thank PMA and The Grace Wyndham Goldie (BBC) Trust for the opportunity to work with the MEDIACORP team and to my channel BTV to permit me officially to apply and permit to go to  Singapore for five days.

I have learnt and experienced a lot of things from the visit that I will implement with my colleagues at BTV very soon. Very soon I am going to offer a power point presentation in the meeting presided over by Director General, BTV and produce a children programme and broadcast it on BTV for our audiences.

I was immediately brought into the team from the first day of the attachment, joining their daily meetings which were held online carrying over from the Covid19 Pandemic as several persons were still working remotely. I was involved in the Digital Studio meeting, producers of the weekly football live show “Soccer North” as well as the coverage of Canada’s games in the FIFA World Cup 2022.

Although CBC was not the World Cup rights holder in Canada, the country was competing in the World Cup for the first time in 35 years and that meant huge focus was on the team. CBC therefore dedicated the flagship show Soccer North to the three group games they were involved in. In the end Canada unfortunately failed to advance to the round of 16 but I was very impressed with the live show and was involved in the planning, studio set up and execution of the live show, which was carried simultaneously on all the social media platforms.

I was also involved in the daily editorial meetings as well as the planning meetings for the CBC’s coverage of the 2024 Olympic Games. That was of particular significance to me given their use of social media to ramp up interest in the Games which are more than a year away.

Being able to sit with the team which crunches analytics was extremely interesting. Prior to this I had never been exposed to critical questions such as why numbers matter, who are watching and how many people are engaged on your website and social media. The debate for instance in Jamaica is how you guarantee that your audience via your traditional sources remain with you after the content becomes available on YouTube or Instagram. It was interesting to see from the analytics that in fact the audiences are completely different.

Social media came alive when I met and interviewed Canadian basketball star Kayla Alexander who also launched the online store “Tall Size” with her childhood friend Nicole Murphy when both women who stand over six feet tall found it difficult to access appropriate clothing.

Canada’s Toronto Raptors were the 2019 NBA Champion and have a legendary fan support in Canada. Attending their home game against the Cleveland Cavaliers is a dream come true for any sports journalist. The Caribbean does not have a team in the NBA (international basketball tournament) but several players in the NBA have Caribbean heritage.

As a black woman it was also important to see first-hand the number of women in senior and decision-making positions at the CBC. The one day spent with the CBC News Being Black in Canada desk was instructive. The Desk focuses on producing stories about black Canadians making a positive impact. I was able to assist in producing one story which focused on one of the stars of the Canada football team. The stories are produced exclusively for social media.

I also spent a day with CBC News’ Social Media Department. The day was spent in a TikTok overview meeting. TikTok is not used by my media house, so it was great to learn how themes are chosen and how videos are produced for this platform. It is also a powerful tool to engage with younger audiences. The Ask the CBC social media platform engages Canadians who have frequently asked questions on various issues which impacts their lives.

I was honoured to have been selected among the 2023 Global Grant and I owe Public Media Alliance and The Grace Wyndham Goldie Trust a huge debt of gratitude. A huge thanks to the various teams at the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation for hosting me for two valuable weeks. I am also grateful to my manager and employer the RJRGLEANER Communications Group for supporting me in this experience.
I have already held preliminary discussions with my manager, and we have agreed that we will convene a meeting to begin the process of putting into action most of what I learnt as a means of improving how we use digital media more effectively.

My first day at SBS began with a warm welcome from some of the staff. I was then treated to a tour of the 2022 FIFA World cup set by Andrew – Supervising Director at SBS. Working in radio, it was great to see and learn what goes into making a TV event, especially as big as the World Cup.
Kerri-Lee (Manager for NITV Radio & Indigenous Lead for Audio and Languge Content) spoke with me about her role in leading the radio area of SBS in all matters pertaining to indigenous matters.
Rajish – Program Manager (Audio and Language Content), looks after SBS Gagana Samoa (hosted by Ioane Lafoai who was on leave). Ioane sources content individually, as well as utilising SBS news bulletins, then curates it to present through a Samoan lens.
I learnt from Therese & Aaishah (Codes & Guidelines team) that at its core, the SBS Code of Practice is a contract with SBS audiences.
Michelle – Content Industry Diversity Manager forTelevision and Online Content and Pauline – Diversity and Inclusion Project Officer shared some of the incredible work SBS is doing around diversity. One example being the Diversity Talent Escalator Initiative – an 8-12-week placement for a person from an underrepresented background to work on an SBS Show.
Day two began with a sit down with Michael, Head of Regulatory and Government Affairs at SBS. Michael is a member of the SBS Access Employee Advisory Group (EAG) which focuses on the experiences of employees with disabilities, chronic conditions or equally those who care for people with disabilities or have a chronic condition.
Florencia is the Editorial Operations Manager for News and Current Affairs. Florencia has been co-chair of SBS Multi over the last three years. Their aim is to amplify the voices of staff in a way that is informal, confidential and anonymous, providing feedback to the business.
Davide, Head of Language Content, Audio and Language Content (ALC) gave me an overview of the SBS Language Programme Structure (currently SBS has 63 language programmes available). I’m keen to see how PMN might be able to implement something similar. Davide introduced me to some of the team from Poland, Turkey, Afghanistan, South Korea and Germany.
I gained wonderful insight into Editorial Strategy from Esra, Managing Editor for Digital at SBS News & Current Affairs. My main takeaway was that numbers are your friends, but you need to know what you’re looking for and also, that the best digital media are the ones that know what their identity is and who their audience is.
I spent time with the Corporate Affairs, Engagement & Outreach team who touched on the following areas – Education, Indigenous Engagement and Partnerships, Engagement & Corporate Social Responsibility. Saskia highlighted the Reconciliation Action Plan, the biggest strategic plan ever undertaken by SBS.
My final visit was with Florencia (Editorial Operations Manager for News and Current Affairs) again who took me on a tour of the newsroom.
One of my main takeaways from my time at SBS is that whilst there are many moving parts, I felt a real sense of unity and purpose across the whole organisation.
The first day with ABC was in Melbourne hosted by Evan (Executive Producer & Team Leader for ABC’s Pacific Team. I spent time with Samuel, Producer for the Wantok programme (Tok Pisin (PNG), Tok Pijin (Solomon Islands) & Bislama (Vanuatu). Samuel was instrumental in facilitating NBC (in PNG) carrying ABC Tok Pisin stories across their network.
Matthew – Managing Editor Asia Pacific Newsroom shared on some of the initiatives to engage more with audiences across the Pacific – Employ journalists full-time in country in the Pacific to work for the ABC & launch a new T.V. news & current affairs programme focussed on the Pacific, which will air to the Pacific on the international network, as well as the ABC 24-hour news channel.
While touring the studios I was able to sit in with The Pacific Beat Show, when host Prianka phoned the winner of the Pacific Break competition for 2022 (Pacific’s biggest music competition) Danielle Morgan (PNG). It was very powerful hearing Danielle’s journey overcoming adversity, also being the first woman to win making it even more special for Danielle.
Ian – Digital Editor, Asia Pacific Newsroom took me through the back-end analytics of the ABC News Website, original content is their best & most popular content.
Tahlea, Producer/Reporter for the World has been with ABC for eight years. They were chosen to host the new Pacific focussed current affairs show launching in March 2023. As far as I’m aware, it will be the first time a Samoan will be presenting. Tahlea is looking forward to the challenge and is very excited. I spoke with her producer Sean and we shared ideas around content.
Bang, is the supervising Producer of the ABC’s Chinese Language Service. When I asked about fear of retribution from China regarding their reporting, Bang replied; “That’s a journalist’s job” – whether covering the Middle East, Indonesia etc. Journalists are constantly banned from going into their own countries. This is the reality journalists face, not only from a Chinese background, but it’s also happening elsewhere.
The second day was spent with the ABC Illawarra Team. The station manager currently is Rory McDonald who usually produces. The beauty of being in the region is you get much more exposure to how multi-platform works. This is something I truly appreciate coming from PMN where announcers multitask i.e. producer, prep, podcast and livestream.
I then went with Kelly and Tim (Kelly was interviewing Shadow Minister for Health Ryan Park just across from their building). Tim explained their new rig (Mojo Kit) which allows a one person operation (it utilizes the technology already on your smart phone). I spent some time with Jake the Drive Show Producer, who showed me the process for him and host Lindsay from prep to content creation and to broadcasting. The main operating systems for ABC Radio are ENPS and Netia which are used by media organisations around the world. At PMN we currently use Zetta.
One of the highlights for me was when Lindsay showed me the Portable OB kit they have (customised for ABC, there is one in every region). It’s revolutionized how ABC does OBs. Everything fits into a small case and once set up, you can go live remotely controlling the studio desk. This is something I’m looking at exploring more in 2023 on my show, as Zetta allows you to insert audio remotely. For me, this adds another dimension as an announcer in being able to engage with your listeners IN the community.
From ABC Illawarra I went to the University of Wollongong (UOW) to speak with the research and academic team on the work they do with ANCORS (Australian National Centre for Ocean Resources and Security) in Kiribati, Solomon Islands & Vanuatu.
The final day of my visit was to ABC Ultimo (Sydney). I was in a word “freaking” out at just how big the building is. Before sitting down with Steve (Manager, ABC Radio), he took me on a tour of the floor. I met Chloe who is the producer for the Breakfast Show who was standing by for calls at the time. In my time with Steve, he explained how even though ABC is fully government funded, KPI’s still play a big part. Ratings matter because ABC need to show across all their output, most Australians are using ABC. We also discussed the possibility of future collaboration after this visit as we’ve now established contact.
I enjoyed my time with Kathryn (Project Manager, Pacific Media Assistance Scheme PACMAS). I learnt about PACMAS being one of if not the biggest programmes in the Pacific. Mostly they work with the media associations to promote their activities through them and to the national broadcasters. The aim is to empower them to do their jobs well & provide value for members). I was honoured to join a line-up of speakers who were addressing a group of emerging leaders visiting from PNG.
Claire Gorman – Head of International services, generously offered to take me and Vai to lunch. Claire is very passionate about making sure people within Australia understand the region, the people, the incredibly rich culture and history. There’s so much to celebrate about the region and the richness and diversity of its people.
Craig is a sound engineer who’s been with ABC 9 months. Craig started with ABC in April 2022 through an Indigenous Traineeship in the operations department.
I sat down with Matt, Executive Producer in Events, who’s currently working on That Pacific Sports Show. The great thing working with athletes for Matt is that they’re used to being coached which he finds very refreshing. The show is on break currently back from February 2023 – June 2023. If they receive more funding from DFAT the show will run all year again. Renelle is the producer for Can You Be More Pacific. Can You Be More Pacific is a light fun sports show (which they try to do for the Pacific Islands). Dene Halatau is on the commentary team & Sera Naiqama who they’re trying to get on the commentary team. They aim to get as much Pasifika talent on as they can. But not just athletes – also coaches, support staff and administrators.
I met with Brendan Favot, Market Research and Analytics / Customer Insights and Programs Manager. ABC is constantly trying to get audience feedback. The more feedback the better for ABC.
Inga Stünzner is the Executive Producer for Sistas Let’s Talk on Radio Australia. This half hour show is dedicated to women based on a podcast ABC put out called Ladies We Need To Talk. It platforms Pacific women’s voices covering gender based violence, breast cancer and entertainment e.g. How Not to Date Your Cousin. The show has really grown. Radio Australia was looking to broadcast into the Marshall Islands. They didn’t want the whole network but specifically asked for Sistas Let’s Talk.
Something I said to several people at SBS and ABC was that this trip for me was seeing the future for where we want PMN to be, manifested now at both SBS and ABC. I pray the seed sown, will reap a great harvest for our organisation for future generations of Pasifika storytellers.
I would like to say a big thank you to PMA and Grace Wyndham Goldie Trust for the opportunity and selecting me. And to all the amazing staff at SBS and ABC for your generosity, especially my incredible hosts.

Firstly, I wish to thank Public Media Alliance and The Grace Wyndham Goldie Trust for awarding me the grant. And to Morea Tuilaepa (Head of RNZ Pacific) who was the key organiser of my visit to RNZ and who generously spent a much-valued amount of time with me during my two days with RNZ. I also appreciate the time and discussion I had with Paul Thompson (RNZ CEO and Chair of PMA), and Shannon Haunui-Thompson (RNZ Tumu Māori/RNZ Māori Strategy Executive)—both of whom had explored with me the current settings and strategies of RNZ, including its relationship and engagement with The Government of New Zealand.

During the visit, I also had very valuable engagement and discussions with RNZ staff/teams working on the following, among several others:
• RNZ Morning Show (one of RNZ’s tentpole programs)
• Māori content.
• Broadcast infrastructure and its management.
• RNZ products in relation to corporate and logo designs (exploring the team’s incorporation of New Zealand/Māori culture into designs)
• Transitioning to a new ANZPM entity (this is no longer going ahead);
• RNZ’s MUOs in relation to its ‘radical content sharing’ strategy with more than 60 media partners
• RNZ Pacific service and its content
• RNZ’s Local Democracy Reporting initiative, supporting local journalism

I wish to thank Don Mann (CEO of PMN) who was the key organiser of my visit to PMN and who generously spent a much-valued amount of time with me during my two days with PMN, including in relation to exploring PMN’s settings and strategies and its relationship and engagement with Government, as well as providing me with a tour of PMN’s facilities and operations.
During my first day with PMN, I also had extremely valuable engagement and discussions with PMN staff/teams working on the following, among several others:

• Nui FM—a community-based media brand providing community-oriented content including in relation to music, sports, arts, and fashion (‘breeding ground’ for budding/young talents) with a focus on second, third, and subsequent generations of Pacific youths who are fluent in English
• Pacific Day Shows radio program (on which I was interviewed on Thursday 24 November 2022) on PMN 531 pi radio station (with social media presence), hosted by Ma’a Brian Sagala—another awardee of the PMA/GWG Global Grants
• Community, and government engagement
• News editorial
• PMN’s internal initiatives such as its Menstrual Policy, and employees’ pursuits or performances regularly held at PMN premises (the latter are a part of PMN’s staff engagement approach)

During my second day with PMN, Don invited me to attend the SPADA Summit in Auckland, organised by New Zealand’s Screen Production and Development Association—this was an immensely valuable experience—for me to be able to engage with the screen industry in New Zealand, and learn about a multitude of opportunities and challenges the industry is facing, in parallel to those faced by the same industry in Australia.
Both visits successfully addressed both key objectives set out in my Grant application—exploring approaches to Indigenous languages and culture; and exploring collaboration between SBS and the members organisations in New Zealand.
Relevant topics explored in depth with the member organisations included the following—a range of these could be further explored and/or addressed via future work:

• Potential collaboration opportunities in relation to content
• Delivery of radio content in the contemporary/modern time, including via digital television
• Opportunities in relation to youth or younger audiences
• Strengthening approaches to Indigenous/First Nations languages and cultures
• Enhancing staff engagement internally
• Government engagement
• Public policies and regulatory support of public media providers
• Approaches to Pacific communities; and
• Initiatives supporting local media entities, including Indigenous/First Nations’

From my point of view, the visit was a highly successful one—not only because its two key objectives and relevant topics were explored in-depth, but the visit has also opened doors to potential collaboration opportunities and ongoing dialogue among public media organisations in the region, at the very important time of the rapidly evolving news and media industry.
During the visit, without any doubt, I also met highly talented colleagues and friends whose genuinely warm welcome and generous engagement I will cherish for a long time.

I arrived at MBC on 19th April, 2023 to a rather friendly environment. There was a general meeting on that day to discuss the various assignments and stories that would need attention. I was also introduced to the house during the briefing. That was a practice I’m not familiar with working as a reporter from my end in Ghana.

I had the opportunity to be assigned with colleagues to go to the field to cover stories. It’s always a whole team. The reporter is given a driver and a camera man. Though same is practiced here at GBC, my part of the region has no vehicle. So I carry my camera man on my own motorbike to the field. It’s sometimes very risky but there’s nothing I can do. I wrote my own scripts in the English Language after attending assignments and comparing to their style of writing to mine. Then I realized that my script was longer than theirs.

At this point I realized that those I was attached to would be using their mobile phones to put down some points while we are still on the street back to the office. This, Christelle Lebrasse a News/Senior News Editor at MBC, told me would enable remember some key points made at the function and it would also help her put up her story in time. Since news is worthy when it is still fresh and current, so I would give more attention to that method.

As a reporter, when writing your script for a TV story it is often incumbent to have the right visuals for the script. I was made to understand that we could go with the camera man to areas like market venues and the highways where we could get some shots to support the story. An example was when we attended covered an assignment on Traffic Management and Regulations by the Motor and Traffic Unit of the Police Service in Mauritius.

One important thing about how Mauritius is able to implement Free Education Policy is because the population is small. It is a requirement in the Sustainable Development Goal Four (4) which calls for an inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning for all. With less than two million people, they are able to manage their resources in giving free education to the people. Apart from that, the media highlights more on the need for the people to pay their taxes promptly and regularly for government to use in funding the education. That is an indication that Mauritius has move some steps ahead in education and is on the verge of meeting the goal target by 2030.

So it would be important for us at GBC to also create such news items that will encourage the people to pay their taxes regularly, though we have a larger population as compared to Mauritius.
This is an experience that is worth it in my career as a journalist and reporter. Per what I have learned and experienced in news reporting, it is going to impact so much in my career. The use of social media is very impactful as a reporter and I would surely make use of it more often. GBC has some social media handles but not Tik Tok. It is important for me to acknowledge PMA for giving me this opportunity to have a feel of my work outside my country. I also thank MBC for hosting me and giving me access to your office and network and for the guidance and advices as far as the profession is concerned. My employer GBC has been at my back and supported me for this trip. I appreciate their logistical support. I have already done some live reports but hope to share the knowledge with my colleagues in the office.