Being a tribesman, who hails from the remote Khyber tribal agency of Pakistan and who is not supposed to ‘leave his station empty’ even on weekends, while discharging his professional responsibilities from the militancy-ridden Peshawar, it was indeed a rare chance for Javed Afridi to see these people off-screen.
I tend to get impressed by big people associated with my profession when they are doing or have done something I consider doing difficult, irrespective of if they are known or otherwise.
Both of the today’s speakers were always there on my list and it was therefore very nice to hear them, face to face.
But as I heard them share their experiences and give guidelines to newcomers to the profession of journalism, I wondered if students like me would have a word of advice too. There wasn’t any.
Perhaps they did not even know about the circumstances we were working in.
The crux of the day was that we are suppose to follow the golden principals of a good storyteller to become good reporters, and that ‘we need to have a good insight’ to do that.
But I wonder if it is possible for a journalist under the watchful eyes of two waring sides, who are too sensitive to hearing anything against them, each with authority, means and the will, to announce capital punishment on you, if angered.
Afridi thanks for your thoughts!
I cannot even imagine how hard it must be to be in the situation you described in your last paragraph.
Is there anyway then for the real news to surface when journalists are in such a hard spot?