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The Special
Correspondent
In this indispensable handbook for young journalists, Awasthi begins with a universal truth, we are all born journalists, with each one of us having a unique style of telling stories. Only some of us get the chance to hone this latent skill and become professionals. Again, says Awasthi, young journalists normally learn several aspects of journalism through experience rather than under their seniors’ guidance. Hence this book, which is also "my revenge on those seniors who love watching sagging young faces so that their one-upmanship remains intact." However, Awasthi has not written in anger. It is more of an experienced professional’s thoughtful gesture towards greenhorns. He advises them to "do things simply" as "Academics always present us with the mountain view of a molehill." So, while gathering news, use your eye rather than nose, advises the veteran. He has thoughtfully divided the chapters under such headings as "Structuring of news stories", "The art of interviewing", "Writing the story" and "Packaging the story" etc. The writer Desmond Macarthy once aptly remarked that journalism is all about being "more attentive to the minute hand of history than to the hour hand." This could be your mantra to achieve success.
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THE late British journalist
David Murray had once defined a reporter as "a man who has renounced
everything in life but the world, the flesh, and the devil." That was in
1931. There has been a sea change in the profile since then. Yet,
essentials remain the same. Today, despite professional courses run by
academic institutions, a reporter feels that he is on his own.