Advanced Reporting Training Workshop for Journalists
A three-day training workshop on Advanced Reporting for journalists from Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Balochistan was organized at the Centre for Excellence in Journalism (CEJ) at Karachi. 20 journalists were flown in to Karachi to attend the workshop.
The workshop aimed to train journalists from KP, former Newly Merged Areas and Baluchistan to report effectively on issues of importance to citizens and government initiatives to address citizen concerns. Secondly to build the technical capacities of journalists by imparting training on digital journalism and using pictures and videos to tell stories in an effective and compelling manner.
The course material also looked at many issues through a crisis and fragility lens. Gender issues were emphasized along with a focus on building trust between the state and citizens. The sessions were divided into a mix of lecture sessions, practical exercises, guest lectures and technical trainings. During the training, journalists were given tools to extract information, such as practical training on identifying stories, conducting interviews as well as an informative session on the Right to Information Act.
The main trainer for this course was Mr. Iftikhar Firdous, KP bureau chief for The Express Tribune. A series of guest speakers and technical trainers, such as senior journalist Mr. Rahimullah Yusufzai, former Chairman Senate of Pakistan Mr. Mian Raza Rabbani and digital communication expert Mr. Ayaz Imtiaz Ahmed were also invited to share their expertise with the journalists.
A total of 90% of the participants ‘Agreed’ that the course helped them improve their professional skills while 88% of the participants ‘Agreed’ that the content and activities of this course helped them achieve their goals for the course.