SINGAPORE - Exciting. Honest. Dangerous. Freedom. Bias. Propaganda. Truth.
These were some of the answers from people asked to describe journalism in one word for a live video show by The Straits Times to mark World News Day on Saturday (Sept 28), which celebrates journalism and the importance of credible news.
The thoughts of ordinary folks kicked off the clip, which took a behind-the-scenes peek at how journalists cover everything from breaking news to exposing corruption in official bodies.
"It was about celebrating journalism, showcasing the lengths and hardships journalists go through to deliver stories," said Mr Zia-ul Raushan, who produced the 35-minute clip with his colleague Irshad M.
Much thought went into the set design, which included items like a typewriter, an old camera and a television set to trace journalism through the decades, said Mr Irshad.
Newsrooms around the world celebrated the day with special editorial content on their print and digital platforms, and promoted these efforts via social media and news alerts.
The ST show was aired on Youtube at 3pm for a global audience and can be viewed on www.worldnewsday.org.
The paper's multimedia journalists Alyssa Woo and Hairianto Diman spoke to some of the newsrooms participating in World News Day 2019 about their stories.
These included the Philippine Daily Inquirer's stories that exposed corruption in the state insurer, and India's The Quint which shone a light on bonded labour in Tamil Nadu.
Another was Hong Kong's South China Morning Post which was featured for its coverage of the Hong Kong protests. Chief news editor Yonden Lhatoo said: "We bring out the legitimate grievances of the protesters, but at the same time we don't gloss over the excesses and the carnage they are causing."
There were also light-hearted moments.
ST's Rachel Au-Yong and Rohit Brijnath joked about their generation gap - while the former joined journalism six years ago and called her phone her "all-in-one" work device, the latter has 30 years under his belt and remembers using a typewriter.
News reporting may have evolved but its purpose remains. Said a reader: "Keep up the good work, keep informing us. If we're not informed, the world is a poorer place."
