Working as an online journalist – It's tiring but fun.
Years ago, it was difficult to read breaking news in print newspapers because they were often published late or hours, even days, after the events had occurred. Now, not only can readers access breaking news, but they can also get updates minute by minute, hour by hour, thanks to the speed and responsiveness of online newspapers.
(Baonghean)Years ago, it was difficult to read breaking news in print newspapers because they were often published late or hours, even days, after the events had occurred. Now, not only can readers access breaking news, but they can also get updates minute by minute, hour by hour, thanks to the speed and responsiveness of online newspapers.
The most prominent event in the press during the first few months of 2011 was the collapse of the Len Co quarry in Nam Thanh commune, Yen Thanh district, on the morning of April 1st. Immediately after the tragic accident, dozens of online newspapers updated and reported on the issue; however, all were only initial reports without specific images. That same morning, the Nghe An Newspaper's Reader Relations Department received a significant amount of information about the incident, with the quickest report coming from local reporter Xuan Hoang. This information was immediately forwarded to the online news department, and less than 5 minutes later, the newspaper's homepage featured the news and photos titled "Yen Thanh Quarry Collapse." At that point, Nghe An Online was one of the first newspapers to publish news about this tragic event. Subsequently, dozens more articles about the Len Co quarry were published by Nghe An Online with more diverse, sharp, and emotionally impactful images and articles.
Reporters worked directly on the football field to promote the 15th Nghe An Newspaper Youth Football Cup.
To obtain these "breaking news" reports, the editorial board of Nghe An Newspaper has consistently followed events, sending reporters to cover them in the area. For example, in 2011, in addition to "hot" news like the Len Co quarry collapse and the SaBeco company's discharge of polluted wastewater into residential areas, important political issues such as the National Assembly and People's Council elections at all levels, and most recently the Nghe An Newspaper Cup Youth Football Tournament, were regularly updated online by Nghe An Online. This included live coverage of the opening match and the two final matches in both the children's and youth age groups. When the referee's final whistle blew, the match report and dozens of photos of the game's progress were already online.
The number of people accessing the Nghe An online newspaper has increased significantly, from 11,000 to 16,000 visits per day. To ensure truly "hot" and "new" news, the Nghe An newspaper has deployed numerous teams of reporters to various locations, with the primary requirement for each reporter being to update regularly and continuously. The speed and responsiveness of each article and each reporter are measured minute by minute, hour by hour, on each online page.
Along with reporters, the editorial and browsing staff at home also had to work tirelessly to keep up with the flow of events. Those working at Nghe An Online Newspaper surely still vividly remember reporting on the 2010 storm and flood situation. At that time, it rained heavily, and power outages were frequent, but due to political duty, editors and technicians had to stay on duty every hour to receive and process news articles sent in by reporters and contributors. There were days when, at midnight, they would turn off their computers and look outside to find the water had flooded the office yard to nearly a meter. At that time, the only way was to leave their motorbikes behind and borrow a bicycle from the security guard to wade through the water to get home. There were also days, like when reporting on a football tournament, where many matches were played late and there was a large volume of photos to process, so even though they weren't at the stadium, the team had to "eat, sleep, and breathe football" at the newsroom. On numerous occasions, the editor-in-chief himself had to personally go buy instant noodles and sugarcane juice so that the staff could continue working.
Everyone understands that working in online journalism involves a lot of pressure, but it's also very rewarding. After news articles are published online and readers send in positive feedback and encouragement, online journalists feel like they are living in the hearts of their readers, being followed by them every day.
Song Hoang
