Remembering the beloved Nghe An Newspaper home!

Knowing that I intended to pursue a career in journalism, my father - Journalist Lang Phuoc, who was then working at Nghe An Newspaper, wrote a letter of advice: "Journalismvery hard, completing the mission carries a great responsibility to society. Becoming a journalist in a province, not to mention the whole country, is extremely difficult. If you do not practice your writing and hone your craft, you will not be able to build a rich life experience and become a journalist who can "write", leaving an impression in the hearts of readers for decades. Once in the team, a skilled writer must have the will and awareness to rise up, create trust between himself and the collective, be humble, learn...

When he first started working as a journalist, my father had only finished secondary school. Even though the war was very fierce, he still worked and finished high school and then went to university. During the 10 years the US Air Force fiercely bombed the North, with his old bicycle he was often present in mountainous areas and produced many quality news and articles assigned by the agency. While working as a journalist, he had some talent and was also a writer... It was hard but happy because the agency trusted him and the base trusted him..."

Delegates visit the model of the Convergence Newsroom of Nghe An Newspaper. Photo: Duc Anh

In 1966, the Western Newspaper merged with Nghe An Newspaper. I rarely saw him come home, so father and son rarely got to be close to each other. It was many months or near Tet when I saw him return with his old bicycle, covered in dust.

At that time, from Vinh to Con Cuong district was 150km, the road was very bad, and he had to avoid bombs while driving. Behind the rack of his bicycle, I saw all kinds of rice, fish sauce, dried shrimp, meat, fat... During his time working, the old Sterling bicycle had its frame rebuilt twice, and only later was he distributed a Thong Nhat bicycle, which he used until his retirement (1983).

Searching and reading his remaining handwritten manuscripts, although at that time transportation was not as convenient as it is now, I saw that he was present in most of the remote, isolated, and especially difficult areas of the western districts of Nghe An, such as Muong Long, Muong Tip, Muong Ai, Na Ngoi, Nam Can, Keng Du, Dooc May... in Ky Son district; Nam Nhong, Tri Le, Thong Thu, Nam Giai (Que Phong), or Yen Tinh, Yen Hoa, Nga My (Tuong Duong)...

As well as writing for newspapers and novels, he was also a member of the Nghe An Literature and Arts Association with many memoirs and short stories published and unfinished. Remembering him, I also remember his close friends who worked as journalists and writers at the same time, some of whom have passed away, the "big trees" in the Nghe An journalism community such as journalist To Quoc Bao, journalist Le Quy Ky, writer Nguyen Xuan Phau, poet Nguyen Quoc Anh... and the later generation who became leaders of Nghe An Newspaper: Phan Thuy Lien, Van Hien...

Journalist Lang Phuoc. Photo Minh Thu

His assets when he retired, which an old U-oat car from the agency took him home, were only a wooden box containing a few sets of clothes, the biggest and most cherished by him was a bookcase and a stack of manuscripts with articles written while in Ky Son, Tuong Duong, Que Phong, Nghia Dan, Do Luong, Nam Dan, Vinh...

During his time as a journalist, when the Thai program was launched, he was the first person to be in charge. After the program grew, he returned to his familiar home - Nghe An Newspaper until his retirement.

In 1994, from an active collaborator, I was encouraged by Mr. Nguyen Thanh Tien - former Editor-in-Chief of Nghe An Newspaper to be accepted from Tuong Duong District Radio and Television Station to Nghe An Newspaper, assigned to closely follow events and write news and articles in mountainous districts (along National Highway 7).

Western Nghe An is truly vast, both rugged and majestic. As journalist Do Doan Hoang once said, the mountainous Nghe An region has many new things and many archaeological discoveries. A journalist could write until his hair turns white to explore all of this land.

Now, it is much easier to reach the ethnic minorities in Western Nghe An: Thai, Mong, Kho Mu, O Du, Dan Lai, Tho… located on National Highway 48 and National Highway 7 because most of them have convenient transportation to the commune center. However, those who wrote for newspapers in the 90s had to experience many cold and hungry nights in the forest.

I will never forget the years working for Nghe An Newspaper with the arduous trips upstream to the villages in the middle of the mountain with the Khmu people, and climbing the steep mountain peaks covered in clouds all year round in the Mong villages. Blisters, slugs, leeches, fruit flies, dog fleas, the cold that cut the skin and flesh... Those years came to me.ethnic minoritiesThere are still many hardships, in the middle of that wild forest, there are times when I get lost among the vast purple color of poppies...

Nghe An Newspaper reporter took a photo with Mong women in Nam Can commune (Ky Son). Photo courtesy of PV

Following in my father's footsteps - Journalist Lang Phuoc, 10 years of working for Nghe An Newspaper (1994-2004), with the trust and enthusiastic support of my predecessors, I did not disappoint the trust of the Nghe An Newspaper team as he had instructed. Not afraid of hardship, struggling with the grassroots, being humble, learning, improving knowledge and expertise to produce journalistic works with great influence and winning many National Journalism Awards.

In 2004, with trust and at the request of Nghe An Newspaper, I was chosen to work for the "mother newspaper" (Nhan Dan Newspaper) permanently in Nghe An. However, I still do not forget my familiar home that has nurtured me to adulthood. Then, journalist Pham Ngan also tried out and matured from there. I am very proud because my family has had three generations working and growing up from Nghe An Newspaper.

Very happy, now Nghe An Newspaper has grown with many innovations, worthy of the title "Red Elder Brother" in the local Party newspaper system with a team of well-trained, dynamic journalists, equipped with modern journalism equipment... On the occasion of the 97th anniversary of Vietnam Revolutionary Press Day (June 21, 1925 - June 21, 2022), due to limited space, please recall a few memories of three generations in the beloved home - Nghe An Newspaper!