I still remember my experience as fresh graduate. I applied everything (read: related jobs) I saw in newspaper or from the net. I just try my luck applying some odd jobs (other than RA, tutor, Science Officer).

One day I came across a vacancy that really attract me while flapping through newspaper - JOURNALIST. Utusan Melayu.

I never see Utusan advertisement searching for journalists. And I guess why not I give it a try? And I was surprised when my late father supported me because he ever mentioned that he didn't really prefer his children involved in this industry.

Then I just submit my application and not giving any hope of filling the vacancy. I know I won't get it.

But after a few weeks, I was informed that I've been shortlisted and have to come for an interview. Huh?

I went to the interview (Utusan's office in Jln Chan Sow Lin) and it has been a great and meaningful experience for me. All the potential candidates have to go through 2 phases of evaluation.

1. The Press Conference (PC) - listen, take notes and report the news. Ask questions like reporters always do. At the end, write the article about the PC both in English and Malay. Urghh.

2. Interview - I was interviewed by senior editors (one of them is Mr Zaini Hassan). The interview session was fun. They seem more interested on my earthworm works so my interview was focused on that creature. They asked me to make business about earthworm and advised me not to become a journalist. Cis.

So, I'm not a journalist. And I guess I'm not fit to become one.

A new series on NTV7 produced by Kabir Bhatia & Mira Mustafa.

A story of investigative journalists. Very interesting. I like.

After watching few episodes, I knew that I AM INCAPABLE TO BECOME A REPORTER. I am not bold enough to ask for info.

The interviewers might have realised the weakness in me. That's why I didn't get the job! :P

Check out more about Frontpage here and here.

Ryan Sholin's ReportingOn, winner of a 2008 Knight News Challenge grant, is live, in beta. Journalists, bloggers and freelance writers - anyone who writes for a living - can go in and register, upload her or his profile, share what she is currently working on and see who else might be pursuing something similar in another locale.  So far 250 reporters have done so.

One of the youngest broadcasters in the NBA, Ms. Haarlow is in her second season with the Trail Blazers. Working directly for the team, she is one of three television broadcasters who travels with the Blazers to cover both home and away games. Duties include providing insight from the sideline and timeouts, interviewing players and coaches, and producing features for pre and postgame shows.

In the way that some children follow sports stars, I followed puzzle constructors. Getting to meet the people behind the puzzles of my childhood -- Trip Payne, Frank Longo -- was a big thrill for me. Soon, the doors are opened and the crowd rushes in. During the final round, three sets of puzzles are distributed.

The answers are the same, but the clues are scored from difficult (C division) to extremely difficult (A division). The C division finalists use the easiest clues; the A division, the hardest. The C division finalists are first, and while they compete I try to suss out the crossword using the A clues. I get five words into it before the B finalists take the stage and the commentary by famed constructor Merl Reagle and public radio's Grant Barrett begins.

The B division champion, Anne Erdmann, flies through the puzzle and finishes well before anyone else, including New York Sun crossword editor Peter Gordon, who takes so long checking his answers that I duck out for a coffee refill. This is Anne's first year at the tournament, and she is so quick that one wonders whether she could, in a year or so, snatch Tyler's crown away from him. But soon the A-list arrives and the crowd gets quiet. Tyler Hinman, Trip Payne, and B-lister Howard Barkin, who ended up in the A division due to a number of factors, take the stage and put on their headphones, which pipe in white noise to drown out the murmurs of the crowd and the voices of the commentators. No sooner does the clock start than the solvers are filling in clues.

Trip and Tyler begin close together, but Tyler slows down a few minutes into the round, and Trip pulls ahead. Soon Trip is far ahead of both Tyler and Howard, and he throws up his hand to signal his completion. But as soon as he hears the crowd groan, he knows something is wrong, and he quickly sees his mistake -- two incorrect letters. The tragedy is that Tyler is still miles away from completing his puzzle, and Trip could have checked his grid twice with time to spare. But everyone who has seen Tyler compete knows that he is extremely quick, and Trip did well to assume that today would be no different.

It was simply an unfortunate coincidence. Considering his famous speed, it is interesting to see Tyler struggle with the top left corner of the puzzle. He is stuck for so long, in fact, that Howard is able to close much of the gap between them.

But Tyler finally pulls out from his rut and finishes -- perfectly. And so Tyler Hinman wins his fourth consecutive title.

Video:

Valued friend post: link

Ik sprong vanmorgen Tom-Naegels-gewijs op mijn fiets voor een interview in een Antwerpse randgemeente. Parkeerde mijn trouwe ijzeren ros een half uur later aan nummer 64 van een rustiek straatje in Deurne-Zuid. Deed vervolgens binnen een sympathieke babbel met een nog sympathiekere madam, in het gezelschap van een kop goddelijke Senseo-koffie. Mocht doen wat ik het allerliefste doe: vragen stellen en veel te curieus zijn!

Fotootje, plichtplegingen ter afscheid en een race naar de volgende place to be: het Harmoniepark in the centre of the town. Alwaar een bescheiden massa roodbevlagde, -bejaste, -besjaalde, -behandschoende vakbondsmilitanten gezellig soep stond te drinken. En tussen al die actieve actievoerders mocht ik de enkele militanten met een groene jas gaan zoeken voor een interview. Dapper het bemodderde grasveld doorkruist -en daarmee mijn gloednieuwe schoenen helemaal besmeurd, fuck!- en een paar groene mannetjes aangeklampt. Wat militante taal doen uitslaan (waar dienen militanten anders voor?). En als je dan plots een foto wil nemen, gaan ze allemaal zo braaf poseren als voor een klasfoto in het eerste leerjaar. Wég woede om die dalende koopkracht, wég rancune om die bedrijfsleiders die winst maken op de kap van de werknemer. Alleen nog brave glimlachjes en het lijf mooi in groepsfotopositie. Je zou niet zeggen dat er in het bedrijf van die mannen honderden jobs op het spel staan wanneer je hen ziet poseren en soep slurpen.

Maar toch. Ondanks het gebrek aan echte actie geniet ik ervan midden in de actie te staan. De mannetjes in het rood zien er net iets strijdvaardiger uit en ik laat mij graag meedrijven op hun bereidheid tot syndicale strijd. Er gebeurt hier iets, iets belangrijks, en ik mag erbij zijn, mag mensen uitvragen en ongegeneerd foto's trekken. Heerlijk! Mijn neus gaat er van trillen. Of misschien is dat wel van de koude hersftlucht die ongevraagd mijn neusgaten binnendringt.

Dan: vanaf de late middag met mijn laptop kamperen in het Permekecafé achter de hoek en teksten uitschrijven, doorsturen naar de redactie. Dankzij de vakbonden raak ik niet op diezelfde redactie in Brussel, maar moeilijk gaat ook. Moeilijk is dikwijls zelfs plezanter en uitdagender en geeft meer voldoening! Hoewel ik het mezelf comfortabel maak vandaag. Ik werk snel door, doe mijn best om vandaag nog alles door te sturen wat ik kan voor ons Weekblad. Maar het kan geen kwaad als ik mezelf ondertussen trakteer op een cappuccino de hemel waardig en een stukje van de goddelijke chocoladetaart die ze in het Permekecafé hebben. Zo boordevol chocolade dat ik minstens twee keer mag gaan fitnessen ter boetedoening, mind that. Maar God zal het mij vergeven want hij weet dat het de moeite waard is.

Nog 1 interview vanavond. Weer naar Deurne-Zuid. Weer een halfuur met de fiets, en een halfuur terug. Misschien volstaat 1 keer fitness ook wel.

Hur kan Expressen???

Att jämföra gangsterlivet med att ha cancer..

Snälla Expressen.. inse att alla inte dör.. det är inte 1 av 4 som överlever cancer idag.. överlevnaden är betydligt bättre.. kan ni inse det..

Gangsterlivet - lika farligt som att bära på en cancertumör

- I verkligheten handlar det om 2 000 unga, ensamma och ofta missbrukande män med lika stor chans att överleva som om de hade cancer.

- För dem handlade vardagen om att ständigt vara livrädd för att det skulle ligga en handgranat under motorhuven - och att hata sig själv för att man svikit sina barn.

Ja, jag är livrädd.. jag är rädd att jag ska få återfall eller i allra värsta fall metastaser som min kropp inte orkar fixa.. men jag hatar inte mig själv.. och jag har inte svikit mina barn.. fast jag fick cancer..

En studie från Karolinska institutet visade 1993 att risken att dö i förtid är ungefär lika stor för den som är kriminell som för den som lider av cancer eller en hjärt- och kärlsjukdom.
Efter 20 år hade en fjärdedel, 160 av 620, av de ungdomar som forskarna följde dött. De flesta av de avlidna fick en våldsam eller en alkoholrelaterad död.

En studie från 1993 då kan jag förstå.. alltså.. det är 15 år sedan den studien kom ut.. och genom detta så kan Expressen skriva en sådan rubrik som de gör: Gangsterlivet - lika farligt som att bära på en cancertumör..

Expressen! Vet någon av Era reportrar hur mycket cancerforskningen har gått framåt sedan 1993?? Ta reda på fakta innan ni sätter Era slagkraftiga rubriker....

Läs även andra bloggares åsikter om pysan, expressen, cancer, död, gangster, rädsla, reporter, artikel, bröst, forskning, livet

Hello WordPress Community. 

I'm new to this site, but I've been reading on here for quite sometime. Here's the thing: I got tired of just reading. I wanted to have my own blog, my own little section of the internet where I could enact upon some newly-found "talents". I knew I could write, to a degree, however; the thought of becoming a journalist never crossed my mind. But this is what I'm going to excersise here, the ways of the Reporter. 

Let me explain something first. My first love is music, and music only. As a matter of fact, compared with my writing (and whether or not I'm that good, I'll let you decide for yourself...) I'd take my guitar any day. I currently play two instruments to at a decent level. The piano (classically trained, 6 years, at level 11) and the guitar (taught myself. 2 year, at level 3). I've competed in numerous piano competitions (and scored very high), and I plan to be a musician in the future. I've written one song to this day, and I consider my own lyrical abilities as good as those of some of the worlds' most renowned singers and composers. My favorite musicians range from The Beatles to My Chemical Romance, whilst my favorite songs range from "Roxanne" to "Bring Me To Life". The word 'genre' has absolutely no meaning to me. Music is a genre within itself, and I love it all.

Then why do I want to be a writer?

"The price of freedom of religion, or of speech, or of the press, is that we must put up with a good deal of rubbish."

-Anonymous

It's about time that changed. The writers, authors, journalists, and musicians of the next generation aren't going to live up to that quote. The only way we're going to assure that, is to band together now and showcase our talents to the world.

And if I must be the first, then so be it.

NEW DELHI, October 3 (Compass Direct News) – At least two more Christians were killed today in Orissa state’s Kandhamal district after Hindu extremists this week set fire to nearly 400 homes there and in Boudh district. A third man succumbed to axe injuries on Wednesday (Oct. 1).

Weeks after Hindu extremist violence erupted against Christians, this morning tribal peoples in Sindhipankha village killed Dushashan Majhi, a local influential Christian, first shooting him and them cutting him to pieces. Local Christian leaders reported that Majhi was a government servant working in the treasury.

The mob then turned on Sanyasi Majhi, also said to be Christian, who was with Dushashan Majhi. There were unconfirmed reports that a third victim was killed along with the other two.

A local Christian who wished to remain unnamed told Compass that after killing the two men, the assailants massacred cattle belonging to village Christians and burned Christian-owned houses. Sindhipankha is about seven kilometers (four miles) from Tumudiband.

Local news reporter Lalit Jena told Compass from Kandhamal that the attacks – which have continued unabated since Hindu extremists blamed Christians for the death of Hindu leader Laxmanananda Saraswati on Aug. 23 even though Maoist militants admitted murdering him – involve women first ransacking the Christian homes.

“The modus operandi of the tribal mob is such that women go first and attack the Christian houses,” he said. “They ransack and rob the household’s gold and other jewelry, TVs and all that is precious. The men then follow and burn the houses. Lately it has been reported that now they are fighting among themselves for the booty.”

Jena added that tribal peoples who lived in poverty before the violence now have obtained many heads of cattle, including goats and cows, within a short span, as well as household goods.

“They may have no electricity in their villages, but one can see lots of television sets, nearly all of it looted from the Christians,” he said.

Axe Murder

On Wednesday (Oct. 1), Lalji Nayak, believed to be about 80 years old, died from axe wounds after a Hindu extremist mob attacked his village of Hrudangia the previous day. Nayak and 14 others were wounded, with Nayak struck between his neck and chest.

While three of the wounded received first-aid at a health center in Kandhamal, eight others, including Nayak and his wife Mandaki, were admitted to MKCG Medical College in Berhampur. At press time Nayak’s widow, who received an axe blow just below the ear, remained in the medical center with a serious head injury.

Local Christians in Berhampur wanted to give Lalji Nayak a Christian burial, but police did not allow it. Utkal Christian Council members B.D. Das and J.R. Patro expressed strong objections to the police action.

Nayak’s brother, Junas Nayak, was taken to Cuttack Medical College for gunshot wounds. He remained in critical condition at press time with multiple gunshot wounds, and according to Jena has a total of 13 bullets in him.

“Seven are on his left thigh, and six in his right hand, but the doctors have so far done nothing to remove them from his body, even though he has been admitted in the hospital since September 30,” Jena told Compass. “We are concerned that he may develop septic [shock or infection] because of the delay.”

In the attacks, an 8-year-old boy miraculously survived after being hit by an axe in the middle of his skull.

Two pregnant Christian women, Archana and Geeta Sahu, this week were brought from Kandhamal to Berhampur hospital, where they gave birth and were said to be out of danger.

Houses Burned

Nearly 400 houses were burned or destroyed in Orissa state’s Boudh and Kandhamal districts this week.

On Wednesday (Oct. 1), mobs set fire to dozens of houses in the Raikia area of the Kandhamal district. Yesterday the violence crossed over to neighboring Boudh district as about 100 houses were torched by mobs in at least nine villages. Worst affected was the village of Kantamal.

The burning of houses continued this morning, with more than 400 houses reported to have been either burnt or destroyed in Boudh and Kandhamal districts.

Police have reportedly arrested five people so far in connection with the burning of the houses in Boudh district.

Additional District Magistrate Mihir Chandra Mallik told reporters, that unidentified people set fire to over a hundred houses of Dalit Hindus in at least nine villages in Boudh district.

“We have set up a relief camp at Kantamal town to provide food and shelter to the people who have lost their homes,” he added.

The administration said that the motive for burning these houses was ethnic, as Kandh tribal peoples attacked Dalit Pana homes.

Area church leaders confirmed this, but one said on condition of anonymity, “First they were targeting Christian Panas only, but now even Hindu Panas are not being spared. All Hindus who have not joined the mobs in attacking Christians are also being treated in the same way as Christians.”

Both Dalit Pana houses as well as homes belonging to the Christian Pana community have been targeted in Boudh district, he said.

In Barakhama village near Kandhamal, Christians may move to the safer Daringbadi. A local pastor told Compass that Barakhama was also targeted last December, when around 400 homes belonging to Christians were burned and demolished.

“The same continues now,” he said on condition of anonymity. “The Christians love their homes, but it is just not safe to live here anymore, for the government has failed to protect us. The Christians in Barakhama have almost decided to move collectively to Daringbadi, which is at least a bit safer.”

It is estimated that around 500 Christian families will leave the village.

Nun Raped

Police have finally confirmed the rape of a nun in Kandhamal two days after the death of Hindu leader Saraswati.

A mob of around 40 men attacked the nun at K. Nuagaon village, where she and a priest, Father Thomas Chellantharayil, had taken shelter after their center was attacked. The mob allegedly dragged her and the priest to a deserted office of a Non-Governmental Organization, where she was stripped and raped. The priest was reportedly doused with gas and beaten as he tried to stop the attack on her.

Police have arrested four suspects in the rape. Juria Pradhan, 52, his 22-year-old son Kartik Pradhan, Biren Sahu, 35, and 26-year-old Tapas Patnaik were arrested in connection with the assault and rape of the 29-year-old Catholic nun on Aug. 25.

The inspector-in-charge of Baliguda police station has since been suspended in connection with the incident. The Orissa government has also ordered a probe, 39 days after the initial complaint.

District Superintendent of Police S. Praveen Kumar this week told reporters that a medical examination report confirmed that the nun was raped.

The Hindustan Times reported today that although the report was filed weeks ago, police obtained the medical examination report only two days ago following media reports and the efforts of Sister Nirmala, Superior-General of the Missionaries of Charity, who wrote to the state seeking justice.

“A police official said they were busy in maintaining law and order and could not find time to look into the case,” the national daily reported.

Attempts at Law and Order

Since Wednesday (Oct. 1), 46 people have been arrested on charges of rioting in Kandhamal district. A police official said that they had arrested more than 300 people in the past month.

Christian leaders attributed the sudden arrest of 46 people in the last two days to new state Director General of Police (DGP) Manmohan Praharaj, who took over from Gopal Chandra Nanda, who retired on Tuesday (Sept. 30).

Hindu extremist Vishwa Hindu Parishad International President Ashok Singhal did not take kindly to the latest arrests.

“The new DGP is indiscriminately arresting leaders of Hindu organizations that are not related to any case,” he told reporters this week.

Nearly 53 companies of paramilitary forces have been appointed in Kandhamal district, and curfew was still imposed. The central government sent 1,000 paramilitary personnel in the form of 10 Central Reserve Police Force companies on Wednesday (Oct. 1) to Kandhamal district. Local sources said 10 more companies were expected by Sunday (Oct. 5).

The central government has come down heavily on the Orissa state government. Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil wrote a strongly worded letter to Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday (Oct. 3) asking him to take effective measures and provide security for the Christian community in the state.

“Merely continuing to ask for additional forces after every few days cannot be the solution,” Patil wrote. “The state government has to implement overall strategy for creating an environment of security.”

The letter came hours after the Union Cabinet expressed grave concern over the situation in the state, with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh directing Patil to present a report on the situation at the next cabinet meeting.

Peace Rally in New Delhi

In New Delhi, nearly 15,000 Christians joined in a peace march in solidarity with the victims of the Orissa and Karnataka violence yesterday.

The peace march was the culmination of the week-long sit-in organized by the Christians of Delhi and NCR (National Capital Region) beginning Sept. 26 to protest atrocities on Christians in Orissa and Karnataka. The peace march took place on the birthday of Mahatma Gandhi, father of the nation.

Many national leaders, including central ministers Lalu Prasad Yadav and Oscar Fernandes, addressed the gathering at the Dharna (sit-in). Yadav, the union minister for Indian Railways, promised to personally meet with the prime minister and urgently discuss the matter. He said that he would “take up the anti-Christian violence in Parliament and debate the hatred of Hindutva [Hindu nationalist] forces.”

Hindu leaders such as Swami Agnivesh addressed the peace march at Rajghat (Gandhi’s final resting place), saying that the “very killers of Mahatma Gandhi, are the same killers of Christians in Orissa, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and other parts of the country . . . The Hindutva fascists do not represent the peace-loving Hindu societies, rather they are damaging the Sanatam Dharma [eternal law] of Hinduism,” he said.

Report from Compass Direct News

SOUTHFIELD -- Longtime Metro Detroit radio reporter Karen Dinkins has been fired after wearing a pro-Barack Obama T-shirt while covering a rally for the presidential candidate.

Dinkins, who has worked at WWJ (950 AM) for 13 years, covered the rally Sunday at the Detroit Public Library.

Reached by telephone, Dinkins acknowledged that she wore the shirt, and that the radio station fired her Monday. But she declined to elaborate.

"I don't want to comment at this time," she said.

Georgeann Herbert, WWJ's director of programming, said in a statement that Dinkins compromised the station's objectivity by wearing the T-shirt.

"(The station) believes that our credibility with our listeners rests on the independence of our newsroom staff," the statement said. "WWJ does not favor any candidate, party or issue.

"While we encourage employees to exercise their rights as citizens, we expect them to be on guard against any actual or perceived conflict of interest when covering news stories."

[SOURCE] You can reach George Hunter at (313) 222-2134 or ghunter@detnews.com. This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

"We would welcome Governor Palin to our news family," said FOX News Director of Human Resources Joseph Sixpack. "She gives the appearance of being informed, intelligent and down-to-earth at the same time. But most importantly, she looks hot."

If the McCain/Palin campaign loses its bid for the White House, FOX News could offer Palin the job of vice president for their MILF reporter division, or possibly even a news desk anchor role.

"Whatever position she assumes around here, Bill O'Reilly has stated he would welcome it," he said.

If this was Fox News' Sean Hannity - he would have long been fired - he drools in the form of Bush - and now Palin!

My sympathies go out to this reporter - who obviously tried to show her solidarity with the crowd at the Obama rally by wearing a t-shirt - but was shut down for it by her job. It’s not like very many Palin supporters were going to be there!

Detroit news radio station WWJ-AM (950) has fired radio personality Karen Dinkins after she wore a Barack Obama T-shirt while covering a presidential rally on Sunday.

Dinkins, contacted at her home today, said she is surprised about the reaction to her firing after Sunday’s rally at the Detroit Public Library. She said a number of news outlets contacted her after the station let her go on Monday. She said she had worked there for 13 years.

“I was really kind of surprised this is a news story,” she said, adding that she wouldn’t comment further. “I didn’t anticipate it.”

Jane Briggs-Bunting, director of the School of Journalism at Michigan State University, believes sending any type of political message — on air or off — is a no-no for journalists.

“Reporters, we’re on duty 24-7,” Briggs-Bunting said shortly before Obama took the stage this afternoon at MSU. She’s worked for Life and People magazines as well as the Free Press. “I can have an opinion, and my opinion will be heard in the privacy of a voting booth. You can’t publicize your political views on a T-shirt you wear, a button you wear, or a campaign sign in your front lawn. You represent your news organization 24-7.”

A call to WWJ-AM (950) management offices wasn’t immediately returned. But a woman who answered the phone in the newsroom said the station had received a number of calls from upset listeners.

Lorain Obomanu, Dinkins’ union representative at the American Federation of Television & Radio Artists’ Southfield office had no comment, a spokesman said today.

Source: freep

I keep in touch with one of my colleagues in Johannesburg. She reminds me of what an incredible experience it was, as her pursuit for truth and color and vivacity amid a beautiful, yet troubled country, wages onward. When we talk, she can tell I miss South Africa. "She got unda yo' skin," she quips about her native country.

But my decisions have taken me away from Jozi, Judy and SA. I've recently accepted a job in the British Virgin Islands writing and shooting photos for a newspaper in Road City, on the island of Tortola. To my friends, it sounds like a dream job. In my mind, it all works out: life on the beach and a full-time beat reporting job fresh out of college--I'd be a fool not to accept.

But I can't help feeling that something's missing. 

I'm missing Jozi, Judy and SA.

Submitted by Mike B

These people are the people who know Palin best.  So folks need to watch, listen and learn about the real Sarah Palin.

Another ADN article  to check out :    How did Palin get info on Wooten?

Another Story Out of Alaska:  Palin Implicated by Witness in Troopergate Probe

By Jason Leopold
The Public Record
Monday, September 29, 2008

An Alaska woman who owns a company that processes workers’ compensation claims in the state has told an independent investigator that she was urged by the office of Gov. Sarah Palin to deny a benefits claim for Palin’s ex brother-in-law, a state trooper who was involved in an ugly divorce and child custody dispute with Palin’s sister, despite evidence that the claim appeared to be legitimate, according to state officials who were briefed about the conversation.

Murlene Wilkes, the proprietor of Harbor Adjusting Services in Anchorage, had originally denied that she was pressured by Gov. Palin’s office to deny state trooper Mike Wooten’s claim for workers compensation benefits.

But Wilkes changed her story two weeks ago when she was subpoenaed by Steven Branchflower, the former federal prosecutor who was appointed in July to probe allegations Gov. Palin, Republican presidential candidate John McCain’s running mate, abused her office by abruptly ousting Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan, state officials knowledgeable about her conversation with Branchflower said.