Liz's job log: 6
Liz Rawlins
- February 2009.
The story so far... Liz recently graduated from the University of Glamorgan with a degree in journalism. Aged 21 she is living most of the time in Barry, South Wales and working for a local insurance company - when she's not getting experience of radio journalism in West Africa. Adapting  I think that I'm about as adapted to the Ghanaian way of life as I possibly can be! It is my fourth week here (it’s going so fast, maybe too fast?) and I am still enjoying every minute. Oh yes, the news still baffles me at times (politics is hard work) and there are moments at work where I’m pretty sure I could be doing more than I actually am, but in the long run it is turning out to be very beneficial to me in ways I didn’t really consider before.
I underestimated the advantages of looking at journalism in another country, especially in this case, where the country in question happens to be one I’m very fond of! I'm hoping it will help towards becoming my 'niche' area as I've always wanted to concentrate on foreign and international news, and have always felt quite passionate about Africa, for reasons I'm not too sure of. I was quite surprised after speaking to the locals and my colleagues that although they listen to the BBC almost as much as their own local news stations, they are not always happy with the way Africa is reported and portrayed by western countries.
I think this has something to do with the fact that Ghana is a generally peaceful and democratic country, as I'm sure I've mentioned previously, and the people are very proud of this. So when other African countries, Rwanda, Zimbabwe and Democratic Republic of Congo, hit the international headlines time and time again because of war, violence, genocide and corruption, it can shed a bad light on Africa as a whole. I have made a promise to those who think this, light heartedly if nothing else, that if I was to become a correspondent for Africa I would do my best to avoid this. The deep end... again This week I have covered a demonstration held in the capital city of Accra, it was led by a commitee who organised the protest due to the rather controversial situation in Ghana at the moment, over the ex-president’s retirement package. To put it simply, the Ghanaian people, well, a large majority of them, feel the retirement package is too much - it's along the lines of three houses, six cars... and for a developing country, with a very apparent struggling economy, I must admit I tend to agree.
Covering that was really interesting and I found myself chucked in at the deep end - again. It did, however, give me the confidence to think, ah what the hell - I'll get right in the thick of things! So I just barged in with some questions! (Obviously there was a local journalist with me - I'm not that brave!)
I've also been along to parliament a few times, which feels quite important work, especially at the moment, as the new government, the NDC, is still in the process of 'transition' - i.e handing over from one government to another (see, look how much I'm learning!). I attended the press conferences for the 'vetting' of the new ministers this week too, and to me it seems a very strange concept. It's as if they are being interviewed by parliament, the press and the public in order to get the job, despite being nominated by the president! All work and no play... I've had a few frustrating moments in work in the last week or so, mostly due to my own need to be busy and deliver the best news and the best stories and sometimes in the environment I'm working in out here, that's not always possible. There are times I'm sat there just watching the clock - this is not how I picture my career in journalism. For sure, there are better radio stations than the one I'm working at and when I hear some of their shows I think aargh, I want to be doing that! Vibe FM (the station I'm at) are starting a new breakfast show this week though, and I've been asked to join the news team with them instead of the afternoon 'team' (there really isn't a team, it's pretty much just me), so fingers crossed I'll be getting stuck in a lot more...
But of course, it's not all work! There is plenty of free time and so, so much to do out here, as you would expect being in West Africa. It's like a working holiday, although I'm not sure I'm meant to think that way! The lure of the beach, the pool, the bars.... often too much to resist! My previous posts
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