A Reporter's tools

Journalism Lectures, Day-14

Today, the professor discussed about the tools that a reporter utilizes to write a story. The class wasn't as interesting as some of the other lectures on Reporting were. Everytime I enter the lecture room, I find it difficult not to feel sleepy. But the energy with which the lecturers go about their job, makes the whole experience an enjoyable one. On this occasion, the energy was perhaps missing.

So, what are the tools that a Reporter uses for his daily work? The lecturer mentioned the small bag that he often carries to the classroom. That small bag holds his cell phone, pen drive, notepad and voice recorder. A reporter must necessarily carry the mentioned items whenever he's traveling to cover a story.

A voice recorder is an extremely useful tool for a Reporter. It allows a reporter to record each and every statement made by the interviewee. Before writing the final copy of a story, a reporter can play back the tape to find out whether he had missed out on any critical points. A voice recorder is absolutely essential in case of an interview that is going to appear in the newspaper in a question-answer format.

But don't rely entirely on a voice recorder. You must jot down the important points in your notepad as the interview progresses. The lecturer recounted 2 moments in his career when he failed to take notes, relied entirely on a recorder and had to face disastrous consequences.

In 1990, the lecturer had the good fortune to interview Nelson Mandela in Kolkata. He was planning to submit the interview in a question-answer format and used a voice recorder to cover the entire interview. Unfortunately, the recorder malfunctioned and no written notes were available as a backup. He was forced to give up on the question-answer format and had to really depend on his memory to recollect the finer points of the interview.

In the 2nd instance, a voice recorder mishap occurred after an interview with Mamata Banerjee. But in this case, opted to go for the question-answer format, sent a copy to the leader and sought her approval for the copy to be published. But in both the cases, the rub of the green could have easily gone the other way. So, jotting down important points is an absolute necessity for a Reporter.

Some of the other tools of a Reporter include pens, typing skills, forward diary, press releases and of course, the internet!