MD Fatty made this exhortation last week during a courtesy call on the company by members of the Gambia College Press Club at our offices in Bakau.
The straight-talking managing director said: “The information we deal in is what? To create and make informed decisions on the information giving to you [the public] and those information must be very, very objective and not subjective. When you look at the subjective part of it, it becomes negative and bias. So objectivity is what The Standard stands for. This is why when you look at our front page stories, every now and then, what you see is balanced, responsible and fair reporting. We are not here for any individual, entity or political party, we are here for all.
“When I came in, I said we want to make The Standard a centre for research in journalism in this country. We want to have that open-door policy where young people would come in; we open our doors, minds and talk to you as we talk to our younger ones. So you [members of the press club] coming here is the right thing and at the right time. We are going to adopt you and your club. We are going to open up opportunities. We can also give scholarships. In terms of employment, we can absorb you in. When you have your holidays we can take in a number of you to come and serve as interns.”
The president of the press club Baboucarr Jarju said as aspiring journalists, they are of the view that they have a huge task ahead of them. He urged media houses to throw their weight behind them in their search for a successful career.
“We want to pursue a career in journalism. Embarking on this visit will avail us ideas and have firsthand information about journalism and how the media operates,” he said, reminding the gathering that his press club has been in existence for seven years.
President Jarju said members of his club normally write news items which they later publish on the institution’s notice board, in order to develop their writing skills. He said the news they often publish is all about the activities of the college.
He added that despite the fact that members of the club are student teachers, they also built an interest in journalism and practising it at the same time. He said fundraising campaign is also part of the activities of the club.
Meanwhile, members of the Gambia College Press Club were on a familarisation tour to acquaint themselves among others, on how the company operates.
The idea behind the visit, according to members was to get firsthand information on how The Standard operates compared to other media houses in the country. The fact-finding mission took them on a conducted tour of the company’s facilities.
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