PESHAWAR, April 4: Speakers at a workshop have urged press reporters to concentrate on investigative reporting instead of going for run-of-the mill stories. Speaking at the one-day skill development workshop organized for local reporters by the Peshawar Press Club here on Monday, they said that journalists should cultivate sources and develop the skill of investigative journalism. ?Investigative journalism means digging out stories from beneath the surface, which is hard and time consuming and requires patience, resources and sacrifice?, said local journalist Ismail Khan in his key lecture.
According to him, most of the reporters did only event-based reporting, due to which they could not create market value for themselves and do justice to their profession.
On the other hand, journalists spending time on investigative reporting not only earned a name but also contributed to their career, he said.
Mr Khan deplored the lack of reading and research habit amongst most reporters and said that it affected their working.
Reading, he said, was important to improve one?s knowledge and help generate story ideas.
By scanning newspapers, reporters could get ideas for doing stories, he said and added that letters to editors could also prove a good source for generating human interest stories.
About investigative reporting, he said that reporters should first float an idea concerning an issue and then conduct basic research.
He conceded that investigative reporting often entailed risks but said that it was part of the occupational hazards.
But such stories, he said, were few and far between and there could be stories that did not involve any risk but could still touch the lives and problems of people.
He also advised journalists to have information about relevant laws while reporting on sensitive issues.
He stressed evidence-based reporting with comments from all the characters involved in the news.
?An Investigative report is one?s own product created through one?s initiative and efforts and it adds to credibility of the reporter?, he said, adding that a reporter should be dead sure about authenticity of his/her sources before filing the stories.
Mr Khan pointed out that cultivation of sources was a difficult and time-consuming task but gaining the trust of the readers was all the more difficult.
He said that workload and lack of encouragement on the part of the seniors affected the professional capabilities of their juniors. ?Still, no editor would like to lose a good reporter,? he asserted.
He also spoke about the code of journalistic ethics, according to which it was the fundamental responsibility of the reporters not to identify the source of a report.
According to him, most of the reporters did only event-based reporting, due to which they could not create market value for themselves and do justice to their profession.
On the other hand, journalists spending time on investigative reporting not only earned a name but also contributed to their career, he said.
Mr Khan deplored the lack of reading and research habit amongst most reporters and said that it affected their working.
Reading, he said, was important to improve one?s knowledge and help generate story ideas.
By scanning newspapers, reporters could get ideas for doing stories, he said and added that letters to editors could also prove a good source for generating human interest stories.
About investigative reporting, he said that reporters should first float an idea concerning an issue and then conduct basic research.
He conceded that investigative reporting often entailed risks but said that it was part of the occupational hazards.
But such stories, he said, were few and far between and there could be stories that did not involve any risk but could still touch the lives and problems of people.
He also advised journalists to have information about relevant laws while reporting on sensitive issues.
He stressed evidence-based reporting with comments from all the characters involved in the news.
?An Investigative report is one?s own product created through one?s initiative and efforts and it adds to credibility of the reporter?, he said, adding that a reporter should be dead sure about authenticity of his/her sources before filing the stories.
Mr Khan pointed out that cultivation of sources was a difficult and time-consuming task but gaining the trust of the readers was all the more difficult.
He said that workload and lack of encouragement on the part of the seniors affected the professional capabilities of their juniors. ?Still, no editor would like to lose a good reporter,? he asserted.
He also spoke about the code of journalistic ethics, according to which it was the fundamental responsibility of the reporters not to identify the source of a report.