AND THE EDITOR FIRED HIS REPORTER …A JOKE WITH JOE KAMANDA AT CHRISTMAS
By Leeroy Wilfred Kabs-Kanu
One of the very interesting jokes my Journalism teacher told in class one day became real in my life yesterday . And Professor John O’Connor predicted that those of us who set up newspapers would experience it with young reporters.
A teacher who always laced his lectures with humour, like the great Prof. Newman Smart during my Dip.Ed class at FBC , Prof O’Connor was teaching on the topic–A NOSE FOR THE NEWS . He taught that a journalist can find news in any situation and any place if he has a nose for the news , because after all, journalists create the news .
In typical humorous fashion , he told us a story of a yung reporter who was once fired by his Editor because he did not have a nose for the news. The reporter was sent on a thrilling mission to cover a church picnic which was to have been held at an Island. After the Editorial briefing for the day, the reporter skipped out of the office excitedly with his camera and notepad.He got at the terminal where the picnickers were embarking on the boat that would take them to the picnic. There was so much excitement around , with church members singing, beating drums and praising the name of the Lord.
Soon it was time for the boat to take off. It had not gone even 100 yards before it got into trouble, tailspinned and capsized. Merriment quickly turned to chaos as panic-stricken church members who had been thrown into the water struggled with the waves to save their lives. Our reporter friend , who luckily could swim, managed to wade through the waves and escaped death. He then rushed to the office to report that he had no news .”Why , What happened ? ” The Editor queried. The young man blurted : “The boat sank on the way to the picnic and there is no picnic ”
Prof O’Connor said the Editor fired the reporter on the spot, telling him that he was not journalism material . The boat accident was news ! ! ! ! And it was more newsworthy than the picnic ! ! ! journalist with a nose for the news could have carved out many different news stories from that one accident. Though it was learnt later that the pastor and his congregation were rescued , it could have made front page banner headline because the reporter was part of the incident and he could have written different interesting stories from the event.
Joe Kamanda, our reporter in Freetown , is a great guy. There is no doubt that he is a young, budding and promising reporter .He has often found news where even veterans would have come out flat. I admire his coverage of seminars and workshops along with the statements by participants. Joe has been doing a great job .
However , it seems that even brilliant reporters cannot avoid falling into the trap of the young reporter in the story. COCORIOKO had actually announced that it was going on Christmas vacation and would not be back until January 3, 2007. Therefore, Good, old Joe was enjoying his deserved Xmas. But our commitment to serve the people compelled us to return this week .Not receiving any news from Joe on Wednesday and yesterday, I wrote to find out why he had not sent anything. This was Joe’s response : “YOU DONT BLAME ME, SIR. THE PROBLEM IS THAT ALL THE NEWS MAKERS ARE PRESENTLY ON HOLIDAYS SO WHERE DO I HAVE TO GET NEWS ? ”
I have been bursting my sides with laughter . So Professor O’Connor’s prediction came true after all ? Even the best of them make the same mistake.When I have time to talk to Joe again, I will tell him that even the act of newsmakers being on holidays is news. Where is Kabbah ? Where is Berewa ? Where is Ernest ? Where is Charlie Boy ? It is newsworthy for readers to know where they are cooling off from the political pressure this Christmas . Did Charlie go to Gbangbatoke as his dad used to do ? NEWS–It is Journalists who create it and they can find it anywhere .
