Officials, reporters, employees of the editorial office and printing house of the Independent Vietnam Newspaper. Photo courtesy |
The first issue was published on August 1, 1941. Uncle Ho directed, directly wrote articles, prepared news, presented, drew propaganda posters, illustrated and participated in printing and distributing the Vietnam Independence Newspaper. In extremely difficult circumstances, the newspaper vividly demonstrated the revolutionary line, containing in each news and article the belief in the victory and correctness of Marxism-Leninism.
The short, easy-to-understand articles with practical content suitable for the level of the masses have made an important contribution to the cultural learning movement and are an effective tool to widely disseminate revolutionary policies and guidelines among the people.
Overcoming countless difficulties, generations of cadres and reporters of the Independent Vietnam Newspaper have always promoted their role as soldiers on the ideological front, implementing well the motto that journalism is not just about reporting news, but must be a political and ideological activity, closely connected with people's lives. And the writing style is concise, clear, and convincing.
Among those who used to work at the Independent Vietnam Newspaper, there is a rather special case: the couple of journalists Nguyen Thi Minh Cham and Nguyen Nien (1969-1976) - former Deputy Editor-in-Chief of Thai Nguyen Newspaper. Journalist Nguyen Thi Minh Cham began the story: I transferred to work at the Independent Vietnam Newspaper when I was only 24 years old, 5 years in the profession and had been married for more than a year.
Journalists Nguyen Nien and Nguyen Thi Minh Cham recall their memories of their time working at the Vietnam Independent Newspaper. |
Nearly 5 years as a reporter for the newspaper (1972-1976), with many hardships but also full of happy and sad memories for journalist Nguyen Thi Minh Cham. She said: I often cycled to districts and cities of Bac Thai province to collect news and write articles. Occasionally, I accompanied Deputy Editor-in-Chief Vu Duc Thuan to attend a conference at But Cave (Vo Nhai), and cycled back at night to submit news and articles in time for the newspaper the next morning. At that time, the newspaper office was evacuated to Dan Chu commune, Dong Hy district, because American planes were fiercely bombing the North. I remember one time when I was on a business trip to Phu Binh district, cycling back to Hoa Thuong commune when enemy planes came to drop bombs. I quickly rushed into the shelter. The A-frame bamboo shelter was as high as my head, but the pressure of the bombs made the roof crooked, and dust covered my body. At that time, I was pregnant with my first child. I personally saw people feeling nauseous, suffocating, and around them were trees and rocks strewn about, people were injured and killed, and cows and buffaloes were burned to death...
Despite the bombs falling and bullets exploding, the editorial office of the Independent Vietnam Newspaper still operated normally, publishing regularly on Mondays and Thursdays. The team of diligent and hard-working reporters spread out to the provinces of Cao Bang, Bac Kan , Lang Son, Tuyen Quang, Thai Nguyen to collect news, write articles, take photos, and complete their tasks excellently.
For Mr. Trinh Thanh Ho, the time working as a reporter for the Vietnam Independent Newspaper (1972-1976) helped him progress and mature. He told about the advice of Deputy Editor-in-Chief Tran Anh Tuan when he first applied to the Editorial Board: “… Journalism requires self-study and research, and then learning from experienced seniors.”
So he read, took notes day and night and met experienced reporters at the editorial office such as Cao Nam, Thai Duong, Van Chuong, and photojournalist Van Nguyen; he was carefully instructed on how to communicate with people in need to get data, how to interview, ask questions, record information, and how to write short and long news stories, investigative reports. "You need to have self-esteem and self-respect to rise up in your career" - he concluded from his experience.
For journalist Tran Van Chuong, working at the Vietnam Independent Newspaper (1960-1976) also helped him mature, because he had the opportunity to learn about and follow Uncle Ho's moral example; and to travel and explore many famous cultural and historical regions.
He recounted in his memoir: “Back then, the war was fierce, life was full of hardships, difficulties and deprivation, but everyone loved and helped each other like family. I was helped by senior journalists such as Nong Quang Hoat, Nguyen Trong, Luu Toan… who shared their practical experiences with ethnic minority areas. From those valuable lessons, along with my passion for exploring my career, I succeeded in a number of articles.”
Some independent Vietnamese newspapers in the 1960s. Photo archive |
Working in a context where the country still had many difficulties, the people working for the Independent Vietnam Newspaper carried out their duties with all their hearts and minds. The newspaper was born during the resistance war, grew up among the people and successfully fulfilled its revolutionary mission.
From the mountains of Viet Bac in the past to the modern editorial offices of today, the newspaper Vietnam Doc Lap remains a milestone in the history of Vietnam's revolutionary press. It is not simply a newspaper, it is the call of the country, a song of patriotism, a vivid lesson about the connection between the press and the revolution, between writers and the people.
In today's press flow, every journalist can find in independent Vietnam a model, a spirit, a sacred mission that never gets old.
The Independent Vietnam Newspaper - the first press agency of the Viet Minh - was the first newspaper founded by leader Nguyen Ai Quoc in the country, with its first issue published on August 1, 1941. The newspaper went through three periods of development: From 1941-1945, it was directly managed by Uncle Ho and comrade Pham Van Dong; from 1946-1956, it was handed over to the Cao Bang Provincial Party Committee; in August 1956, the Viet Bac Autonomous Region was established, and the Independent Vietnam Newspaper became the press agency of the Regional Party Committee, government and people of the 6 provinces in the region. The newspaper ended its mission in its last issue 1737 on March 11, 1976 when the Viet Bac Autonomous Region was dissolved... |
Source: https://baothainguyen.vn/xa-hoi/202506/ky-uc-viet-nam-doc-lap-mot-thoi-lam-bao-khong-the-quen-9480c3c/
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