Fast but right
At noon, under the scorching sun, Mr. Le Loi, a reporter for Construction Newspaper based in Long An province, stopped by a shop to order a cup of black coffee without sugar. While he was holding his cup of coffee, a call came in to report that a serious traffic accident had just occurred between a truck and a motorbike, killing four people.
"Breaking news, no time for coffee, let's go! The situation is very serious, let's go to the scene to see what's going on" - he said hoarsely. His coffee cup was still unfinished, he hurried on his way.
Reporter Le Loi (2nd from right) during a field trip
With nearly 30 years of experience in journalism, Mr. Le Loi is very familiar with the irregular rhythm of the job. In particular, many years in charge of traffic safety, he has written a lot about this field. Mr. Loi shared that for him and many colleagues, doing "hot" news has no concept of office hours or real days off.
It was a chain of reflexes: Listen - run - verify - write - send - edit - post. All had to happen in the shortest time. He recounted that once while attending his nephew's wedding, he received a report of a major fire in the neighboring district. He left the banquet table and rushed to the scene. That time, he even arrived before the fire department, took out his camera to take pictures, but the smoke and heat kept hitting his face.
Not only racing for speed, those who make "hot" news also have to face invisible constraints such as accuracy, professional ethics and pressure from public opinion. Mr. Loi could not hide his sadness: "Sometimes I have verified carefully, asked from the police to the people, and written with utmost care. But when I post it, there are still people who are skeptical and say "overdoing it", even saying bad words".
In the era of social media explosion, the pressure on reporters who specialize in breaking news is even higher. Mr. Huynh Du - a reporter for Ho Chi Minh City Law Newspaper, residing in Long An, has often skipped meals or asked relatives to pick up his children to work on breaking news. At any time, day or night, a phone call, a text message, or a clip on social media can be the starting command: "Go verify immediately!". "Not long ago, on a stretch of road, an oil tanker caught fire at noon. I was taking the opportunity to visit my garden, but when I heard that, I rushed to the scene in shorts, a T-shirt, and only had a phone to work on," said Mr. Huynh Du.
In many cases of breaking news, he also encountered ironic situations. There were times when he had not yet arrived at the scene when dozens of videos were already circulating on TikTok and Facebook. When he arrived, he had to verify and debunk the false and fabricated information.
Once, he was one of the few reporters who attended a court hearing to report on a case that attracted public attention. He tried to write every word of the article carefully, but before the article was aired, social media had already seen false and sensationalized “news” appear. What’s more, the information spread far and wide and was widely shared on social media.
“I feel so helpless! I work with the truth, but the truth is slower than that noise” - Mr. Huynh Du shared his feelings. He pondered: "Writing a news article is not simply a matter of punctuation, line breaks and then done. It is a responsibility to the truth, a struggle between speed and caution, and invisible pressure from a large number of readers who are reading. Write accurately, true to the essence, but I absolutely never embellish events or information in an untrue direction to sensationalize and attract views".
“Don't leave the truth behind”
Sometimes, even those involved admit that they are afraid of "hot" news. Mr. Le Loi said, not because of the danger but because of emotional exhaustion. Sometimes there is no time to slow down, to feel the pain. "The loss and heartache happened but we still had to take photos, film and then run to a nearby coffee shop to write a quick news report and send it to the editorial office," said Mr. Le Loi.
To balance and not let his emotions get numb, he chose to write down a few lines of thoughts after each incident. He didn't post them anywhere, just saved them on his computer to keep the feeling of doing his job with all his heart.
Reporter Huynh Du (middle) working
When asked why he still sticks with the job and reports “hot” news, despite knowing the pressure, Mr. Huynh Du smiled a very light but “deep” smile. He replied: “Because there are still stories to tell with honesty. Because every time I see that my news is shared correctly, I am thanked, and trusted. Every time like that, I see that this job is worthwhile.” Then he quickly put on his worn-out jacket, holding an old camera. A reliable source of news came: There was a wall collapse that killed and injured 3 people. “Go again” - he said in a trembling, worried voice.
Finally, what “hot” news people like Mr. Le Loi and Huynh Du never expect are fires, tragic deaths or catastrophic accidents, but when they happen, they will quickly verify and report the news in the press. Not to grab headlines or views, but to provide accurate and timely information, help guide public opinion, support investigations, and contribute to protecting justice and the vulnerable.
Breaking news can prompt a decision to be changed, a safety measure to be tightened, or an act of kindness to be widely publicized. By telling the truth properly, journalism can save lives, however small.
The life of those who work for "hot" news is like that, no frills, no glitter, only responsibility, courage and even silent scratches in the heart. But from there, readers can see the truth, not through a sensationalist lens, not distorted, but complete, accurate and timely. Because somewhere, there are still journalists who persevere in every step racing against time, just so that the truth is not left behind./.
Le Duc
Source: https://baolongan.vn/phia-sau-nhung-tin-nong-a196926.html
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