Photojournalist Hoang Trieu: Each story is a lesson for the profession
Reporter Hoang Trieu working at SEA Games 2021
From the first days of working at Nguoi Lao Dong Newspaper, I was often assigned to work mostly in the two sections of Current Affairs and Trade Unions. Perhaps because I worked a lot in these sections, I had the chance to meet many characters and different lives. For me, every time I met a character, heard a story, and held the camera to work were all memorable memories. Each story was a lesson for the profession that when I looked back, I sometimes felt regretful for not being well prepared to do better.
Through photo reports, I wish to share with the poor, those who are less fortunate in life. That is the joy, the true happiness of a journalist. For example, when the photo report "Uncle Bio's Special Class" (won first prize at the 36th Ho Chi Minh City Press Awards - 2018) was published, it helped many students in difficult circumstances find this free class. Or when the first series of photos about the rice ATM was published, it contributed to spreading information to help scrap collectors, lottery ticket vendors, and freelance workers know where to distribute free rice and food during the period of social distancing in Ho Chi Minh City. Or most recently, the story about "Special boarding house for children with cancer" (won second prize at the 41st Ho Chi Minh City Press Awards - 2023) also contributed to connecting readers and philanthropists with people in difficult circumstances.
In addition to the characters, working at annual events in Ho Chi Minh City, the foreign affairs sector has helped me have memorable trips with unexpected experiences. The most memorable work must be at the US-North Korea Summit. Truly, the opportunity for me to work at an international event like this is very rare, this is also an opportunity for me to directly learn from the world's leading media companies.
I always think that success in journalism will come from hard work and effort shown through influential journalistic works containing valuable messages about life.
Reporter Nguyen Thi Thao (THAO NGUYEN): Just go
Reporter Thao Nguyen during an interview with authorities at the scene
After more than 12 years of working in journalism, there were times when I thought the flame of passion had gone out, but there were motivations that pulled me back to the profession. The care and encouragement of the newspaper's leaders, colleagues and the trust of readers always made me think and wish that I had to create some value, at least for myself and those who believed in me. Therefore, regardless of day or night, far or near, if there is work, I go.
Facing difficulties and dangers on the way to work, I have been threatened and had my working equipment destroyed many times. The scariest thing was when I was more than 7 months pregnant with my second child. While writing an article about the violations of a certain case, I received a threatening text message "be careful when you go out when you are pregnant". Or in March 2022, after the incident of a girl named K. jumping from the building at the IDOL karaoke bar, reporter Sy Hung and I were assigned by the editorial board to investigate the karaoke riots in Binh Duong province. Although I was assigned specific tasks, I was still worried because this is a sensitive topic, affecting many social groups as well as the rights of many people. Fortunately, when the first series of reports was published on June 12, the director of Binh Duong Provincial Police held a meeting that same morning to review the responsibilities of related officers, as well as temporarily suspend the operations of the IDOL Karaoke bar (Di An City) that the newspaper had reported. That same night, Di An City Police launched a campaign to simultaneously inspect many karaoke bars in the area. Immediately after that, the leaders of Di An City and Thuan An City People's Committees issued urgent dispatches requesting relevant agencies to conduct inspections after the reflection of Nguoi Lao Dong Newspaper; the Chairman of Binh Duong Province People's Committee also directed relevant units, especially the Police, to inspect karaoke bars. After that, a series of karaoke bars were fined and suspended from operation...
For female journalists like us, the more we travel and venture into dangerous places, the more perseverance, courage and bravery are required.
Reporter Thu Hong: Set a goal and... run.
Reporter Thu Hong plays the role of a female janitor
Journalism is already stressful, but for reporters following current events, the pressure is even greater as events and information keep pouring in every day.
As a reporter in charge of the transport infrastructure sector - a hot area that the Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee and People's Committee have set many goals for in the 2021-2025 period, sometimes events happen simultaneously, forcing me to run continuously. The pressure of daily news sometimes makes me out of breath. So how can I have good topics? I set my own goals and then... run.
Actually, I don't set any big goals, I just simply have to make sure that every day the news and articles are not inferior to other newspapers; try to find 1 or 2 good topics every month to deeply exploit into a series of quality articles. The investigative series " The world of private taxis at Tan Son Nhat airport" that my colleagues and I conducted and won the National Press Award this year is proof.
After more than 10 years of writing, I am still passionate, still running, rolling through many construction sites, coming to the unfortunate lives, to the changes of the city and the country to record. And just set goals and keep running. Journalism life is my own breath!
Reporter Cao Hai Dinh: Learn to grow up
Reporter Hai Dinh (getting off the ship), on a reporting trip to the sea of the Central provinces in April 2023
At the Da Nang City Press Awards ceremony held on June 17, I was awarded first prize by Mr. Luong Nguyen Minh Triet - Standing Deputy Secretary of the Da Nang City Party Committee, Chairman of the Da Nang City People's Council - for the work "Following the "night-eating waste" convoy". That was a great honor for me.
Perhaps the 3 months of following and pursuing the investigation topic of the "nighttime junk" truck convoy is an unforgettable time in my career as a journalist. No longer a theoretical lesson in investigation in the classroom, I had to face and "fight with wits" with H. "bald", the owner of the "nighttime junk" truck convoy in Da Nang.
After a long time of monitoring, I realized that H. "bald"'s "nighttime junk" convoy was very sophisticated. Hung always assigned people to keep strict watch. Whenever they saw someone following them, the subjects would immediately approach to investigate or pause all activities to listen to the situation.
Therefore, to deceive the subjects and ensure my own safety, I had to change my identity many times. Sometimes, I rented a truck and became a driver and assistant. Sometimes I rented a motorbike and transformed into a motorbike taxi driver to easily follow and infiltrate... Thanks to that, although the convoy always had 2-3 people on guard, no one expected that the motorbike taxi driver with the old motorbike was the one following, determined to bring the "night-eating" convoy into the light.
Discovering the dumping site (in Hoa Lien commune, Lien Chieu district), I studied the terrain and decided to choose a sewer pipe as a hiding place. As soon as it got dark, I immediately infiltrated the dumping site, ready to wait for the "night car". That night, I lay in the sewer for 6 hours.
The 6-hour wait was not an easy time. At times, I was discouraged by hunger, thirst, mosquito bites, and the fear that my whereabouts would be exposed like before, that my plan would be exposed, that everything would go to waste, and that there was even the possibility of being blocked and assaulted in the middle of the night. However, with my "passion for the job", I was determined to wait, even mentally determined to sleep in the sewer for the rest of the night.
During the days of traveling with the "night-eating" convoy, not only were we constantly threatened, but even the leaders of the Central region's representative office of the Lao Dong Newspaper were also threatened by reckless subjects. However, because of our "passion for the job", we were determined to get to the bottom of the case, bringing the "night-eating" convoy to light. As a result, the convoy's violations were handled by the traffic police, environmental police, and traffic inspectors of Da Nang City. The authorities also organized an inspection and rectification of the situation of transport convoys taking advantage of the dark to drive recklessly, causing traffic insecurity and disorder.
The success of the series has helped me learn how to grow through the commitment and responsibility of a journalist.
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