Pacific journalists enjoy meeting Pacific correspondent Barbara Dreaver and 1News anchor Melissa Stokes while touring TVNZ as part of an MFAT Media Exchange.
By Stefan Ambruster
Regional News Development Lead, PCBL/Pasifika TV
Two tables at the Pacific Cooperation Broadcasting Limited (PCBL) CEO Conference might have been a little bit louder than others at times, with 11 journalists from eight countries across the Pacific attending on a Media Exchange programme.
Their enthusiasm for and curiosity about the future of their industry was abundant, as was their work ethic.
During the conference week they generated more than 50 individual reports, including video packages, interviews, radio reports, photo essays and online articles.
Among the packed conference programme they had three workshops, a press conference with Foreign Affairs Minister Rt Hon Winston Peters and a field reporting day at Pasifika Festival, in Auckland.
Their joint sense of purpose quickly developed, and they formed a special camaraderie.
The overwhelming sentiment was summed up by Senolita Tu’ivai from Tonga Broadcasting Commission on Facebook.
“Being in NZ on this official work trip I didn’t just feel like I was traveling but it felt like I was reconnecting with Family across the ocean in our vaka – the love, the laughter, shared stories – and it reminded me that no matter where we go, PASIFIKA people are always connected in spirit,” she says.
Supported by the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT), the programme aimed to build stronger relationships between Pacific journalists, enhance practical skills and provide opportunities to apply them in live situations.
A behind-the-scenes tour of TVNZ’s newsroom and studios with Pacific correspondent Barbara Dreaver, gave the cohort the opportunity to ask one of the region’s most prominent journalists about her career, challenges and those anxious moments before every live cross.
“Be Brave”, was Barbara’s answer, also the title of her new autobiography that she signed for them.
The journalists also gained a deeper understanding of New Zealand’s engagement with the region and exposure to high-level discussions shaping the future of Pacific broadcasting.
Rounding out the workshops were Pasifika Festival coverage briefings and a talanoa with SPC and SPREP communications directors on pathways to strengthen regional reporting.
A key objective of the programme was to bridge identified skills gaps, focussing on press conference questioning, on-camera presentation and editorial planning.
During the conference’s plenary Q&As, the journalists immediately started putting that to use.
One of the standout moments was when Minister Peters faced the Media Exchange press pack on his announcement to drop Pacific visa fees by $55.
Afterwards he commented he had not been expecting quite so many questions.
The Media Exchange’s formal programme rounded off with the Pasifika Festival, where journalists had time to connect with their families and communities and helped each other to news gather and report.
Watching the relationships grow between the journalists was one of the most powerful outcomes of the Media Exchange, as connections were created across the Pacific region, with an awareness that while they operate in diverse environments, many of the challenges and opportunities they face are the same.