A VISITING Canadian journalist lauded community newspapers which she said are “more real, very, very real” as the stories they feature directly affect the lives of readers.

Kim Keirans, a professor in journalism and vice president of the King’s College in Halifax, Canada, spoke on July 26 during the “Forum on Community Journalism: Current and Emerging Trends” at the Lyceum Northwestern University sponsored by the Pangasinan Press Club (PPC).

A journalist in Canada for 40 years starting at the age of 15, Keirans hailed community journalists who, she said, “share the stories in their provinces with the rest of the nation”.

Starting with a weekly newspaper in her province of Nova Scotia in Canada before she worked for a national daily, and later on radio and television, Keirans defines community journalism as “telling the stories about one province that people in the other side of the country want to hear.”

“Often that is interesting,” she said, “the concerns expressed in one part of the country that are very similar to the concerns expressed in other parts of the country like on industries, opportunities for young children, environment, etc.”

KEIRANS

She observed that like in Canada where community journalists feel that they are not appreciated as much as those working in the national broadsheets, community journalists in the Philippines also feel they are the “underdog” compared to their counterparts in Manila.

She told stringers of national dailies, including news agencies, that “your mission as community journalists is important because what you do here is what the national media can do without.”

At the same time, she observed that community journalists, including stringers of dailies in the Philippines, are not well paid.

To address this, Keirans suggested that community journalists organize themselves to push for improved compensation.

Keirans also underscored the potential of the internet, particularly online editions of community newspapers, as an added avenue for income in terms of ad revenues and subscriptions.

INTEGRITY

Kierans also called on local journalists to maintain integrity by means of accurate reporting.

“We don’t deal with rumors. If we don’t know the facts or we only get rumors then, we don’t serve the public,” she pointed out.

At the same time, she lauded Filipino journalists for their being fearless amidst media-related killings and threats saying, “I really admire what you are doing,”

Keirans, who has also been teaching journalism at the Ateneo de Manila University in Manila, said she enjoys “reading newspapers in the Philippines because they are far more in depth”.

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