Social media determines editorial direction
By Zan Azlee
I travel quite often to report news and also to produce documentaries on countries other than Malaysia. And, being a foreigner in these countries, I can never claim that I am an expert on their domestic issues. Call me a parachute journalist if you want. But it is impossible to understand a country and it’s people if you don’t live there for a certain period of time.
So the most common thing for me to do is to get myself a fixer, or a local guide, to help me out. They do more than just be a translator. They usually become the link between me and the country.
They help to inform me of the goings-on of the country, the culture, find me contacts and sources, and most of all, to put things into context for me. And if I’m going into war zones, they have to be street-smart, reliable and trusted as well, as my life would be in their hands. [Click to read the full article at The Malaysian Insider]
