A HISTORY LESSON

Thursday, 26 2009

I had another long day working with Kim Nguyen on a broadcast story and I filmed some pretty good content. The story turned out to be more than interesting and relevant to the economy, but I was expecting to do more hard-impact stories that spoke of the ugliness of the economic situation in Europe. Regardless, I enjoy, more than ever, working as a journalist.

The restaurant we covered, Foyer Vietnam, filled up with students and other local Parisians within twenty minutes of opening their doors. I felt an overwhelming warmth and coziness while we were filming and doing interviews, but it could have been the great French wine that the owner insisted I try. Either way I felt welcomed and honored to be there. Everyone was very hospitable and I think the story will turn out great.

It was also interesting to see the students and teachers interacting together in a social environment. When I asked if it was common I was told that the professors in Paris look after their students like family and often go out to eat together. It’s not uncommon to find them drinking together at night as well.

For those of you who haven’t read up on international conflict and history, there is a strong connection between France and Vietnam. Long before the U.S. made it’s presence known in the beautiful Southeast Asian Country, Vietnam was under French rule. The Vietnam War, as it’s known in the U.S., took place after the Vietnamese fought a long and bloody war of independence. When they finally gained their freedom from France, fueled by socialist ideas, the U.S. stepped in and tried to impose capitalistic ideas. The clash became a tragic war lasting over a decade and remains a dark cloud in the history of U.S. foreign policy, at least from my perspective.

Overall it was a productive day and I learned a lot about what it takes to get a strong broadcast story. Comparatively speaking, it seemed like it took longer that a traditional print story and it will probably have less information when it’s put together because of the time restraints. If I can, or if I think it will help the story, I’ll add some photos and written content.

John Ellis
Print Journalism