Each month, IJNet features an international journalist who exemplifies the profession and has used the site to further his or her career. If you would like to be featured, email a short bio and a paragraph about how you have used IJNet here.
This month's journalist, Liliana Ciobanu of Romania, heads her own production company and has recently been stringing for CNN, following an internship with the broadcaster in Atlanta and London.
Through IJNet, which she describes as a "constant source of trusted information," Ciobanu, attended a Reuters training course and participated in webinars. She also uses the site as a training resource for her production company's staff.
IJNet: What's your current project?
Liliana Ciobanu: Recently, I decided to take an entrepreneurial approach to what I enjoy the most. I am running my own independent TV production company, Purple Mind Productions. It is based in Romania, but our team is composed of stringers from twelve other countries around the world. The company is specialized in delivering news, features, current affairs and documentaries to the international media.
IJNet: How has IJNet helped you?
LC: My first contact with IJNet was in 2008, when I read about the “Making television news” course organized by the Thomson Reuters Foundation in London, which I attended. Also, last year I attended several online seminars offered by the Reynolds Center for Business Journalism following an IJNet article I read.
Furthermore, I use IJNet’s website to update my staff on journalism trainings and opportunities around the world. I strongly believe that encouraging one another to get involved in these trainings is the best way to build professional relationships inside and outside Purple Mind Productions and to maintain a highly qualified staff.
IJNet: How do you get your ideas for stories and documentaries?
LC: As a journalist living in Romania, many times it’s the other way around. The stories and the characters reach me first. Sometimes, it’s just a matter of walking down the street and talking to people. For instance, one of the projects at Purple Media Productions is related to a documentary for German television. It’s an investigative documentary which reveals human rights abuses in Romania and other Eastern European countries.
IJNet: What's your best story or work so far?
LC: I think one of the best stories I have is my recent experience as a stringer for CNN in Romania...I have been covering the anti-government protests that took place in Bucharest. What I found particularly interesting about this story is the small yet fascinating stories behind the mainstream news. The University Square in Bucharest, where most of the protests have been held, gathered Romanians from across all social layers. Opportunities to listen to so many different Romanians debating and taking an attitude toward the country’s current situation do not come along often. At the end of the day, as a journalist I think it’s not just about reporting the news but also about understanding the world you live in and trying to make it a better place.
IJNet: What advice would you give aspiring journalists?
LC: There are many things I need to learn and live before I could start giving advice. What I could tell them is that I personally don’t believe in talent, but I believe in hard work. Someone once told me that if you’re not madly in love with journalism, sooner or later you will quit. I think he was right. It’s all about passion.
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