The Sastra Indonesia Study Programme, Fakultas Ilmu Budaya, UNSOED, in collaboration with the newspaper Suara Merdeka, held a Guest Lecturer Class: Basic Journalism Training for Students on Friday, March 10, 2023. This event aimed to provide knowledge to Sastra Indonesia students from the 2020 and 2021 cohorts regarding basic journalism so that students’ understanding of the journalism world could be further expanded. This activity could also serve as a means of self-reinforcement for students who already have an interest in the world of journalism. Additionally, this event was held to strengthen the relationship between Suara Merdeka and the Sastra Indonesia Study Programme at Unsoed.
The guest lecturer class held in room D203, Gedung Bambang Lelono, Fakultas Ilmu Budaya, UNSOED began at 08:00 WIB. The speakers at this event were alumni of Universitas Jenderal Soedirman and members of Suara Merdeka, namely Gayhul Dhika Wicaksana and Dian Aprilianingrum. The event was moderated by Nila Mega Marahayu, an instructor from Fakultas Ilmu Budaya UNSOED. As previously explained, this general lecture focused on journalism activities intended to enable participants to learn more about journalism, such as how to write good and engaging news, the difficulties of being a journalist, how to find sources, and so forth. A total of 60 participants attended, coming from the Sastra Indonesia programme of the 2020 and 2021 cohorts.
In this event, the speakers conveyed that being a journalist is a complex profession. One of the difficulties mentioned was having to face powerful individuals when gathering information to uncover truthful news. Furthermore, journalists must constantly write news, whether good news or bad news, to convey the latest information even when it conflicts with their conscience. This is reflected in the phrase Bad news is good news, Good news is good news. However, working as a journalist can accustom people to evaluating matters from various perspectives, thus gaining a broader view of situations.
We express our gratitude to the newspaper Suara Merdeka for being willing to collaborate in organizing this general lecture. It is hoped that Sastra Indonesia students from the 2020 and 2021 cohorts can benefit from this event to support cultural activities for students in the Sastra Indonesia study programme. It is also hoped that through this event, the relationship between the Sastra Indonesia Study Programme at Universitas Jenderal Soedirman and the newspaper Suara Merdeka will continue to be well maintained.