Nkemndem Forbinake
2 July 2009
«It was very exciting to find myself at the head of Cameroon Tribune (English edition) when the paper was launched, having been challenged to assume the functions of coordinator.
At the English language weekly, we took off with only one trained journalist from the same school, Jenkins Mote and, later on Kongso Lafon, another trained journalist. With other staff members -Dinga Ambe and Martin Che, I found myself sufficiently equipped to start the weekly publication. At that time, it was difficult to clearly define newsroom roles, as reporter, sub-editor, etc. So we found ourselves fulfilling these roles indiscriminately. I, for example, was responsible for laying out the front page and supervising national news before Kongso Lafon came. I must say things were also made difficult because of technical limitations. The type-setting process was laborious and outdated.
We also had some restraints with liberty. We were always reminded that it was a national paper and government owned. And, as such, we were expected to scrupulously respect the editorial line of government.
At the beginning we tried some editorial comments such as "Top of the Week" "eye opener", and deeds and misdeeds. But I must acknowledge that the paper is a lot more liberal and daring today. Proof of this is the daily column, "Regard» or the light-hearted commentaries on Page 2 which attack societal issues or public wrongdoing. Our coverage of the national territory has also expanded because of the greater attention paid to regions today.
A major innovation has also been in the merging of the English and French language editions into one. Cameroon Tribune is unique, even on the entire African continent. Bilingual readers indiscriminately read articles in English or French in the same edition. The paper is, in its own way, helping Cameroonians to improve their bilingualism».
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