A total of 24 senior journalists and editors from Indonesia attended a 3-day RGE Journalism Workshop in Singapore from 2 to 4 December 2014. This is the third year that RGE, a group of natural resources-based manufacturing companies founded by entrepreneur and visionary Sukanto Tanoto, hosted this workshop to provide the participants with a unique learning experience to improve their knowledge and professional skills. This year’s workshop is in partnership with the Nanyang Technological University (NTU), the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers, and the Singapore Press Holdings.
The first two sessions of the workshop were held at Newsplex Asia, which is the result of a collaboration between Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and the World Association of Newspapers and Publishers. Housed in a 160m2 media lab, it is the first Newsplex in Asia and only the third in the world – bringing various media platforms together in one convenient, collaborative space. During the session on Social Media for Newsgathering and Publishing, the participants were equipped with the best practices and frameworks around how to use social media content as part of their editorial workflow. The Engaging Your Audiences with Data Journalism session enabled and empowered the participants to pick up tools to craft compelling stories using data and make better presentation of flow charts and diagrams.
During the Dialogue with RGE Senior Executives, the journalists were able to gain a good understanding of the prospects, challenges and complexities faced by the Pulp & Paper (APRIL) and Palm Oil (AA/APICAL) industries. In addition, they also learned how the RGE group of companies operationalise Sukanto Tanoto’s “Good for Community, Good for Country, Good for Company’ philosophy. The journalists also understood how Tanoto Foundation has made a difference in people’s lives by providing access to quality education, entrepreneurship training to facilitate small businesses in rural areas, and infrastructure support.
This year's workshop also offered participants the opportunity to tour the integrated newsroom of Singapore Press Holdings, publisher of leading newspapers such as The Straits Times and The Business Times. The workshop ended with a tour around Gardens by the Bay – which captures the essence of Singapore as the premier tropical Garden City with the perfect environment in which to live, work, and play.