Looking back on the 75-year journey offers an opportunity for the country’s journalists to continue writing the epic of revolutionary journalism, contributing to the nation's steadfast progress into a new era - an era of the nation’s rise. On the occasion of the 75th Anniversary of the founding of the Vietnam Journalists Association, a reporter from the Provincial Electronic Information Portal had an interview with Mr. Le Quoc Minh, Member of the Party Central Executive Committee, Editor-in-Chief of Nhan Dan Newspaper, Deputy Head of the Central Party Committee's Propaganda, Education and Mass Mobilization Commission and Chairman of the Vietnam Journalists Association.
Chairman of the Vietnam Journalists Association Le Quoc Minh and representatives of the Journalists Associations of provinces and cities at the National Historical Site – the place where the Vietnam Journalists Association was established
Reporter: Mr. Le Quoc Minh, we understand that the Vietnam Journalists Association has successfully organized a very meaningful "return to roots" journey to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the Association's establishment. How would you describe your emotions about that journey?
Mr. Le Quoc Minh: We organized the “return to roots” program in Thai Nguyen, a historical land associated with important milestones of Vietnamese Revolutionary Journalism and the Vietnam Journalists Association. This journey took place in a special year as the whole country is preparing to commemorate the 135th birth anniversary of President Ho Chi Minh; 50 years of the Liberation of the South and National Reunification; 100 years of Vietnamese Revolutionary Journalism; 75 years of the Vietnam Journalists Association's establishment... In the sacred atmosphere of the historical ATK land, I was deeply moved, especially when visiting the National Historical Site - the location of the Huynh Thuc Khang Journalism School, the cradle that trained the first generations of revolutionary journalist-fighters. Here, in the midst of the Viet Bac forests, under simple bamboo and thatch roofs, the first class of journalist-fighters of independent Vietnam was nurtured and developed. Those students, journalists and fighters came from all regions of the country, carrying youthful enthusiasm and ardent patriotism and then from this thatched-roof school, they spread across all battlefields, writing newspaper pages soaked with sweat and sacrifice.
Journalists of all generations are always grateful to our pioneering predecessors who dedicated themselves completely, devotedly served the Fatherland and the People, remained loyal to the Party and contributed to building the great revolutionary journalism career that beloved President Ho Chi Minh established. I believe that the meaningful “return to roots” journey like this will forge "Huynh Thuc Khang spirit" - the revolutionary journalism spirit for each journalist to continue maintaining a "pure heart - bright mind - great aspiration" to further develop the cause of Vietnamese revolutionary journalism, especially in today's digital technology era.
Reporter: Mr. Le Quoc Minh, could you elaborate on the tasks that need to be addressed by press agencies and journalists in today's digital technology era?
Mr. Le Quoc Minh: As we all know, technological changes have led to significant changes in the needs of media audiences, requiring each media agency and journalist to develop more effective solutions. Currently, readers still buy newspapers, watch television and listen to radio, but we must recognize the reality that the use of traditional information platforms and tools is decreasing, with a strong shift toward Internet-based platforms. Therefore, establishing a presence on digital platforms to convey the Party's guidelines and State policies and laws to the public is a great responsibility of press agencies. Transitioning to digital newsrooms and digitizing production processes is necessary but not truly sufficient. The need for innovation at each agency is more urgent than ever. Beyond digital processes, we need to consider refreshing delivery methods with newer, more attractive formats, requiring a combination of creativity from each reporter and journalist and the advantages of technology.
In addition to fulfilling its mission of protecting the rights and interests of its members, the Vietnam Journalists Association is also very active in training new skills. Particularly, from 2025, in addition to basic and traditional training courses, we have focused on training in digital skills and artificial intelligence. In the coming period, the Association is preparing for a large-scale artificial intelligence (AI) program for journalism nationwide, with our goal set to train at least 3,000 reporters and journalists. We expect this will enhance the capacity of Vietnamese journalism in applying AI to information exploitation, production and distribution to the public.
Thai Nguyen Province Journalists Association actively organizing training courses to help each member update their digital skills for journalism and communication activities
Reporter: What about local journalism, sir? How do you assess the digital transformation efforts of the press in Thai Nguyen?
Mr. Le Quoc Minh: It can be said that 2024 was a year that witnessed the transformation of local journalism, including that of Thai Nguyen. Many people believe that only major press agencies or central-level media organizations can successfully implement digital transformation. However, in reality, even local press agencies or smaller-scale outlets can achieve positive results if they know how to seize the right opportunities.
I believe that Thai Nguyen journalism has taken bold steps. From its initial traditional print pages and early broadcast channels, Thai Nguyen has done a commendable job in producing, promoting and distributing content on internet platforms and has quite successfully gained a foothold on these platforms. However, having done well, we must now set the goal to do even better. Beyond applying digital transformation, press agencies need to continuously update technologies such as virtual reality, augmented reality and mixed augmented reality. The time has come for us to make predictions and anticipate trends to better serve the public. Currently, press agencies across the country are undergoing restructuring. While this poses challenges, we believe it also presents an opportunity for media organizations to carry forward the legacy of revolutionary journalism to come closer together, to be more united and grow stronger collectively. This will help amplify the achievements of 100 years of revolutionary journalism in Vietnam and set strategic goals for the future.
Reporter: Thank you very much, Mr. Le Quoc Minh!
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