A Day In The Life

Hello There,

So as I got more accustomed to my internship, my primary responsibilities included carrying out daily media monitoring for the Ministry, with a majority of it being on newspapers as form of traditional media. Although I was not new to this, I found it interesting that after highlighting all the mentions of the Ministry's activities in all the major newspapers, we would summarize all the information and email it to all the Ministry's employees. 

I think this is a brilliant tool as it not only enabled us as Public Relations personnel to know what is being said about the organization in the public but it informed another important stakeholder group of the Ministry; the employees, of the organization's activities that they may not be directly involved in and so aware of.

Daily monitoring and briefing of all major newspapers.

Another of my recurring tasks was that of writing media releases on the different activities done by the Ministry. This was one of my favourite tasks as it enabled me to put in practice all that I learnt from my modules and improve on my professional writing skills both in English and Swahili, that are both actively used as a means of communication in the country. I learnt that although writing for Public Relations may differ depending on the organization and industry, the format for media releases usually stays the same, following the 'inverted pyramid'.

To date, the most fulfilling day has to be when one of the media releases I wrote was published in the front pages of one of the major daily newspapers in my country.

A media release in Swahili in the 'Mtanzania' newspaper.

A media release in English in the 'Daily News' newspaper.

However, I was pleasantly surprised at how involved the Public Relations department was in the Ministerial meetings, that I frequently had to attend. I learnt that our role in the meetings was that of communicators and mediators between the Ministry and the general public. The meetings were a great source of information for media releases as that is where most important statements were made and contracts signed. It was a pleasure to see the role of Public Relations extensively appreciated on a governmental platform,

I should note that the amount of work did fluctuate depending on the Minister's schedule, with some days being fairly hectic and others involving nothing more than daily media monitoring. Regardless, it is best to give your all in all scenarios as it shows that you are proactive and not reactive towards your work. Do not be afraid to ask what else you can help with when the work load is low. Besides, this is a great way to keep monotony away and learn new things. 

I hope that this has been an interesting read.

Until next time.

Latifah Mzee Hamis Salim Boma
17223946/ 7E3A1749
Curtin University, Sarawak Campus