Country of Origin: USA
Country of Stay: Ghana
Duration of Stay: 8 weeks
July 20th 2009 - August 15th 2009
Program: Media Internship with a Newspaper and Radio Station
Project: Writing for the Catholic Standard and Broadcasting at Holy FM
My project seems unique, due to the fact that I came here to work in the media, as I am majoring in journalism; I was assigned to write for the Catholic Standard (a weekly paper) and to work also at Holy FM, a radio station in Aflao that is only few months old. I ended up being interviewed at Jubilee FM in Keta, but switched back to Holy FM for the last few weeks of my internship. However my work with the Catholic Standard was fairly steady. My contact there was Cephas and we would sometimes travel together to events and write the articles together later. I would always need his help, as ewe was often spoken at these events. He was a great guy to work with. We were good team in the fact we valued each other’s input. I am not a Catholic so I learned quite a bit. I hope I passed along some useful information also.
The radio station was unique in the fact that it was the first time I was interviewed, rather than the other way round. Also, I would often pass on the stories that I wrote for the Catholic Standard to the Holy FM once Cephas (Say-fahs) gave me the go ahead.
Mostly I was trying to learn from the media here in Ghana to report on Africa in a new way. The U.S. media seems to only report about the worst part of Africa, and does it in a way that portrays the people mainly as victims, I feel like I’ve learned a lot here that I can hopefully eventually apply to my work.
CommunityThe best part of my stay here has been the people. They have been incredibly welcoming and friendly admittedly; it took me a while to get used to the more laid back atmosphere, particularly Ghana time: meaning that if you were going to meet someone, you could probably expect them to show up at least an hour late. It really showed me how Americans are obsessed with time and money.
Host FamilyMy host family was amazing! I stayed with Roger and Evelyn, their three children, niece, and Evelyn’s brother in Aflao. I felt very lucky to have my own room and a host family who was very patient with me! I didn’t really see the negativity that the other volunteers reported. The children were all very well behaved, and incredibly considerate. I only saw Evelyn really have to discipline them once.
Other MattersMostly I would advise everyone to come with an open mind, flexibility, and willingness to try new things. And don’t be afraid to ask the coordinator if you need any help. One last thing: I never went anywhere without hand sanitizer and tissues. You never know what kind of bathroom facilities you’ll have when you are out.
