Two E&H Students Receive International News Experience

When Emory & Henry students Keran Billaud and Alison Azbell landed in Africa as part of a two-week college course this past May, neither one knew they would be leaving with an international headline.

The opportunity came about as part of the "Media and Journalistic Practice in Zambia" hosted by E&H professor Dr. Twange Kasoma, who was born and raised in the southern African nation.

According to Dr. Kasoma, “The class was structured in such a way that students had the opportunity to not only engage in the rich Zambian culture through visiting cultural sites, such as museums and game reserves, but also gain valuable hands-on professional experience with the media.”

During their stay in Zambia, the students did internships with a newspaper, a radio station and a television station organized in conjunction with the Francis Kasoma Memorial Media Foundation.

It was during their newspaper internship that Billaud and Azbell were given the opportunity to co-write an article for the Zambia Daily Mail with local journalists.

Alison Azbell’s article, which she co-wrote with journalist Robinson Kunda, spoke about how the President of Zambia, Rupiah Banda, offered words of wisdom to the national soccer team before they entered their first match of the African Nations Championship qualifier in Johannesburg.

Keran Billaud’s article, which he co-wrote with journalist Nancy Mwape, discussed a local manufacturing firm, ZALCO Industries Limited, $2.6 million investment for a battery recycling plant and smelter in Kabwe, which was expected to create 400 jobs for locals.

When asked how she felt about her students being published in the Zambia Daily Mail, Dr. Kasoma replied, “The bylines our students earned during their professional experience at the Zambia Daily Mail make us proud as a department and are an indication that we are succeeding at what we are doing. Our students have what it takes to meet the demands of both the local and international market.”

Dr. Kasoma will be taking a new class of Emory & Henry students back to Zambia in May of 2012. The course is designed to satisfy the core curriculum requirements for Emory Abroad and is open to all students. The deadline to turn in your application for the trip is November 1, 2011.