Kathmandu: Geoffrey Dean, Deputy Ambassador of Canada in Nepal, said that Canada is committed to promoting freedom of expression. “We are happy to support Nepali CSOs on different fronts and hope that this initiative will help you understand the various dimensions of storytelling,” he said, during the two-day training workshop on narrative journalism kicked off today in Kathmandu.
The workshop, jointly organised by Media Action Nepal, Newsreel Asia and the Canada in India (High Commission of Canada), was attended by 51 mid-career and senior journalists from Nepal, including 26 women. The workshop brought together mid-career and senior journalists from across Nepal, with organisers highlighting the strong representation of women participants in the training programme.
Inaugurating the training, Dean said, “Since we live in an information age, journalists like you have a tremendous opportunity to shape public opinion, which of course is essential to democracy.”
He added that the workshop addresses the critical need for journalists to engage their audiences through compelling storytelling. Stating neuroscientific research, he suggested that stories can capture attention and facilitate information processing when people are overwhelmed by information inputs. “The onus is on you as journalists to tell your stories in a way that will engage your readers and viewers long enough to understand the narratives in all of their context,” Dean said.
Speaking on the occasion, Laxman Datt Pant, Founding Chair of Media Action Nepal, appreciated Canada’s support for media freedom. “As we reflect on Nepal’s pressing media freedom challenges—including digital surveillance and growing threats to journalists—it becomes clear that our responsibility as journalists is to stand firm, uphold integrity, and tell stories that truly matter. I believe this training will equip you with tools to overcome these challenges and strengthen the role of journalism in a democratic society,” he added.
Harshita Rathore, founding editor (video) and Director at Newsreel Asia speaking in the session, emphasised that news media is going through a critical phase both financially and institutionally. “Thus, narrative journalism is a solution to the problems which have emerged in the current time.”
She also highlighted the objectives of the workshop, while the opening storytelling session is currently being led by Vishal Arora of Newsreel.
The training touched upon critical aspects of ‘Narrative Journalism’, including script and storytelling format sessions by Vishal Arora, Visual Grammar (Composition and cinematography) by Surabhi Singh, Shooting High Quality Footage, Sound by Vishal Arora. The session on the Art of Interviewing was taken by Harshita Rathore.
