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English-Language Newspapers in Asia

November 26th, 2008 · 1 Comment · Hong Kong, Sports Journalism

Back in the United States, most journalists don’t really know about this. Unless they have traveled in Asia and perhaps seen these newspapers on news stands — or had them left at their hotel-room doors.

There are more than a few English-language newspapers in Asia. And they could wind up employing out-of-work American journalists. Those who can pull up stakes and leave the States, and those willing to do a fairly total immersion into another culture … and be nimble enough intellectually to look at the world from that new “home” perspective.

I am working at the Hong Kong office of the International Herald Tribune. Nearly everyone in editorial is an American, and the editors and reporters hail from Los Angeles, Dallas, San Francisco, Oregon, New York …

By no means is the IHT’s Asia bureau the only employment opportunity for English-speakers, in the region.

Some of the others:

The South China Morning Post. This one is right here in Hong Kong. It is the local-local English-language newspaper, and a surprisingly good one, considering its modest circulation.

The Bangkok Post. Publishing in Thailand. Obviously. Lot of news in Thailand right now, with the anti-government protests.

The Straits Times. Located in the city-state of Singapore, where the standard of living is high and the streets are clean and crime-free. But it’s essentially a dictatorship. Generally benevolent. The Straits Times was advertising for copy editors, earlier this year.

The Jakarta Times. In the Indonesian capital.

The Jakarta Globe. Just launched this month, and we wonder if there is room for two English-language newspapers in Indonesia. A former IHT staffer left Hong Kong to be part of the startup of this newspaper.

The Wall Street Journal Asia. Like the IHT, it has a fairly big presence here in Hong Kong.

The Japan Times. Based in Tokyo.

The China Daily. Located in Beijing. Trouble here is, it’s basically the English-language mouthpiece of the Chinese government. Probably would do well to be a card-carrying member of the Communist Party. Looks sharp, though.

The Star, In Malaysia. Based in Kuala Lumpur.

The Manila Times, in the Philippines.

The Korea Times, based in Seoul.

This is only a partial list. I’ve left out some of the more obscure, and some of the online-only operations.

These probably are the publications most open to the idea of an American going to work there. The areas of interest seem to be in copy-editing (and remember, it’s English English in most of these publications) and financial reporting.

Some are more forgiving of a lack of local-language skills than others. And most tend to employ citizens who happen to have English skills sharp enough to work in the language.

But, anyway, there are options out here. And they could be at least a little bit of the future for American-born and American-trained journalists. They won’t absorb the thousands of journalists laid off this year, but a few might find a roster spot.

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1 response so far ↓

  • 1 Chuck Hickey // Nov 26, 2008 at 10:59 AM

    So could you do what you’re doing while based in Long Beach, albeit on their hours? Or is it still logistically impossible/difficult?

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