In the hot seat with Ruda Landman

Hold on to your fundamental belief in your work and relax! With these words a number of researchers from the Vaal Triangle Campus (NWU Vaal) recently undertook a challenge of a different kind – they ventured into the fast paced media world with none other than Ruda Landman as their guide.
 

Media veteran, Ruda Landman’s career spans more than 30 years.

A special Science Communication Workshop – presented by the well-known and highly experienced media practitioners, Ruda Landman and Marina Joubert saw researchers learning more about the University’s media policy, media preparedness and tips for liaising with journalists. A highlight during the workshop was the practical application of interview skills and several researchers had the opportunity to experience a life interview scenario during a simulated television interview.
 

Marina explaining the concept of science communication to the researchers during the recent media workshop.

These interviews were played back to the audience and analysed by Ruda and Marina as well as the colleagues attending the workshop.  The aim of the workshop was to encourage researchers to share their skills and outcomes with the media in an effort to not only influence the media agenda but also to empower themselves to network on a broader scale. The latter holds several advantages including vesting a culture of expertise, more funding opportunities and the commercialisation of expertise.

Ruda Landman’s media career started in 1977 as a newspaper journalist, moving to radio, magazines and TV news before taking her place in 1985 as co-anchor of South Africa’s first live actuality programme on television, Netwerk. She joined the Carte Blanche team at its inception in August 1988. Marina Joubert pioneered a Science Communication Unit at South Africa’s National Research Foundation and expanded its activities extensively before starting our as an independent science communication consultant in 2005. She is trained as an editor, producer, researcher and press officer and teaches Science Communication at two local universities.

Published by Sipho Msolo