Project Initiation Document

Summary

I would like to make a Radio package (feature) on a social issue and would like to experiment the addition of visual aspect to the feature by putting photo slide show.  The issue will be on a group of ethnic minority Nepali-speaking people who were, in early 1990's, driven off the foothills of Bhutan by its government forces in a wild ambition of what has been referred to as 'ethnic cleansing'.  This ethnic-minority Nepali-Bhutanese took refuge in Nepal for almost twenty years until they were finally rehabilitated by the UN to third countries including UK.

Context

My work will be to produce a radio feature with photo slideshow. Creating an additional visual feature to radio has been in discussion in the media in recent years and to try and experiment with one such project would be relevant to broadcast journalism. The issue itself, having a social importance, will reflect a journalistic approach in judging news worthiness.

These refugees still claim to be loyal to Bhutan and if given a chance would rather return to their country. Even when they stayed in Nepal as refugees there were accounts of many attempts they made to return to 'their' country - but with no avail. Objectives: ·         to produce a radio package that explores the potential of radio as a visual medium ·         To produce a radio package on the issue of relocation of Bhutanese refugees in UK ·         To know how the refugees feel about their relocation and everything that happened to them Approach: I know many of those people who have been rehabilitated to the United Kingdom (in Manchester). 110 people were rehabilitated two years ago and another 100 or so would be brought here shortly. I would like to know their position on how they feel now that they have been resettled in a place thousands of miles away from the country they had once called their own! My radio feature will centralize along these lines. I will get interviews from diverse representatives from this group of people including head of the community, woman, young people etc. I will also try to get interviews from representatives from UN. I will take photographs for the slide show wherever it is possible and look for other photos from reliable resources. My task will therefore involve: 1.      Research and contacts: finding out what exactly had happened historically and their causes looking at the fact files and archives. Collecting photographs and requesting people for interviews 2.      Visit: to Manchester where these people are largely relocated and spending some time with them while recording interviews and taking photos 3.      Producing: the final product using software such as Burli and Avid. Partnership Except for a few sporadic helps from my friends that I may possibly avail, this project will largely be my own experiment Risks: 1.      My part-time job may cause disturbance to the endeavour although I will try my best to manage time. 2.      Traveling to Manchester might incur some expenditure of time and money while I will try to limit my cost to the minimum 3.      Getting hold of interviewees might prove to be difficult 4.      My feature might be perceived to be biased by the audience since it would include only the accounts of the refugees and not the government of Bhutan. Yet a thorough research will be done and effort will be made to produce a fair and impartial feature 5.      Since this is the first time I am making a photo slide show experimenting with the feature of ‘audio-visual’, it might be difficult to acquire new skills

Project

Quite a few posts that follows this one will now be on a project that i am planning to undergo as a part of my 'Production Lab' module, 2nd semester. Every development, every research that i carry out, all observations, opinions, difficulties and any element that i come by during my pursuance of this project will be reflected. It is part of the module, but I would like to experiment with the idea of blogging every aspect of the 'process of production' during my task.

Thanks.