A time working as a cultural and lifestyle journalist

HNN - In May 1990, taking advantage of the opportunity when UNESCO issued a Resolution on the 100th anniversary of President Ho Chi Minh's birth, with the consent of the Director of the Department of Culture and Information of Thua Thien Hue, as Deputy Director of the Department, I and a number of staff members produced the Culture and Tourism publication in the form of a newspaper.

Image of a page of Culture & Life newspaper

In the introduction, Culture and Tourism confided: “In the heart of Thua Thien Hue, profound cultural values ​​have been deposited, over the years, it has retained its own unique identity, while continuing to receive, absorb, spread and attract people's hearts as an invitation. Contributing to the efforts to preserve, build and promote cultural values ​​in the country's vast and profound Renovation period... The Department of Culture and Information of Thua Thien Hue boldly launched the publication Culture and Tourism as a heartfelt experience of those working in cultural information in this land. Hopefully, Culture and Tourism will be received by readers as a gift of opportunity, and from here on will be a meeting point, a convergence of cultural, literary and artistic forces”. Unfortunately, after 1990, the Culture and Tourism newspaper had to voluntarily cease operations because the legal mechanism did not accept it.

Ten years later, as Director of the Department, in October 2002, after the two Hue Festivals of 2000 and 2002 had created a buzz, we were determined to produce a publication to promote the tourism culture in Hue. With favorable opportunities, the weekly magazine Culture & Life was continuously published from 2002 to 2007, with 220 issues published regularly every week.

Issue 1 was published on October 6, 2002 under the name Culture and Information, with a newspaper size of 30cm x 40cm, including 8 pages, conveying information about cultural activities, interspersed with articles about Hue culture and works by some authors in Hue. All issues are beautifully presented, accompanied by illustrations and photos of good quality, in the style of cultural and artistic journalism.

From issue 11, Culture and Information changed its name to Culture & Life, the number of pages increased to 16 pages, in the style of a weekly newspaper, regularly reflecting social and cultural activities, with many diverse columns.

The “Cultural News” column reflects the diverse cultural activities of Hue, promotes the policy of building an advanced Vietnamese culture imbued with national identity and the strategy of developing Vietnamese culture, building Thua Thien Hue into a unique cultural and tourist center of the country.

The sections “Foreign Culture” and “Towards Hue Festival” focus on providing detailed information about the preparation activities for Hue Festivals, news about representatives of countries visiting Hue Festival. Especially, there are reports about Hue lions participating in the National Culture Festival in Tottori, Japan, Hue kites in the Dieffe Kite Festival in France, Hue singing with the “Dai dia phi ca” Festival in China, Hue music ceremony at Luxembourg Cultural Week, Hue royal art participating in Vietnam Cultural Day in Russia, Hue participating in Loy Kra Tong Festival in Thailand, Hue Festival 2006 Exhibition at World Expo 2005 in Japan, Hue Festival promotion at the East Asia - Latin America Forum in Seoul...

The column “Hue past and present”, by Phan Thuan An, introduces over 200 relics and cultural sites that are royal architectural heritage, French architectural heritage in Hue, with rare documentary photos, comparing old and new images from the same perspective, the research is attractive, concise, and has academic value. Although not diverse in images, “Introducing Relics” is a column written about historical and cultural relics in a journalistic style, describing the appearance and typical values ​​of the relics, helping cultural officials and readers understand more about the heritage of the Ancient Capital.

The “World Music” column, written by Hoang Trong Buu, regularly updates the world’s diverse musical activities, a field rarely mentioned in the Vietnamese press. In later years, Chu Manh Cuong, a writer from Hanoi, also participated, writing about festivals and unique cultural events of several countries, providing new insights into the world’s cultural quintessence.

The works of poetry, memoirs, and short stories gathered many typical writers and quite a few young writers of Hue. Besides familiar authors such as Nguyen Khoa Diem, Nguyen Khac Phe, Lam Thi My Da, Nguyen Dac Xuan, Buu Y, Nguyen Khac Thach, Ngo Minh, Mai Van Hoan, Tran Thuy Mai, Nhat Lam, Ho The Ha, Le Thi May, Nguyen Tan Dan, Pham Phu Phong... there were also many new writers such as Van Cam Hai, Nguyen Xuan Hoang, Le Viet Xuan, Nguyen Thi Anh Dao, Duc Son, Le Nga Le, Tran Tinh Yen, Nguyen Thien Nghi, Do Van Khoi, Nguyen Van Vinh, Tran Ba ​​Dai Duong...

For nearly 5 years of operation, Culture & Life has gone beyond the framework of a specialized information publication to become a cultural and artistic forum, adding a vibrant nuance to the cultural life of Hue. To do so in the conditions of not having an editorial office with specialized staff and no separate funding source, the Department of Culture and Information has flexibly applied many methods. In particular, some brothers have to consider themselves as semi-professional journalists, Mr. Le Viet Xuan, Nguyen Dinh Sang, Nguyen Duy Hien, Duong Hong Lam, Trinh Nam Hai... contribute articles quite regularly. I also wrote quite a few articles but did not write my real name, most of them were hidden under the pen names HNX, VH&DS, VH, PV, sometimes "happily" I signed the pen name Thieu Quan!

Although not published on the market, Culture & Life still regularly sends copies to provincial, city and district leaders, distributes to units under the sector and departments in the province, and central agencies in the area. The newspaper also sends copies to leaders of the Ministry of Culture and Information and departments, offices and institutes under the Ministry, and Departments of Culture and Information nationwide. In particular, it regularly sends copies to embassies of countries and international organizations such as the Ford Foundation, the British Council, etc.

In early 2007, before leaving the cultural and information sector, I focused on working with my colleagues on the Culture & Life Spring 2007 issue, the last issue was very thick, like a farewell. It can be said that the 220 issues of Culture & Life were a diary of cultural activities in Hue during the period 2002 - 2007, but due to the limited distribution method, the impact on society was not widespread. However, this was a quite effective bridge to contribute to Thua Thien Hue province (now Hue city) affirming its position as a cultural and tourism center, a typical Festival city of Vietnam.

Article and photos: NGUYEN XUAN HOA

Source: https://huengaynay.vn/van-hoa-nghe-thuat/mot-thoi-lam-bao-van-hoa-doi-song-154923.html