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進入《TAIPEI TIMES》 Vincentian journalist credits Taiwan education for award-winning career
Kenton Chance, center left, is awarded the Distinguished Taiwan Alumni Award by Ambassador to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines （SVG） Peter Lan, center right, at the Taiwanese embassy in SVG on Nov. 15. Photo courtesy of the Taiwanese Embassy in SVG
DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI: ‘My training in Taiwan put me a few steps ahead’ of other journalists, iWitness founder Kenton Chance said of his education
/ Staff writer, with CNA
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines （SVG） journalist Kenton Chance, who was awarded the Distinguished Taiwan Alumni Award, credits the training he received in Taiwan for preparing him to work as an international journalist.
Chance, founder and executive editor of SVG-based iWitness News, graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in journalism and mass communication in 2011 and a Master of Arts in international affairs in 2012 from Ming Chuan University.
He became the first Vincentian to receive the award following a ceremony at Taiwan’s embassy in the SVG on Nov. 15.
As a journalist and a communicator, he has traveled to many places, such as South and North America, Asia, Israel, Papua New Guinea and Europe, and has always felt confident, Chance said in an interview on Nov. 29.
“There’s never been a location where my training in journalism failed me, never once was I in a cohort of journalists and I felt fear. The training I received in Taiwan really prepared me to function internationally as a journalist,” Chance said.
Speaking about a memorable experience working on a consultancy job in Paris in 2015 for an international organization, Chance said he used the skills from his training in Taiwan to work on his own to shoot and edit videos, take photographs and write news statements.
“I felt really proud of myself, to tell you the truth, although the content of the work was strategic communication and not really for news media per se, but I was happy and I really felt that this was a really good part of my career,” Chance said.
While in France, Chance said he was able to put the Mandarin that he learned while studying in Taiwan to good use by ordering at a Chinese restaurant.
“I asked if they spoke Mandarin Chinese and they replied ‘yes,’ and there I was, able to order my first hot meal in Paris because I was able to speak Mandarin,” Chance said.
He also covered some international conferences with other journalists from developing countries, Chance said.
“When I see the way that they work and what they produce, I always feel that my training in Taiwan put me a few steps ahead, and that’s not in any way to discredit them or minimize what they do, but it’s just my observation,” Chance said.
Chance received a scholarship for a one-year Mandarin course and a four-year university degree from the government in 2006.
He graduated top of his class in both of his degrees, the university said.
It was during his studies in Taiwan in 2009 that Chance created iWitness News, which has become one of SVG’s largest news outlets with 140,000 readers daily, Ming Chuan University said.
“I want to thank the government and people of Taiwan for the investment they made in me. I know Taiwan has invested a lot of time and resources in training people from across the world, and I’m just happy that I’m one of them, that people can look back and say that they are proud,” Chance said.
Being one of 10 recipients of this year’s Distinguished Taiwan Alumni Award, which honors the outstanding achievements of foreigners who have studied in Taiwan, Chance was recognized for his excellent performance in promoting a free press environment in the SVG.
Since 2004, about 230 students from SVG have graduated from scholarship programs in Taiwan, with some remaining in Taiwan and contributing to a talented Vincentian community, which includes entrepreneurs, writers and professional athletes, the SVG embassy in Taipei said.
新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES
