Journalism Sense 2020 Editor's Choice

Illustrations (VOI)

JAKARTA - 2020 is a period full of dynamics. The flood at the beginning of the year, the entry of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the enthusiasm of the people to reject the Omnibus Law Cipta Kerja (Ciptaker) were the most prominent. To that end, the VOI editorial team was then moved to mix these dynamics. However, with a different touch and point of view. We call it Sense Journalism.

One of the strongest distinguishing elements of Sense Journalism is the soundwave feature. This feature allows the reader to enter into the situation where the coverage is being carried out. Apart from being a form of transparency in reporting, Rasa Journalism can also sharpen the imagination of readers regarding the events we cover.

To bring back a little memory of Rasa Journalism that has been produced in 2020, we selected three of the most interesting Sense Journalism titles. The three articles can encourage readers to see events as forming experiences as well as a form of enjoying coverage with a touch of totality.

Early flooding of the year

A group of residents live in the middle of a flood in Ciledug Indah, Tangerang (Yudhistira Mahabharata / VOI)

Jakarta was flooded to open the new year 2020 in the capital city, Jakarta. In addition, floods have also submerged areas around Jakarta such as Tangerang and Bekasi. The VOI team then took the initiative to visit flood victims in Ciledug Indah on Thursday afternoon, January 2. In that place, we tried to visit residents' homes to explore the reasons why they chose to risk surviving in the siege of water.

On that basis, we tried to visit the surrounding refugee posts. In addition to the public kitchen tents, local authorities seem to have used the mosque building to accommodate the flood victims. At the mosque, volunteers also distributed boxed rice. As a result, the situation got out of hand. Moreover, many of those who queued were not among the flood victims.

"Mother, embarrassed. Sir, please help. This is for those who are disasters. Those whose houses are not flooded, don't join the queue. Shame," shouted an officer from a distance while distributing boxed rice.

When entering the mosque building, it was seen that there were many people who fled. However, from some of the questions we asked, on average, they stated that they only took a short break, while consuming food aid. After that they returned home instead of staying until the situation was completely under control from the flood. For more details regarding this sense of journalism, we have reviewed it in the article "Knocking on the Door of Those Who Survived in the Middle of the Flood."

"Knocking on the Doors of Those Who Survived the Flood"

Team:

Reporter: Yudhistira Mahabharata, Saddam

Photographer: Irfan Meidianto

Audio: Mahesa ARK

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The COVID-19 conspiracy in village communities

Community in Cikarawang Village, Bogor, West Java (Photos: Ramdan Febrian / VOI)

Officially, the COVID-19 pandemic was recorded to enter Indonesia in early March. Not a few who doubt this. Some experts estimate the virus had entered before cases 01 and 02 in Depok, West Java.

However, what is clear is that the government has made many mistakes in its precautionary measures. As a result, the COVID-19 pandemic was not really considered dangerous by all people, including residents in Cikawang Village, Bogor.

On Wednesday, March 18, we tried to find out the extent of the socialization of the presence of the COVID-19 pandemic by the local government. For that, from the morning we visited Cikawang Village. Observations in the field showed that many residents were still seen chatting in the yard. Not even keep your distance, let alone use a mask.

Then, there is also a peekaboo who is still surrounded by many buyers. This sight is proof that COVID-19 has not been well socialized. Even so, residents in Cikawang Village do not know about the corona virus and the COVID-19 disease. Anggi, a resident we met, said life had to go on even though the plague was threatening. The deeper we got, the more interesting our visit was. We increasingly know how the distribution of information among the community in Cikarawang Village is not only minimal, but also wild.

One resident, David, shared his views with us. According to him, COVID-19 is China's way of destroying Indonesia. The reason is that COVID-19 occurred after the tension between Indonesia and China in the Natuna Sea. "Basically, some say, China deliberately wants to bomb Indonesia. But, the way is smooth, play beautifully. The problem is that the corona incident occurred after the Natuna naval war," said David theorized.

"Knowledge and Conspiracy Theory on COVID-19 in Village Community Heads"

Team:

Reporter / Photographer / Audio: Ramdan Febrian

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Riot demonstrations against the Omnibus Law on Job Creation

Crowds clash in Central Jakarta (Irfan Meidianto / VOI)

Demonstrations against the Ciptaker Omnibus Law took place in various regions of the archipelago, Thursday, October 8. We deployed a team in Central Jakarta, the hottest point in the movement in the capital city to capture all the dynamics of the mass crowd around us.

This is a collective VOI report on the spread of chaos and mysterious mobs between us and the demonstrators. In the findings in the field, the VOI team saw the emergence of many groups that damaged the mass movement.

For example, when covering the action on Jalan Sabang, where many unidentified people collected stones and other blunt objects in their bags. Or findings related to vandal groups at the ESDM Ministry Building. The local security guard told us that the crowd appeared suddenly.

Approximately 30 people came to the ministry building. Among the 30 people, none of them wore an alma mater or other attributes that could identify their group. After that, the people broke through security, destroying a number of facilities, including buildings and vehicles. They even took two laptops and a computer.

"Mysterious Masses and Widespread Clashes: Reports of Five VOI Journalists from Various Demonstration Points of the Job Creation Law"

Reporter / Audio: Detha Arya Tifada, Diah Ayu Wardani, Wardhany Tsa Tsia, Saddam

Photographer: Irfan Meidianto