Romania's blogging 'Robin Hood'

18/09/2009

SETimes conducted an interview with journalist Tiberiu Lovin, whose site is among the most influential in the vast Romanian blogosphere.

By Ciprian Cochilet for Southeast European Times in Bucharest – 18/09/09

Virtual Reporter blogger Tiberiu Lovin. [Cristina Ciobanu]

SETimes: Please describe your blog.

Tiberiu Lovin: Virtual Reporter is a media niche blog which covers different developments in this sector. They range from journalists' rights, changes of importance to shareholders, to employer-related onerous practices. There are also photo reportages from around the world, articles on successful Romanians, as well as economic, political and cultural news.

SETimes: How do you explain the success of your blog?

Lovin: The fact that I write before an event occurs, or when negotiations are under way, makes all the difference. This is information editorial rooms find from me. There is collaboration between me and my readers, a trust to reveal details without fear of being exposed. For example, if Romanian journalists don't know their rights, I open their eyes and support them as members of the Romanian and the International Federation of Journalists.

SETimes: Is there a blog entry you take particular pride in?

Lovin: It is hard to choose among 3,100 posts in the last 16 months. In 2007, a journalist's wife died at the maternity ward. I had a hunch it was a malpractice case; my story sparked a public debate and a series of investigations in my newspaper and on my blog, proving my hunch was correct. I received an award for this campaign and the medic was punished.

Last year, I started another mini-campaign against a media trust that hadn't paid its employees for three months. A week later, the employer showed up with the money in a bag and paid the journalists. Also, I wrote about two media outlets that censored two investigations; my disclosures led to strong reactions and the outlets' leadership had to provide explanations to their readers.

SETimes: Your blog is banned in several editorial rooms.

Lovin: Yes, unnatural measures, but they also brought me a lot of traffic because journalists read my blog from home. My personal fight with the [journalist] union, disclosures about the businesses, money matters and some newspaper bosses' incompetence have caused me much trouble. Newspapers that once wanted to hire me now turn their back on me. My blog is currently banned in Adevarul Holding and MediaPro, some of the largest media outlets in Romania.

SETimes: Is the end of printed press looming on the horizon?

Lovin: Not yet, the printed press is here to stay, but its market weight will be reduced. Everything has to be adapted to the internet and the big outlets understand this. Two years ago, the printed press didn't quote and looked down on blogs. Now all newspapers, TV and radio stations have a blog section.

SETimes: Can one make a good living by running a blog?

Lovin: Of course one can, but it is very hard. As a journalist, I am used to producing content, not chasing ads. I am lucky that those willing to advertise on my blog contact me. But it is hard to be 'Robin Hood' without others. I started myself and still am on my own. The advantage is that the articles are run by others and the influence and visibility are high. Those who believe in independent press take me as a role model and use my success to raise themselves.

SETimes: What are your plans for the future in an ever growing blogosphere?

Lovin: Virtual Reporter is the fourth most influential blog in Romania. There are tens of thousands of blogs, and most are reorganising to have blog teams. I am doing the same, trying to work out a new image, and launch next year the site of my dreams. In addition, I have been writing a book called "The Online Success Journal", due to be released in 2012, to show that it is possible to succeed on the internet.