Vietnam Focuses on Cultivating Journalists: Pursuing Professionalism, Ethics, and Modernization

Efforts are intensifying across Vietnam to enhance the professionalism, ethical standards, and modern capabilities of journalists. On July 31st, the Nghe An Provincial Journalists Association held its 9th Congress for the 2026-2031 term. Attended by 218 official delegates representing 420 members in the province, the congress focused on the theme: 'Building a contingent of journalists with backbone, professionalism, humanity, and modernity.' These initiatives are seen as reflecting a dual objective: to elevate the quality of information dissemination and to align with the directives of the Communist Party of Vietnam. Under the one-party system, media outlets play a crucial role in promoting the Party's line, necessitating journalists to possess high levels of professionalism and loyalty to the Party. Concurrently, with rapid economic growth and globalization, access to domestic and international information is increasing, underscoring the importance of accuracy, ethical conduct, and digital adaptation in reporting. Similar endeavors are underway in other regions. For instance, the Phu Tho Provincial Journalists Association plans to complete the digitization of its member data by 2027. Le Huy Toan has been appointed as the new Chairman of the Lam Dong Provincial Journalists Association. Furthermore, the People's Newspaper (Báo Nhân Dân) Joint Journalists Association convened its 11th Congress for the 2026-2031 term, while the Hai Phong City Journalists Association commemorated the 101st anniversary of Vietnamese Revolutionary Journalism. These activities are positioned as laying the groundwork for Vietnam's media to contribute to domestic socio-economic development while simultaneously enhancing its international information dissemination capabilities. Particularly in relation to China, strategic information dissemination is vital for safeguarding national interests, making the improvement of journalists' skills an urgent task.