Maxim Behar: Journalism is a serious job and now every minute is important

Host: How has the profession of journalism changed over the years?

Maxim: The profession has changed a lot. The journalism of 10 or 15 years ago was a quiet profession, but of course, there were incidents and investigations. Most of the time, journalists stayed overnight in the publishing houses. We are running against time because there is breaking news every second. Being a journalist is a severe job because you have to react very quickly, and a journalist must keep in mind that every single minute is of great importance and has to put all breaking news online or else someone else will do it.
On the other hand, the profession has become easier because all the background information journalists spend days and days looking for in the archives and libraries is now easy to find. This means journalists nowadays must be more precise and responsible because they have all the information available. The only thing required of a journalist is to be a good professional.

Host: What does a journalist require then to be a good professional?

Maxim: The journalist has to cover the story honestly and find the truth. Sometimes you achieve the truth and sometimes not, but try to contact all sides when writing a novel. Make a wise and deep analysis of what you are writing.

Host: Some say it is better to have one side of the story and the next to generate more interest…

Maxim: I don’t think so. As I said earlier, journalism is a severe job. If one day you write that a particular man is evil and then expect him to react, this is not right, especially nowadays when it is straightforward to contact someone through mobile phones, emails, etc. I don’t think having just one side of the story is part of modern journalism.

Host: You have moved from journalism to public relations. What is the difference between the two?

Maxim: There is a vast difference between the two. Journalism is a profession, while public relations is business. In public relations, you also emphasize research, creativity, money, and income. As a journalist, you care about the honesty and precision of your stories.
But the two have a lot in common. Public relations experts increasingly rely on the media and their contacts with the press. They should also know how to handle these contacts. A lot of public relations experts think they can influence the media. But this is a mistake. I believe that the freedom of the press is the mother of all freedom in the modern democracy. So journalists will only write a story if it is interesting. They will cover the story if it is newsworthy or has something new for their readers. But they will not cover the story just because someone called them or because they are friend or neighbors of the public relations officer. Therefore, public relations officers should carefully manage their contacts with the media.

Host: How has social media changed society?

Maxim: Social media has turned society upside down and changed the dynamics of people’s lives, how they think, and how they accept things. In the past, after reading a newspaper, you may feel you didn’t have the story's background, but now, through a simple click, you can read everything about everyone. I believe that life has become better thanks to social media.
This is because life has become transparent, and through transparency, you become ethical. For example, if you do something you believe is ethical and society thinks it is not, society can easily challenge you. Nothing can be hidden. Therefore, in journalism, as in business, everything transparent is ethical. If you do something wrong, society will know about it, and you will also learn.

Host: How do you think people who write anything on social media affect the ethics of journalism?

Maxim: Most of the time, people who write nasty things about others on social media do not do so under their real names, especially in a small country like Seychelles, where most people know each other. It will be gone soon as the people will not trust the anonymous writers. Sometimes, you can respond to the comments, but you should most of the time not.
You cannot discuss something with someone you don’t know. Social media's worst side is allowing people to use nicknames to express their negative opinions on things that are generally untrue.
It becomes a fair discussion if you dare have your name and picture and express yourself openly and transparently on social media. But if you hide behind some nickname, people, probably the next generation, will not trust you. The best thing is not to play with a pig, as both of you will be covered with mud, and the pig will like it.

Host: Do you think then that citizen journalism is killing mainstream journalism?

Maxim: Not at all. Many people who write their stories on social media believe they are professional journalists. This is not true. It is a kind of journalism that allows them to express their opinions, but it is not professional journalism. News agencies and TV channels will stay, and radio channels will become satellite. People will have to pay a small amount to receive the programs, and newspapers will turn into online social media where everyone can discuss several issues and share opinions. The real journalism in the future will be in an online news agency. The Seychelles Nation newspaper might one day be the national online news agency in Seychelles. This is not because the newspaper is terrible; it is because we are journalists, not traders of paper. We don’t need to sell paper, and producing a newspaper every minute following every breaking news is impossible. We now have the news on our mobile phones and other electronic gadgets.

Host: Do you mean to say that newspapers will disappear in the future?

Maxim: There are two sides to it. One is the news speed, and the other is the easiest way to copy, read, and share the news. Newspapers will also start losing advertisements as the advertisers are already giving their budgets to the online media, which are very effective and measurable. They can quickly see how many people have seen their products and how many are interested in buying them. This is technically and logistically not possible in the printed media. For them to survive, the print media will have to reduce its number of staff and circulation or close and turn into an online news agency.

Host: It means then that mainstream journalism should harness social media…

Maxim: Yes, it should. From my experience, newspapers with websites with the same name don’t have a future. I think the brand of a news agency should be different from that of a newspaper. This will make it more exciting, and the readers who don’t want to read the printed paper would like to read news on the online news agency. When newspapers cooperate with social media, it will help increase their sale as people reading from the social media would say, ‘I must buy the newspaper tomorrow because there is interesting news coming up.’ In the near future, I think all newspapers will be online and the online visits will be higher than any circulation.

Host: In Seychelles, we are seeing new newspapers coming out instead…

Maxim: It is a big mistake. Some politicians want to have their newspapers to see their pictures and interviews. I don’t know the new newspapers in Seychelles very well, but I’m sure 90% of them will die soon. There is no room for new newspapers. It is like choosing to work on a big old black and white desktop computer when people are now using laptops.

Host: We are discussing online media, but the internet speed could be faster even though we are connected to the optic fiber cable. It is also quite expensive.

Maxim: A genuine internet connection is a problem in Seychelles, but I don’t think it will prevent people from reading news as it doesn’t require high-speed internet connections. On the other hand, the internet will not remain forever slow in Seychelles.

Host: You became the honorary consul of Seychelles in 2004, but how did this come about?

Maxim: It’s an exciting story. Some 15 years ago, I received an email from a friend in Paris that the founding President of Seychelles, Sir James Mancham, would spend a day in Bulgaria, and we might have lunch or dinner together. We had them both lunch and dinner, and we liked each other so well that we became great friends. I had read about Sir James Mancham in the news in Bulgaria when he was President of Seychelles.
Some weeks later, after this meeting with Sir James, I was invited to visit Seychelles. However, my appointment as Honorary Consul came in July 2004 after James Michel became President. I’m very proud and privileged to have helped and served such a small, brave, and capable nation.
Throughout the years, I have done tens of highly successful and beneficial services for Seychellois projects. I can tell that in Seychelles, it’s about the people. The minute you speak to a Seychellois, you immediately develop a friendship. So I told myself this is a country I should work for. I initiated the Seychelles Investment Forums with Ambassador Barry Faure's help, Sherin Naiken, Minister Peter Sinon, PS Steve Fanny, and Seychelles enthusiasts. I’m thrilled to represent Seychelles in the best way I can.

Host: Finally, Mr. Behar, how do you plan yourself since you are involved with many organizations?

Maxim: I work 18 hours daily and sleep for just four hours. I care about what kind of mobile phone I have and if the internet connection is fast as I need to receive and send information quickly. You can manage your time if you have a target when doing your job. Many people do their job 90% of the time and say it is done. In modern times, the 10% that has yet to be done is the most important. If everyone puts their best effort into everything they do, the result will be much better. To succeed in life, you should follow the following equation: ability x effort x concentration. If one of the three is missing, then the result is zero.

Host: Thank you, Mr Behar.

Maxim: My pleasure.