In an era where the role of social media is increasing as a provider and disseminator of the latest news in an instant, of course, people really need the role of journalism. This is because social media information can be confusing with a lack of selection, making the quality and validity of the news narrative difficult to control. The presence of journalism in the post-reform country as a disseminator of news that can guarantee the validity of the facts and their quality is certainly the answer to the public's thirst for accurate and pithy news. That's the quick reflection broadcast by Dwi Eko Lokononto, General Editor and Editor-in-Chief of beritajatim.com, when sharing his story about his experience in the universe of journalism for more than 30 years.

As someone who has eaten a lot of salt in journalism and an alumnus of the UNAIR Political Science program in 1983, the man who is familiarly called Lucky has realized his journalistic passion since he was in university. Along with his colleagues, he established a student press organization (LPM) at the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences (FISIP) UNAIR which is now known as LPM Retorika.

"This is where I developed a tradition of writers who prioritize quality and actuality. A characteristic that is crucial for any job, especially a journalist. I even took seven years to finish my 600-page thesis because of that tradition," he joked.

Surabaya Post's Shipwreck Threatened by Bankruptcy and Journalists' Solidarity

After earning his bachelor's degree, Lucky became a reporter at the Surabaya Post in the fields of politics and government, as well as crime. He said that his activity as a news hunter at the afternoon newspaper company gave him the nickname 'Lucky Surabaya Post', as if he was a representation or face of Surabaya Post itself, even though his position was only limited to a journalist.

Then in mid-2002, Lucky's career as a journalist threatened to close the book. At a meeting involving almost all Surabaya Post employees, it was reported that the newspaper company founded by the couple Abdul Aziz and Tuti Aziz had decided to go out of business after being sued for bankruptcy by creditors for billions of rupiah.

Like sowing salt on a wound, Surabaya Post was declared to be closed four days after the meeting. "The decision seemed to move my heart to do something to save Surabaya Post's existence. At the very least, this newspaper can breathe until these fellow journalists can find new jobs, so that their status is not seen as journalists from bankrupt media but from big media," he recalled.

Together with other employees, Lucky rose to become Chairman of the Surabaya Post Savior and began to take care of the management of the pioneering media business itself. Long story short, the journalists asked Surabaya Post's shareholders to hand over the patent rights of the newspaper to them in order to extend the life of the newspaper that has become an icon of the City of Heroes.

"Long story short, after going through several ϐinancial crises, my journalist friends managed to extend the life of this newspaper. I initially continued to take care of the editorial field by assuming the position of Editor-in-Chief, then later I also took care of the business field as Commercial Director. Unfortunately, due to new management and internal conflicts, I finally decided to leave Surabaya Post," said the journalist.

Continuing the Writer's Tradition by Pioneering beritajatim.com

The experience of saving the afternoon newspaper, which was full of hustle and bustle, gave Lucky a lot of knowledge about how to build a competent media business. Together with detik.com reporter Budi Sugiharto, Suara Merdeka Semarang Bureau Chief Ainur Rohim, and several other people, Lucky established an online news page, beritajatim.com.

"The official launching of beritajatim.com was on April 1, 2006, and I assumed the position of General Manager and Editor-in-Chief after Mr Budi could not continue because of his attachment to detik.com," he explained.

Lucky said that pioneering the online news page was difficult because, at that time, the audience was limited, and beritajatim.com was the only mass media in East Java that was not incorporated in the group, like Jawa Pos and Suara Surabaya. He added that beritajatim.com was established at the right time because the mindset of news readers was changing from print-oriented media to online media. As a result, many investors began to look at online media, including beritajatim.com.

"Plus we also got the "spotlight" when we became constantly reporting the Lapindo Mud disaster. Our readership further increased when our existence as regional news in East Java was when we covered the Convention of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) for the East Java Governor Election which was full of conflicts in determining candidates. For sports news, especially related to the rivalry between Persebaya and Arema, it also enlivened the comment column of our news because we provided a comment column feature," said the UNAIR Political Science alumni.

Lucky explained that the running of beritajatim.com is also supported by the income of CV. Portal Jatim Media a business that was also formed by the founders of the online media. This business is engaged in public relations consultants and advertising agencies, such as billboards.

"We are very dependent on this business to run beritajatim.com because online media is very difficult to scavenge its income. But since we together with friends who pioneered online media in Indonesia established the Indonesian Cyber Media Association (AMSI), we began to learn to transition our source of income from just from CV. Portal Jatim Media, to be with the media," he said.

now through his ups and downs life experience. His experience in saving the Surabaya Post shipwreck and pioneering beritajatim.com, according to him, has always been interpreted by Lucky as the desire and concern for the fate of many people in a situation full of uncertainty.

"My career journey is not because I am big, but because of the trust of others in me.

I was helped by many people because of the interests of many people and the same mind," he recalled. He also said that journalism is a science that challenges the hegemony of a single truth by providing facts through various perspectives.

The journalist added that the profession of journalist today is more of a vocation because the opportunity to get sources and disseminate information is more open with the right to freedom of speech. As a result, it is very easy for news narratives to be no different from each other.

"That's where creativity comes in. Mass media must be able to win the trust of readers through the characteristics and creativity of the news. Speed in this era of the handheld world may be everything, but mass media should not be a reflection of social media. Such media will only dig its own grave," he concluded.

Source : The Footprints of Airlanggas's Knights Edition V