By Lekan Otufodunrin
One media career development concept I have always thought about is beat auditing.
As it suggests, it is an act of auditing whatever beat or editorial assignment one is handling.
It occurred me that due to lack of regular auditing, many journalists assume they are doing enough on their beat when they are not. Unknown to reporters and editors, they may be concentrating on a limited part of their assignments without exploring others.
I was reminded of this concept recently at a media conference when a speaker asked participants how often they audit their skills?
An Aviation Correspondent reporting mainly arrival and take off of dignitaries at airports cannot claim to be giving enough coverage to the sector, just as those who focus on top officials and a few agencies to the detriment of other stakeholders on their beat.
Beat auditing will require listing all the possible areas of coverage on your beat and honestly coming up with a performance rating of how well you are doing and what else you need to report.
It will require knowing if you have a wide range of sources and those you regularly quote in your reports on your beat.
You will also need to know what your editors or target readers think of your coverage to know areas of improvement.
Ensure you score yourself against best practices locally and at the international level.
Instead of getting bored on your beat, especially if your organization is not thinking of reassigning you, the exercise should help you to renew your approach to covering your beat. It should also challenge you to do better and get you excited about exploring new grounds.
Best of luck in your #MediaCareerJourney
