by Dr. Iain Corness
There
is an unfortunate tendency, shown by some older folk, to look down on
youth. It may be jealousy, or realization that life is slipping by, but
this antipathy does exist. An almost “They haven’t been around long
enough, what would they know?” attitude.
In some cases this can be true, but in the case of
Suchada Tupchai, the editor of the Pattaya Mail, this is definitely
incorrect. Suchada is a young woman with a ‘bred in’ resoluteness of
purpose that has been her driving force. It has driven her into the
editor’s chair, and will drive her even further, I am quite sure. She is
a remarkable young professional. She is also a Muay Thai exponent!
I was prompted to interview Suchada after reading her
piece in the Pattaya Mail’s 12 year supplement. Perspicacious,
incisive, hard-hitting and readable. All the elements of good journalism.
For that alone, I felt there had to be an interesting person behind her
ready smile.
Suchada is a local girl, born in Chonburi, but not with
a silver spoon in her mouth. Her father died when she was two years old,
and her mother took on the sole responsibility of Suchada and her two
sisters. “She is a very strong woman,” said Suchada of her mother.
“She has been a great example to me. She showed me the true value of
work.” And “work” for the schoolgirl Suchada included washing dishes
in the local noodle shop.
After her dishwashing responsibilities, Suchada studied
hard and her grades were high enough to have her accepted into Burapha
University. Her family suggested that she should study nursing as a
career, but Suchada knew that was not her calling. She enrolled in the
Humanities and Society Faculty to learn Communication and Art, a four year
course. By the time she was half way through the curriculum, she knew that
her future would be in the media. She began to study items in the news and
what was newsworthy, even finding that the real stories behind such items
as PAO elections held a fascination for her. “I wanted to learn more,”
she said simply.
In her final year she was able to do some part-time
work and she immediately gravitated towards newspapers, being taken on in
a marketing role by a local Thai newspaper. She did not last long in
marketing. The owner told her, “You should be a reporter, as I can see
something in your eyes!” so she became a cadet reporter, covering
community news.
After graduation from Burapha, she continued in the
local Thai newspaper, but independently she had also realized that in
Pattaya she needed to learn English. She began her self-taught English
course, devouring books, newspapers and audio tapes.
After a few months, she moved to another Thai newspaper
that was offering training in graphics. “I became a news reporter and
graphic layout person. I started work at 8 a.m. as a reporter until 10
p.m. and after that I worked in the graphics department. It was hard work,
but it gave me new skills.”
She kept up this duality for another 12 months, but was
obviously in danger of ‘burn-out’. She was 24 years old and needed a
break. A cousin opened a coffee shop and needed somebody to help her, so
Suchada took her break from the media by working! After three months,
however, she began to miss the excitement of the day to day work in
newspapers.
Her next rung on the ladder was serendipitous. Her
sister saw an English language newspaper called the Pattaya Mail
and that it was looking for a reporter and sent it to her. It was 2002 and
she joined the merry band of Pattaya Mail reporters, but again at
the lower end of the ladder.
For Suchada, getting back into the field of journalism
was even more exciting than before, as the Pattaya Mail also had a
television presence. “I learned about video as well!” She went on,
“I liked my daily work, but found I had to use the English language even
more. I also found the lessons in the book were not enough.”
She stepped up her study of the English language, but
also began to learn as much as she could about economics, politics,
environment and sport. She was becoming a knowledgeable journalist, an all
too rare commodity at times. After two years it was obvious to the Pattaya
Mail’s managing director Peter Malhotra that here was a young woman
who was prepared to give a 100 percent effort to the job in hand, and when
the opportunity arose, she was promoted to assistant editor, and then to
editor. A meteoric rise in anyone’s language.
I asked her whether she had a problem with other staff,
being such a young person to be in an editorial position, now only 27
years old. “I am very young in the news circles,” she said, “but
I’m very old for a single woman in the society,” with a laugh at
herself. She continued, “There’s no real problem. I can lead my team.
I want them to be perfect, but we are all part of a team, and teamwork is
very important.”
Does she want to own her own newspaper one day? Not at
all. “My dream is to own a little restaurant. I love to cook, make
healthy meals and talk to people.” However, I feel it will be a long
time before she can get the journalism out of her system and become a
restaurateur.
It was when I asked her about spare time pursuits I
received even more amazing information. In her spare time she kick-boxes!
“I have been training in a boxing camp. As I have to go everywhere,
it’s protection, but it’s also good exercise.”
Her final words were another tribute to her mother. “My spirit is the
power from my Mum. That is what gives me the power to work. She is my
battery re-charger!”
