Interview with Jasna Paro

Jasna Paro is seen and heard regularly on Croatian Television and Radio reporting from London. We caught
up with her to talk about what it is like to report for Croatia from London.

CIL: How did you become HRT's correspondent in London?

I applied for the job. When it came out that my husband (Josko Paro, Croatian ambassador to London) was to go to London I approached my editor in chief, asking if they would be interested to have a correspondent in the UK and whether they would accept me to do this job - given that my family situation.

The legal framework allows diplomat’s family members to work in the UK, where they are accredited, because Croatia and the UK have a bilateral agreement signed back in 1997.

In short, there were no objections from either Foreign Office.

I had all the professional references to get the job. I have worked for Croatian TV for almost 20 years and just before leaving I was Head of the Foreign news desk.

Subject wise it was a good moment too. The war in Iraq just started, Middle East, Afghanistan, world terrorism, Balkans and stories related to the Hague Tribunal; all issues where UK had - and still has - its say.

Therefore, there was an interest to have a journalist reporting from the UK for Croatian news. And it was a lucky coincidence that I was going to live in London.

CIL: What kind of stories do you report back to Croatia?

All sorts, really. News and features, from politics to fashion, cultural events, and side stories related to big sport events like Wimbledon or football.

CIL: How often do you make reports?

Quite often! The minimum is once a week, but there are periods when I do three to four stories for the main news and a short reportage for a weekly programme, and radio as well. Of course, like in every job there are slow weeks, which in the news business is January.

CIL: How much interest is there in Croatia for news from Britain? What British topics interest Croatian viewers the most?

The interest is great, I would say. Generally and-traditionally if you like - people in Eastern and Central Europe are highly interested in world news. They want to know what is happening and want to be a part of it.

CIL: What has been your favorite story that you have reported on from here?

I liked a story we filmed in County Durham. It was the anniversary of the miner’s strike and I was asked to do a story about its impact, how much life has changed, what do the people who were affected think about it today. It was a six-minute piece and it was a fascinating inside view of British society.

I enjoyed reporting on the British elections, a story about St Pancras station, a story about energy aid for pensioners and one filmed in Glasgow about Scottish football fans supporting Croatia during European football championship. These are only some of the stories, but generally, I enjoy - both professionally and personally- reporting from UK. It is a great country!

CIL: Are there any differences between the styles of Croatian and British TV news?

Maybe British news is too wide to compare with. However, I can talk about the difference between Croatian TV and the BBC - both being public broadcasters. The news at the BBC is more dynamic, faster, more experts are invited that could give an independent view on whatever the issue is and the BBC has more news or current affairs slots. We really have two long news bulletins daily and a couple headlines, or very short news bulletins.

Croatian TV is trying hard, and I thing in the main successfully, to be a public broadcaster. The BBC is one of the best public broadcasters in the world and is hard to compete with. They are better than we are but we are better than the Spanish and I think we are the best in our region.

Next page - March’s Recipe

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