Kazakhstan editor visits J-School

By Alissa Herbaly Coons
J-School Web Reporter

When Askar Aukenov, a newspaper editor from Almaty, Kazakhstan, heard that his newspaper study-abroad location would be Montana, he immediately searched the Internet for more information. He went home and told his wife, and then — undeterred by article after article on the state's harsh climate and distrustful people — resolutely set out to buy heavy boots and a parka.

Aukenov didn't need his snow gear once during his two-week sojourn in Missoula, and he met some very friendly people.

Photo by Lisa Hornstein

Askar Aukenov speaks during a journalism class in March as part of his educational trip organized by the International Center for Journalists. Aukenov is the deputy editor-in-chief of Panorama in Almaty, Kazakhstan.

Aukenov's mid-March visit was a part of an educational trip for journalists from Kazakhstan organized by the International Center for Journalists to learn about how the media works in the United States. He was one of nine journalists chosen from 60 who applied for the program. Aukenov spent one week in Washington, D.C., one week at the Missoulian, and one week at the J-School, fulfilling his curiosity about attracting advertisers, government-press relations, conflict resolution, freedom of the press, and economic and investigative reporting.

Aukenov speaks fluent Russian and Kazakh and took English in school, but communicated primarily through translator Asta Aristov, who accompanied him throughout the trip.

Aukenov, 34, is the deputy editor-in-chief of Panorama (www.panorama.kz), a serious, independent, Russian-language weekly (circulation 20,000) thatcovers business and political news. Panorama started publishing its 12-page broadsheet shortly after Kazakhstan separated from the U.S.S.R. in 1991, and the paper prides itself on its forward outlook and young, progressive-minded staff. The editor, a Korean woman of 40, is the paper's oldest, and the youngest is a 19-year-old Kazakh man who covers the light industry beat and who quit his studies in Beijing to become a journalist because diplomacy wasn't exciting enough. Two of the 12-member staff cover the nation's growing oil industry.

Aukenov has worked at Panorama since he became a telecommunications and government reporter there seven years ago. Before that he worked for an information agency and in radio news. He earned his journalism degree from the University of Kazakhstan, but said he learned more from his early experiences in the field than from his professors, whose old-school Soviet methodology used the news primarily as propaganda. Because of this, many journalism graduates don't succeed in journalism, and a significant part of Panorama's staff is made up of writers from other educational backgrounds.

"People become journalists because they like to write," Aukenov said, "not because they have professional training."

It also pays well. Experienced journalists working in Almaty earn the equivalent of $500 to $700 per month in a city (the nation's largest) where the average monthly wage is $200 to $400. The official currency is called tenge, but the U.S. dollar is a popular second currency.

Freedom of speech is constitutionally protected in Kazakhstan, and the Kazakhstan Constitution is a "highly democratic" document, Aukenov said. Unfortunately, bringing it to life is difficult, as most politicians are left over from the Soviet era, and the transition to a well-run democracy takes time.

There is no official government censorship, but most journalists practice self-censorship when considering stories critical of the government, he said. President Nursultan Nazarbayev, who has been in power since the country's independence, has broadened his powers to undemocratic proportions highly criticized in the international community.

The government cannot discriminate against papers on the basis of politics, Aukenov said, but in one case, a paper had to close down because of supposed "financial problems" and re-opened under a different name a short time later. An opposition journalist who will soon be tried for rape is popularly believed to have been arrested for his criticism of the government and president, and the rape to have been staged.

Aukenov said he is sure the government will improve as a new post-Soviet generation of politicians gains more influence, but for now Panorama walks a fine line when presenting information that seems critical of the government. In principle, Panorama does not consider itself to be an opposition paper, but in striving for fair and balanced reporting it gives more information than most other papers, which has provoked government pressure in the past. The paper shares with its readers the bare minimum necessary for them to know what is going on, but among the competition, Panorama's reputation stands on the boldness and depth of its news coverage, Aukenov said.

"The person who lives in Kazakhstan knows enough to get all the information they need by reading between the lines," Aukenov said.

To start publishing, a paper must receive a permit from the Ministry of Justice. The application is a simple statement of the paper's basic information: publisher, price, size, etc. Aukenov has not heard of any papers being denied a license, but opposition papers have sometimes been refused printing. He knows of one paper with its own press, but every other paper is printed at a state-run press. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe plans to open an alternative press in Almaty, but Aukenov is satisfied with the current arrangement and won't switch unless the new press has better prices. There are numerous other print shops for smaller printing jobs.

One of the main differences Aukenov noted between American and Kazakh papers is that U.S. papers are usually extensions of profit-driven corporations and are run like businesses. In Kazakhstan, newspapers are not profitable. Last year, for the first time ever, Panorama turned a profit. It was only 1 percent, but in previous years the paper had just broken even. Breaking even is a rare feat in Kazakhstan, where many papers have deficits and depend on support from political parties to stay in business, something Panorama, desiring to maintain its objectivity, does not do. The paper is owned by the president of the largest bank in Kazakhstan, which finances many development projects and whose shareholders include many European banks. Aukenov does his banking there.

Aukenov said his time at the Missoulian was professionally interesting, as the paper differs so much from his own. Panorama doesn't print letters to the editor; it has little advertising and no classifieds; it addresses the entire country; it distributes by mail or through street vendors; and it is completely independent. While at the Missoulian, he gathered information on advertising, distribution and circulation, and design that he may adapt for use at Panorama. "The essence of the paper will remain the same," Aukenov said.

Panorama already occupies a certain niche, but its methods and approaches will evolve as Kazakhstan's economy continues to develop. The more the business grows, the more ads it will print; the more readers it anticipates attracting, the longer the paper will become.

Kazakhstan has made significant progress since the breakup of the Soviet Union and its corresponding economic collapse. The economy has stabilized as people have adjusted to the open market, and Kazakhstan recently founded its own stock exchange. The economy is oil-, mining- and agriculture-based. Aukenov said he hopes to see the country move away from an over-dependence on exporting raw materials, especially given the possible drop in oil prices due to the war in Iraq. It trades heavily with Russia, China and European Union countries, which import Caspian Sea caviar, among other products.

In recent years, Kazakhstan has been a large importer of Western culture. Almaty is more progressive and cosmopolitan than the rest of the country, Aukenov said, though aggressive feminism is frowned upon, and smokers aren't discriminated against like they are in the States. European influence is stronger than American. Cafés are extremely popular, but MacDonald's and fast food are scorned, as food is taken very seriously. Meals are usually eaten in silence, and the working lunch is unheard of. Nonetheless, it is still considered "cool" to have a Coke in one hand and a Snickers bar in the other, Aukenov said.

Music and movies from the United States are common (rapper Eminem is big), and American sports are becoming more popular. Aukenov has a picture of NBA star Shaquille O'Neal on his computer desktop, and there is an ever-growing baseball league in Almaty sponsored by U.S. oil companies. Aukenov likes American movies, in particular Marilyn Monroe films like "Some Like it Hot," but said American music is too commercial and sounds too uniform. His daughters, ages 4 and 10, have a Sony PlayStation and watch Nickelodeon. Aukenov regularly watches CNN and Fox News.

There is one change in American news media that Aukenov has noted since his first trip to the States seven years ago: a seemingly greater interest in what is happening in the rest of the world. His first trip, with five other journalists, looked at American society as a whole instead of focusing on journalism.

Aukenov was impressed by what he saw during his time at the J-School, and would like to see changes in journalist training in Kazakhstan.

Will he ever teach journalism?

"Oy. Da…" he said, then explained his hesitating assent. If it's well organized, if it pays well, and if they need him, then he will teach.