A reporter from a regional daily has passed on her knowledge of using social media to journalists in Sri Lanka as part of a month-long vocational exchange.

Claire Fry from the Worcester News spoke to editors and journalists at the Sri Lanka Press Institute in Colombo about how they could use social media to improve their work and gather stories.

She was asked to do the presentation after meeting the institute’s chairman, Kumar Nadesan, earlier in her travels and explaining how journalists at the Worcester News used Facebook, Twitter and Flip video cameras in their day-to-day working life.

Claire, who is about to start working for Wolverhampton daily the Express & Star, was in Sri Lanka for a month as part of a Group Study Exchange organised and sponsored by Rotary International.

Claire gives her presentation in Sri Lanka.

She said: “To be asked to make a presentation to the institute really was an honour and was something I couldn’t turn down.

“I had visited a number of media outlets, newspapers, TV stations and radio stations in the country and while many were producing some good products, I just felt some were not using social media to their advantage as much as they could.

“Although I’m not used to public speaking, and by no means see myself as an expert in the field, I’m a journalist who uses the sites and understands how to pick up a good story using them.

“I was really proud and honoured to be asked to share ideas with other journalists, and to do it in a country where journalists don’t have the same freedoms as we do here, I couldn’t turn it down.”

Claire added she had received help with the presentation from the Worcester News’ digital editor Murray Kelso and had made previous presentations to Rotarians across the country about being on the GSE team.

She was selected to attend the exchange with four other people from different professions after undergoing vigorous interviews from her own sponsoring Rotary Club in Worcester and then by Rotary International.