A Sri Lankan journalist who covers international cricket, writes humour, draws cartoons and edits a satirical website has won the Indian Newslink Postgraduate Journalism Scholarship at AUT University this year.
Andrew Fernando has contributed for student publications such as Auckland University’s Craccum and a range of other magazines, but is looking forward to the step up to hard news journalism.
“I am excited about the prospect of working as a journalist and my experience with publications like ESPN Cricinfo has heightened my interest and passion for a career in the industry,” he said.
Indian Newslink Contributor and Indian Newslink Indian Business Awards 2011 Marketing Coordinator Manish Tanna presented the Scholarship to Mr Fernando at a function held at the AUT Campus on March 24, 2011.
He said it was important to strengthen the ethnic media in New Zealand.
“This Scholarship is open to all New Zealand citizens and permanent residents, irrespective of their ethnic grouping,” Mr Tanna said.
Twenty-two year old Fernando covered the recent West Indies Cricket tour of Sri Lanka and Pakistan Cricket tour of New Zealand before the World Cup in the Indian Sub-continent.
But his journalism horizons are far wider than Cricket and he hopes to learn skills to write on a range of challenging issues
He has double arts degrees in Philosophy and History and in Theology.
He is now enrolled as a student journalist in AUT’s one-year Postgraduate Diploma in Communication Studies.
Fernando also edits a satirical online news website, The Pigeon, which was recently featured by the Herald on Sunday as a ‘Blog of the Week.’
Indian Newslink designed the Scholarship Scheme to encourage young and creative minds to pursue the journalism course at the AUT University and become responsible and successful media persons.
The Newspaper will sponsor one candidate every year, subject to AUT’s prescribed rules, regulations, terms and conditions.
David Robie is Associate Professor and Director of Pacific Media Centre
at the Creative Industries Research Institute School of Communication Studies,
AUT University.
Picture by Yvonne Brill of Pacific Media Centre
