Why is Bram happy as a journalist?
"Perhaps it’s odd, but I’ve never been that crazy about writing. Still, as a teenager I already knew I wanted to become a journalist as I wanted to know a little bit about everything. A study in History, Psychology or International Affairs all sounded tempting but journalism would make all of this possible. Moreover, as a journalist, doors that would normally stay closed would open themselves for me as a journalist.
So far, that goal has certainly been reached. As a journalist I was able to talk to Zapatista revolutionaries in Mexico, children of missing parents in Argentina, intellectuals like Noam Chomsky in the US and arch bishop Tutu in South Africa. I had touching and sometimes funny conversations with victims of the Chernobyl disaster, survivors of an earthquake in El Salvador, wine farmers in Portugal and party people during a festival in Serbia.
In my own country my boy’s dream came true as I worked at VPRO 3voor12 as a music journalist. As a web editor I experienced hectic and adrenaline boosting deadline situations at the news desks of website NU.nl and news agency ANP. During the two years I worked for mental healthcare magazine Psy, professors and psychiatrists haven taken their time to explain me everything about psychiatric illnesses and drug addiction. Patients took a confidence in me while sharing their life stories.
All of this was possible because I am a reporter. For me, writing is not the ultimate goal but a means to an end. My strength and my passion lies in researching and preparing enabling me to responsibly handle information or words from sources with care.
I am an enthusiastic journalist and I hope a good journalist who will keep on practising his profession with commitment and integrity. I love being a journalist as it not only enables me to see and understand more of this world but also to share this with other people. As a journalist I never stop learning, never stop being amazed and hopefully never stop caring."