Tempo magazine

Tempo weekly English edition is partly comprised of original stories (around 30%) and material translated from the Indonesian version (70%). Tempo is Indonesia’s most distinguished current affairs weekly and the quality of reporting is very high. Tempo interns must work hard over the first two weeks in Jakarta to bring themselves up to speed on contemporary issues in Indonesia (or better yet, research before you depart) as the magazine will run with a key number of feature stories each week. At each editorial meeting on Thursday students will have the opportunity to pitch stories and research them over the course of the week. Should the stories be good enough you will have a high chance of being published. You should aim to walk into the first editorial meeting of your internship with at least two good stories to pitch and hit the ground running. Discuss these with the Project Officer before commencing to ensure that your story has not been run by the magazine previously.

There is not a lot of overt assistance for interns at Tempo. Students should be motivated enough to request advice and pursue work independently. One student likened the position to ‘freelancing for Tempo, but having access to their network of contacts and a desk’. A 2009 student also advised future students to ‘seek out journalists from downstairs in the Indonesian language Tempo offices. Although they don’t write in English they have good English skills and their contacts are invaluable!’. Ask Yuli (your main mentor) for contacts when she is in or email her, as she will always give great advice and push you in the right direction. Don’t expect a lot of feedback on your work and be prepared to have a story you have been working on all week to be rejected when the magazine fills up. But if the story is good and you are confident, they will more than likely run it. Editorial meetings are not as intimidating as they first seem. ‘Be confident!’ is the advice from past students.

Intern Duties

• Pitching stories and writing them. Tempo will provide the contacts. Interns will be expected to go out and conduct interviews independently. You may pen opinion pieces or features (although it is more difficult to be accepted for the larger pieces). Space is tight with only 30% of the magazine allocated for new material, so work must be both topical and of a high standard.
• Editing and proofing on the Sunday night before each edition is sent off to the printer on Monday.

Specific Requirements

None. You will have a desk and access to a computer, but again, a laptop will make life easier. Sound recording equipment is a must for interviewing. The office has Wi-Fi, but no air-conditioning (one student recommended buying a fan for your desk area).
Jeanette Steels’s The War Within: The Story of Tempo is compulsory reading before arriving in Indonesia.

Work hours

Thursday-Monday, mid-morning to finish (a lot of Tempo staff work well into the evening - that’s 2am for Sunday night editing!). So please take note that you will be working Saturday and Sunday.

Location and getting there

Tempo is located on Jl. Proklamasi, which is easily accessible from the Menteng-Cikini area. Alternatively, the Manggarai busway passes by the office but the stop is a short distance away (five minute motorcycle taxi). There are a number of kos areas in the nearby Mataraman, Talang, and Pasar Rumput areas.

Student stories

2009

Joel Bryant is a postgraduate student from the University of Technology Sydney. His work placement was at Tempo magazine. Read his stories.

Kate Lamb is a postgraduate student from the University of Technology Sydney. Her workplacement was at Tempo magazine. Read her stories.

2008

Ben Ball is a talented photo-journalist and undergraduate student from the University of Technology Sydney. His work placement was at Tempo magazine. Read an article he wrote on the troubled Jakarta suburb of Tambora.