Hanoi (VNA) 🗹– The Vietnam Press Museum, which opened on June 19, is not only a place to keep documents and items featuring the history of the press sector, but also a venue to keep the memories of national history and social life in general.

Director of the museum Tran Thi Kim Hoa said that since the first newspaper was published in Vietnam on April 15, 1865, and Vietnam’s revolutionary press was formed by the introduction of the Thanh Nien (Youth) Newspaper on June 21, 1925, the press has accompanied the nation throughout history and served as a sharp tool in the fight for national independence as well as in national construction. As part of efforts to maintain, honour and promote the fine tradition of generations of Vietnamese journalists, the Vietnam Journalists’ Association completed a project to construct the museum, which was approved on August 21, 2014. The project was added to the master plan of Vietnam’s museum system in 2020. From August 2014 to July 2017, activities to research, collect and build collections of items and documents were implemented, while the museum’s personnel apparatus was set up. On July 28, 2017, the Prime Minister signed a decision on the establishment of the Vietnam Press Museum, which clarified the mission of the museum in collecting, keeping and exhibiting cultural heritages reflecting the formation and development of the Vietnamese press, and conducting scientific studies to protect and promote the values of the sector. According to Hoa, since its establishment, the museum has collected more than 20,000 items and documents, including more than 700 rare items featuring important events in the Vietnamese press history, for regular display. The exhibition in the museum is divided into five parts in accordance with five periods –1865-1925, 1925-1945, 1945-1954, 1954-1975, and 1975 to present. The exhibition area of nearly 1,500sq.m is optimised for showcasing, she said, adding that the museum has applied television, radio and digital technology solutions to better serve visitors. Hoa expressed her hope that the museum will give visitors an insight into activities and devotion of generations of Vietnamese journalists. Hoa said that a highlight of the museum is the symbol of a pen lying on the background of lotus petals in the area showcasing items and documents related to the Vietnamese press during 1865-1925. It aims to honour the pure ethics of journalism and journalists. The museum also has a space to commemorate journalists who fell down for the nation, the people and the Vietnamese revolutionary press, said Hoa. Regarding difficulties in the building of the museum, Hoa said that one of the biggest difficulties was human resources. “At that time, we only had a few personnel while the volume of work was large. As outsiders, we had to manage to do the work step by step. In addition, we also faced problems in gathering exhibits, as all we had were old newspapers. We were striving to revive old memories,” stated Hoa. However, Hoa said that the museum has received great support from the Vietnam Journalists’ Association and many other agencies as well as veteran journalists and collectors. They presented the museum with many valuable documents, she added. She revealed that the collection of first editions of Gia Dinh Newspaper, as well as items and documents of the Vietnamese press in the 1865-1925, was the hardest part due to the long turbulent history. Learning that some editions of Gia Dinh Newspaper were being kept in the library of a college in Paris, the museum contacted the college and received scans of many documents on the early days of the Vietnamese press, including the fourth edition of Gia Dinh Newspaper, which was published on July 15, 1865. Mentioning plans to attract visitors in the future, Hoa said that the museum will focus on completing contents for regular display, as well as classification, researching and storing of exhibits. On June 15, the museum signed an agreement on strategic cooperation with the Institute for Journalism and Communications Training under the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, and the Academy of Journalism and Communications. The deal allows the museum and the two training establishments to support each other in training and academic exchange, she said, adding that the museum will serve as a second amphitheater for students in journalism. In the long term, the museum will connect with travel agencies to lure visitors, she stated./.