Malcolm meets Charles at NTV. PHOTO BY ISAAC SSEJJOMBWE
NTV’s Malcolm Musiime meets Charles, his longtime fan and follower at the NTV offices.
How are you Malcolm? I’m your biggest fan. Please tell me your journey to stardom.
Well, I started from radio, presenting at Roots FM in Kabale, then Radio Rukungiri, before joining Vision Radio in Mbarara from 2004 to 2007. In 2008, I came back to Kampala and joined KFM before joining NTV in March last year.
Why NTV of all stations?
I was on radio for 12 years and I wanted to change, I wanted to do something different, something my fans would appreciate. I had built a huge fan base on radio and wanted my fans to see who Malcolm is and there is no way I would do that on a small TV station. I wanted to raise my bar on a serious TV station and NTV was exactly that.
How did you feel on your first day on TV?
It was nerve-racking. I had a lot on my mind. I wanted the ground to swallow me because I felt the whole world was looking at me. A lot of questions popped in my head. Questions like “I’m I worth it, have I impressed them, was I good?” and many more. It was a feeling I wouldn’t want to experience again.
What exactly do you do at NTV?
I’m an anchor, I do news and business reporting and I present a programme called The Entrepreneur.
What’s the difference between TV and Radio?
The only difference between the two is that radio is audio and TV is visual. The listeners on radio relate to you by listening to what you are saying and the TV audience relates to you by watching and listening to you what you are saying.
Why did you leave radio?
I wanted to do more. I believe time had come for me to move on and find something new and fresh.
What are some of the challenges news anchors face?
We work long hours. We spend the whole day gathering news stories. I work from 8am to 10pm the whole week, which is tiresome. We have to keep a good reputation because we represent the TV station out there. I always have to keep NTV’s image and reputation respected at all times because I’m their face.
Who is your role model?
CNN’s Richard Quest, Mark Masai from NTV Kenya and Maurice Mugisha.
What course did you do at campus?
I did Mass Communication.
What else do you do besides TV?
There is never time to do anything else when you are a news anchor. We are always busy but when I get some free time, I’m into media consultancy. I train radio presenters and sometimes I do voice over adverts.
Who inspired you to do what you’ve so far done in your career?
My father and mother. I come from a poor family and when I was growing up, there is this saying my father used to always tell me. “If you want to be a man, pose as a man.” It’s what has been my driving force since then. I’m a perfectionist, I always want to stand out and represent my family all the time.
What is the most painful thing you’ll never forget in your life?
That would be cutting off my dreadlocks. I used to follow the movement of peace and love. It was thing of the heart. Previously, I wanted to do an entertainment show but one of the broadcast industry veterans Christine Mawadri convinced me that I could do news anchoring as well, but there is no way I could do it on a serious TV station with dreads, so I had to sacrifice them for a TV career. It hurt a lot seeing my dreads go, one by one, but I wanted my dream to come true.
Where do you see yourself in five years?
Only God knows but I would love to be on big stations like BBC, CNN or maybe VOA (Voice of Africa). I’m not yet there but I will get there one day.
Thank you very much for your time.
Thank you too Charles for the support.
