One on One Dinah Spritzer - from New York to Siberia to Prague's corridors of power

My guest today is Dinah Spritzer, a journalist who was born in Argentina but grew up in New York. Dinah works at Prague's English language newspaper, the Prague Post. Dinah welcome to One on One, could you first tell us please how you got into journalism?

Dinah Spritzer "I had been living in New York after university and I had not spent a lot of time in Latin America, even though I was from there. Friends of mine were going down to Nicaragua to check out the Sandinista movement and I thought what a way to get in touch with my roots and I went and visited. Because I spoke Spanish a man found me who worked for the Wall Street Journal and asked if I would be his assistant, and that's how it all began."

Before you came to Prague you spent many years in the former Soviet Union - could you tell us about that please?

"Sure, from '90 to '95 my job was to travel from Prague to Vladivostok and every place in between and to cover the opening of the transportation and tourism industry. That included all of what are called the CIS countries, plus anything in the former Eastern Bloc. And then in 1995 I lived in Irkutsk, Siberia, which is part of Russia."

Did you enjoy that experience?

"I loved it. It was fantastic. Irkutsk has 40,000 or 45,000 people in it, and I was the only American actually based there. Everyone was so welcoming to me and so kind, the day that I moved there strangers were inviting me to their homes. So, it made me feel very, very special. When I describe what life was like in Irkutsk there are two memories that stand out, or three, if I may. The first was maybe the third day after I moved there I went jogging along the Angara River, which is quite beautiful, and a man started running after me. I think it was about two kilometres and he was really running fast and chasing me. And I got to the centre of town and I started to cry because I was so afraid. He started yelling at me and everyone was yelling at me, then I made the newspapers - they had never seen a woman jogging before and they couldn't understand. I must have done something wrong: why was I running?

Another thing that happened was I was in the forest with some friends I had made and I got a poisonous snake bite, it's called a black snake, and it was quite serious and they needed to fly me to Moscow for the antidote. But there were no planes going at the time, so we had to drive to what's called a polyclinic. We drove to the polyclinic and they told me I would have to wait for three hours. The gentlemen who were with me found that unacceptable because they were afraid I would die, so they all pulled out guns and told the people at the hospital that I needed immediate attention. Which I got. And also the man who operated on me was drunk, who had the antidote, he had been ice-fishing and drinking vodka.

And the third thing was that for three months we ran out of drinking water. Everybody else had it in their basements, but the people who were living where I lived did not. And I ended up surviving on pizza, hot chocolate, vodka and champagne until one day I couldn't get up - that was because I was dehydrated.

I moved back to New York after I'd lived in Russia, and then I came here five years later. I had been to Prague many times before and over the years had seen the changes. I found living here quite different, obviously, than living in Russia, or living in New York."

How long does it take an experienced journalist to get to know a new city or country?

"I think if you don't know the language and you have trouble learning it, it takes at least a year. If you know the language it might take six months. But I think you could be here for ten years and still be learning things."

I read the newspapers and I would be lost if I couldn't read the papers - how do you get your knowledge, so to speak?

"At the Prague Post we are fortunate to have a wonderful research team and they provide translations of the daily newspapers and the weeklies. We also read CTK [Czech Press Agency] in English and we read Radio Prague as well, on the web."

I know you cover politics a lot for the Prague Post - how do you perceive the political scene here, in general?

"I think it's very normal, the ebb and flow of the discussions here and the issues. I think that we're moving towards the western style and in some ways things here can be even more transparent they are in the west. I would say one of the things I like about living here is working here, and the amount of access that you have to politicians that you do not have in most countries."

Doesn't it seem to you sometimes that Czech politics is a series of minor "scandals" which aren't really scandals and it gets a bit tiresome after a while?

"Yes! I remember the issues with President Klaus and Ambassador Craig Stapleton from the US and you know, what went on between them during Iraq and who said what. There was a heavy element of silliness. But from the series of scandals that come out I feel that people do learn things, I think that politicians do learn things. I think there are some politicians who really want to change things for the better and I think things in this country have obviously, from a political perspective, changed for the better.

I guess the most exciting thing is you can walk up to anyone in parliament, or in the government, and ask them a question. And likely you're going to get an answer; it might not be the answer you want. Whereas in the United States, where I've spent most of my life, it's much more difficult."

One journalist I know says he's only ever seen two politicians totally dominate a room: Margaret Thatcher and the former Czech prime minister Milos Zeman. Have any Czech politicians made a big impression on you, be it positive or negative?

"Certainly they have...but I have to make an effort to be diplomatic. Vaclav Klaus made a big impression on me in that the Czech people emphasise in their culture a certain kind of humility, a certain kind of moderation, but it seems that in their politicians that's not what they admire...he's such a bold and confident man and meeting him, spending time with him at the Civic Democrat congress where he stepped down I was amazed at not just his poise but his general assertiveness and strength. And one could also say occasional arrogance, as I'm sure he wouldn't deny."

What do you think of Prime Minister Vladimir Spidla? Many people say he's a kind of grey character, an empty suit.

"I don't agree with that at all. Not to be partial, again Vaclav Klaus made a big impression on me but Vladimir Spidla made an equal impression on me when I interviewed him. I'm not sure that people have a second sense about integrity but when you're speaking with Vladimir Spidla you...I had the feeling that I was speaking with a man who genuinely, genuinely was dedicated to the good of his country. He has a terrible time communicating his emotions and his ideas, but if you speak with him you can feel his passion, and you can bring it out in him. He really wants the best for the country and is a true socialist; he wants the best for the majority of people. And I think he's a fine human being. Whether he's a good politician or a good leader I think is another matter."

Do you find it exciting being around important people?

"Well, important is such an interesting word. I..."

You know what I mean - they have power.

"They have power but remember I'm from a very big country, two big countries: Argentina and the United States. And the Czech Republic is quite small and sometimes I think it's funny when people here think they're powerful and think they matter, and yet in the scheme of things they don't. I like being around people who are affecting policy but I think the most fun I've had in my job is going to talk to mayors of towns of twenty or thirty..."

Thousand? Or just twenty or thirty people?

"Twenty or thirty people, yes. Or people who own a bookstore in a town like that. Ordinary people to me are much more thrilling than politicians, because they say exactly what they think, especially when they're angry. Czechs have a reputation for being reserved but I feel as journalist, and I've worked in many countries, I find them extremely upfront. And when you go around and you're asking for people's opinions I find they can't wait to tell you. So that's another aspect I like about working here."