Recipient of Sir Edward Youde Memorial Fellowships in 1988/89
尤德爵士紀念基金研究生獎學金1988/89年得獎者
Media workers often have more life experiences than their peers as they have to interview people from all walks of life. Meanwhile, many of them move to other occupations due to its high intensity and unrewarding salary. The recipient of Sir Edward Youde Memorial Scholarship for Postgraduate Students in 1988/89, Publisher and Chief Executive Officer of Master Insight Media, Mr. Man Cheuk Fei, joined the industry by chance, but has devoted to the media industry for more than 30 years. He has served as a journalist and editor in different newspapers, magazines and founded Master Insight Media in 2014. He is committed to building a high-quality media platform and continuing to exert influence in the Greater China region.
Mr. Man majored in Chinese at the University of Hong Kong (HKU)and served as the publication secretary and the chairperson of the Chinese Society. Later, he was elected as the Internal Vice President of the Student’s Union and actively participated in the university reforms. As he approached graduation, he felt that he should devote more time to his studies, so he pursued a Master degree at the same University. As advised by his professor, he decided to pursue a Master of Philosophy (MPhil) degree in History to study the Man Clan, one of the indigenous families of the New Territories. Although he did not finish his Master thesis due to various factors, it drove him to complete another MPhil degree in Government and Public Administration at the Chinese University of Hong Kong(CUHK) in the early 90s.
Mr. Man wanted to be a teacher as he has always been interested in education. Although he has never imagined himself as a journalist, he has been working like one since early days. Not only did he write columns for newspapers during his undergraduate degree, caring for the country, he also visited his friends in Beijing during Tiananmen Square Protests in June 1989, and went to North America for an interflow visit organised by the Student’s Union of HKU to write about how local Chinese support the protest for Wen Wei Po and Hong Kong Economic Journal, as if a reporter.
Recommended by his friend teaching in the US, he worked as a political reporter for the Next Magazine which was newly founded in 1990, while studying his MPhil. His capabilities are well-recognized within just two years, therefore he has been responsible for compiling the “The Stories of 100 Hong Kong Celebrities” and became the Chief Editor of Teachers Plus monthly. Later he left and continued his career in the Hong Kong Economic Journal as an editor of the political commentary pages. In more than a decade, Mr Man’s outstanding career earned him the Knight Fellow of Stanford University and the Nieman Fellow of Harvard University at the same time in 2000, he chose to further study at Stanford University for one year. The business management and entrepreneurship-related courses he took there also foreshadowed his decision of starting his own business later.
He became the Chief Editor of Hong Kong Economic Journal Monthly when he returned at the end of 2011. However, the shift of company ownership along with its style and his desire of stepping out of his comfort zone, made Mr. Man resolutely bid farewell to the company that he has served for 21 years and established Master Insight Media 7 years ago, witnessing the turbulence of the city in these years. On the 22th of October, 2014, Mr. Man invited the Presidents from 10 different universities and colleges to attend the opening ceremony of Master Insight Media. By the time it was also the climax of the Occupy Central Movement, some people suggested him to cater the taste of the mass to increase more exposure. However, Mr. Man always adhered to his mission since the establishment of the media platform: never to make a sensation but to build a high quality media platform by doing their own job down-to-earth.
He encourages those who are aspiring to join the media industry that it takes time to accumulate social networks and experiences, as it often requires persistence to become an expert in a certain field. On the other hand, he also set a good example and continued to study during the past working period, encouraging young people that one should never stop studying and pursue a better self.
Mr. Man received the Sir Edward Youde Memorial Fund when he studied his MPhil at HKU. He still vividly remembers the interviewer, an authority on linguistics, Professor Benjamin T’SOU Ka-yin, as they had a nice conversation during the process. It has been more than 30 years since Mr. Man received the scholarship, apart from providing insights to the public in the media industry, he also promotes Chinese learning in the culture and education sectors.
由於經常需要採訪各行各業的對象，傳媒工作者往往比同齡人有更豐富的閱歷。但急促的工作節奏和付出卻與酬勞不成正比，這使很多人在工作幾年後就轉戰他業。尤德爵士紀念基金研究生獎學金 1988/89年得獎者文灼非先生在機緣巧合下投身傳媒行業，至今已堅持超過30年。他先後在不同報社擔任記者、編輯，2014年創辦了灼見名家傳媒，致力建立一個優質的媒體平台，在大中華地區持續發揮影響力。
文先生在香港大學修讀中文，曾擔任文學院中文學會出版秘書和主席，後來更參選港大學生會內務副會長，積極參與推動校內改革。臨近畢業，他有感應該投入更多時間於學習中，因此選擇升讀碩士。在老師的推薦下，他轉到歷史系修讀哲學碩士，研究文氏家族歷史。但因種種原因，文先生未能完成港大碩士論文，90年代初轉往香港中文大學兼讀政治及行政學系哲學碩士。
基於對教育的興趣，本科畢業前他曾想過做老師。雖然他從未想過自己會加入記者行列，但從大學的經歷便能發現，他早與這個職業結下不解之緣：念本科時已獲邀為報紙定期撰寫專欄文章；六四事件期間，本着對國家的關心，他到北京嘗試訪問好友，之後又參加港大學生會北美高等教育交流團，為《文匯報》和《信報》等撰寫有關當地華人支持民運的情況，儼如當了半個記者。
透過美國朋友的推薦，1990年初仍在修讀歷史哲學碩士期間，他加入剛創辦的《壹週刊》擔任政治記者。短短兩年的時間，他先後負責編寫《香江百人誌》特刊和擔任《教師世界》月刊的總編輯，能力備受肯定。後因與報社理念不合，1992年他轉任《信報》政治評論版編輯。10年間，出色的表現使他在2000年同時獲選為史丹福大學奈特新聞學人及哈佛大學尼曼新聞學人，他選擇到史丹福大學進修一年。在史丹福大學他修讀了不少商管及創業課程，為往後自立門戶開啟契機。2011年底回港後，他擔任《信報財經月刊》總編輯。
後來，《信報》易主，報社管理風格改變，文先生希望求變的精神促使他離開服務21年的《信報》，2014年創立灼見名家傳媒，見證了7年來香港經歷過的風波。2014年10月22日創社當天，文先生邀請了十大院校校長出席參加論壇。當時正值佔中浪潮，有人建議他主動迎合大眾口味以增加曝光，但他堅持信念，不譁眾取寵，一直踏實地做好本份，建立一個優質的媒體平台。
他寄語有志投身傳媒界的年輕人，從事這個行業要累積人脈和經驗，要成為某方面的專家需要堅持。另一方面，他也以身作則，工作期間不斷進修，勉勵年輕人要學而不休，提升自己。
文先生在香港大學修讀歷史哲學碩士時獲得尤德爵士紀念基金的研究生獎學金。他至今仍然記得當年的面試官是語言學權威鄒嘉彥教授，過程談得甚為投契。得獎至今30多年，文先生除了在傳媒行業發揮所長，為社會提供真知灼見外，他亦在文化及教育界發揮影響力，推動中文的學習和發展。