New media academy for TV journalism
By Pramod Kumar
The sudden and unplanned increase in television channels has triggered off a tremendous demand for TV professionals?anchors, producers, directors, reporters, newsreaders, etc. But most of the channels, specially the news channels, are facing severe shortage of trained professionals. They are forced to hire semi-trained people from print media and also the fresher resulting in their finding it difficult to make their presence felt in the most competitive sector of media. Today, the sector of TV channels is expanding. But after some time when it will start shrinking, only the fittest channels and professionals will survive. Those who are unprepared for the competition will risk not only their own career but also the future of the networks they are employed in.
Noted television journalist, Shri Manoj Raghuvanshi, who has 27 years of experience behind him and over 2,000 hours of telecast to his credit, has set up a media academy?Pratyaksh?to impart professional training in television journalism. The academy, which is perhaps the first of its kind in the country, has prominently started three workshop courses?Investigative television journalism with special focus on sting operations using a hidden (spy) camera (three-month duration); Television anchoring, news reading, radio jockeying and voicing (English/Hindi), Public speaking (Hindi-English). Anchoring and pubic speaking will be of one-month duration. The public speaking course is actually a weekend course?Saturdays and Sundays. There are 30 seats for each course and the first batch is going to start from August 1, this year. The fee for investigative journalism course is Rs 30,000, Rs 11,000 for public speech and Rs 13,000 for television anchoring.
The most important highlight of this academy is that the students will be learning from the best and the most successful media professionals including Tarun Tejpal (Tehalka), Prannoy Roy (NDTV), Qamer Waheed Naqvi (chief of Aaj Tak), Alka Saxena (chief of Zee News), Satinder Bindra, (CNN), Karan Thapar (TV anchor), Tavleen Singh (TV producer and renowned columnist), Rahul Dev (TV anchor), Vikram Chandra (NDTV Profit), Vinod Kapri (Star News), Vijay Trivedi (NDTV INDIA), Alok Mehta (Outlook), Chandan Mitra, (The Pioneer), Smt. Mrinal Pandey (Hindustan), Om Thanvi (Jansatta), Ashwini Minna (Punjab Kesari), Sudhir Tailang (Hindustan Times). There are a total of 41 such guests in the faculty of the academy.
The most important highlight of the academy founded by noted TV journalist, Manoj Raghuvanshi, is that the students will learn from the most successful media professionals.
?We shall teach the techniques of sting operations, but definitely not the kind of sting operations that was recently conducted by a TV channel sending reporters to bedrooms and bathrooms of certain people. We shall teach the kind of operation that was conducted by Aaj Tak, Star News, NDTV, Sahara TV etc, catching offenders in public interest,? said Shri Raghuvanshi, adding that the basic purpose of the academy is to make sure that students learn so well that they can survive in today'scompetition and also when the channels start shrinking tomorrow.
According to Shri Raghuvanshi, Pratyaksh is not affiliated to any channel or institution. ?We are totally independent. The people from all the channels will come to share their experience with our students. If we affiliate to one channel, the seniors from other channels might not come. Secondly, we can send our students for jobs to all the channels,? says Shri Raghuvanshi. In the three-month course, the first six weeks will be given to theoretical grounding and the next six weeks will be for practical training. There will be no time restriction for practical exercise.
There are a large number of people in print media who aim to work in television journalism, but do not get the right opportunity due to lack of formal training. The academy provides a remedy to their problem. For those people also who want to work as stinger or freelancer for TV channels, the academy provides good opportunity. (For further information contact: pratyakshinstitute@yahoo.com or 011-55382787, 09818319418, 09871407843)
