New Delhi: Inaugurating the Orientation Programme 2022-23 of the Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC) on Monday, Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman Mr. Harivansh Narayan Singh said that there was a golden period of Indian journalism before Independence. The journalists of that time were ‘investigators’ as well as ‘investors’. With limited resources, they created the golden age of journalism. In today’s era of technology and artificial intelligence, we can easily do a lot and journalism can create a new golden age. On this occasion, Shri Uday Mahurkar, Information Commissioner, Government of India, Prof. Sanjay Dwivedi, Director General, IIMC, Prof. Govind Singh, Dean (Academics), Prof. Pramod Kumar, Program Coordinator and Head of Urdu Journalism Department, faculty members and students of all centers of IIMC were present.
Expressing his views on the subject of ‘Media and the resolution of Amrit Kal’, Shri. Harivansh ji said that things which used to change in hundred years, today it does not take even two days to change. Today you can start a media startup with modest resources and make a difference in the society. The future of India will be decided by the tenacity of the youth. What will be the picture of India in the hundredth year of independence; it will be decided by the dreams and resolutions of the youth.
According to the Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha, the era of journalism has completely changed now. You have to find a way out of the challenges, but the best part is that amidst the challenges, the youth today have endless opportunities. He said that the biggest chapter of change can be written by a human being. Today, apart from print, radio and TV, there are many options like digital media, advertising and public relations, audio, podcast, multimedia, data science and media education.
Shri Harivansh ji said that today due to social media, a credibility crisis has arisen in front of journalism. Lakhs of fake news are being served daily on social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter etc. We all have to face them together. He said that journalism cannot be effective without credibility. Technology is a blessing as well as a lesson for us. It depends on us how to use it.
India’s renaissance period: Mahurkar
On this occasion, Shri Uday Mahurkar, Information Commissioner, Government of India said that a new picture of development has emerged in the country due to digital revolution. Today national interest is paramount for every person. This is the period of renaissance of India. He said that on one hand we are doing ‘Nation First’ diplomacy, India’s ‘soft power’ has surprised the whole world on other hand. According to Mr. Mahurkar, TRP based journalism is very harmful for both media and society.
Indians are capable of facing crises: Prof. Dwivedi
Guiding the new students, IIMC Director General Prof. Sanjay Dwivedi said that this is a year of meditation and dedication for all of you. He said that we become what we think. We have made a great journey in the last 75 years. In the coming 25 years, we have to re-establish India as a Vishwa Guru on the world stage. According to Prof. Dwivedi, Indians are the only ones in this world who can coordinate in every situation. The world believes that Indians are capable of facing any kind of crisis.
In the second session of the program, Dr. J.K. Bajaj, Chairman, ICSSR, New Delhi, Group President, Planning and Control, University of the Pacific, Prof. Bhagwati Prakash Sharma, Professor Centre of Persian & Central Asian Studies, JNU, Prof. Mazhar Asif and ‘Organiser’ editor Mr. Prafulla Ketkar guided the students on the topic, “Amrit Kaal: Panch Pran & Media”.
Smt. Anuradha Prasad, Editor-in-Chief of News 24, Dr. Anurag Batra, President and Editor-in-Chief of Business World, Shri. Shalabh Upadhyay, Founder, CEO and Editor-in-Chief of NEWJ and Dr. Abhishek Garg, Executive Director, DBG Technology (India) interacted with the students on the topic ‘Goal of self- reliant India and Media Entrepreneurship ‘ in the final session of the orientation Programme.
On this occasion, the book ‘New Media Journalism’ edited by Prof. Anubhuti Yadav and the book ‘Mediakarm: yogata aur yatharta’ written by Prof. Pramod Kumar were also released.
Day 2 Programme
Vice Chancellor of Mahatma Gandhi International Hindi University, Wardha Prof. Rajneesh Shukla, Vice President of Kendriya Hindi Sansthan, Shri Anil K. Sharma, Professor Kumud Sharma, Department of Hindi, University of Delhi and Ms. Priyanka Om, author from Tanzania will interact with the students on the topic ‘Global march of Indian languages’ on Tuesday. In the second session, Ms. Manisha Kapoor, Chief Executive Officer, Advertising Standards Council of India, Shri K. Satish Namboodiripad, ADG, CBC, GOI and Mr. Debanjan Chakraborty, Head of Digital Advisory, Edelman will speak on the topic ‘Building Brands in digital age’. In the last session of the day, on the topic ‘Managing reputation through PR’, Mr. Umesh Upadhyay, President & Director (Media), Reliance Industries Limited, Mr. Samir Kapoor, Director, AdFactors PR, Dr. Ajit Pathak, National President, PRSI, Associate Vice President, Hindustan Coca-Cola (PR) Mr. Kalyan Ranjan and Senior Manager of IFFCO’s Publicity & PR Department Mr. Harshendra Vardhan Singh will interact with the students.
