Valedictory session of Roundtable organised by WJEC-IIMC-UNESCO emphasises on ‘Growth of Indian Language Journalism’
New Delhi : “There is an immense amount of knowledge hidden in various languages of India. We must practice these languages to gather that knowledge”, said the chief guest of the program Prof. Bhushan Patwardhan, chairman, ICSSR, while expressing his views on the topic ‘Growth of Indian Language Journalism and Media Education: Issues & Concerns’ at the concluding session of a two-day roundtable on ‘Journalism Education in India: Issues and Challenges,’ organised by the World Journalism Education Council, Indian Institute of Mass Communication, and UNESCO.
He further added that “the National Education Policy (NEP) is a significant milestone in India’s educational history. The Government of India has taken positive steps to ensure that children receive education in their native language”.
On this occasion, Guest of Honour, Prof. B. K. Kuthiala, Chairman of Higher Education, Haryana & Chandigarh, deliberated the topic by saying, “for print and digital, revenue is gradually shifting from English media to language media.” Other senior media educators, Prof. (Dr.) Sanjeev Bhanawat, Former Head, University of Rajasthan, Dr. Sudhir Gavahane, Former VC, MGM University, Aurangabad, Dr. Mrinal Chatterjee, Regional Director, IIMC Dhenkanal, Prof. Kanchan K Malik, Department of Communication, University of Hyderabad, were the eminent panelists of the session in the Valedictory session. Patron Prof. Sanjay Dwivedi, Dean Academics Prof. Govind Singh and Convenor Prof. Surbhi Dahiya were also present on the occassion. Dr Rubal Kanojia from Central University of Punjab moderated the session.
Earlier in the day, Roundtable Plenary II, the topic ‘Reinventing Journalism Education in the Digital Age: Emerging Technologies and Formats’, was discussed amongst Prof. Usha Rani Narayana, Senior ICCSR Fellow, Mysore, Prof. Umesh Arya of Guru Jambheshwar University of Science and Technology, Hisar, Prof. Ujjwala Sunil Barve of SavitriBai Phule University, Pune, Prof. Ruchi Kher Jaggi, Director, Symbiosis Institute of Media and Communication (SIMC), Pune. Prof. Dev Vrat Singh of Central University of Jharkhand, Ranchi & Dr. S. Arulchelvan of Anna University, Chennai. Prof. Anand Pradhan, Course Director of Hindi Journalism, IIMC moderated the session.
The event’s third session focused on the topic of ‘Need for Robust Research in the Media Domain: Integrating Theory with Practice’. Prof. Geeta Bamezai, Former Professor and Head, Department of Communication Research (DECORE), IIMC, Prof. Sunil Kanta Behera of Tezpur University, Prof. Shohini Ghosh, Officiating Director, MCRC, Jamia Millia Islamia, Prof. Manukonda Rabindranath, Chairman, Center for Media Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, Prof.Shashwati Goswami, Head, Department of Communication Research (DECORE), IIMC. Prof. Anubhuti Yadav, Head Department of New Media, IIMC, Dr. Sumit Narula, Deputy Dean, Amity School of Communication, participated and presented their insightful perspectives on the topic. The session was moderated by Dr Uma Shanker Pandey, from Kolkata.
In the fourth session of the event, discussion was organized on the topic ‘Shift from Classroom Discourse to Online Teaching: Challenges and Prospects’. In this session, Prof. Mira K. Desai of SNDT Women’s University, Mumbai, Prof. Archana R. Singh, of Punjab University, Chandigarh, Prof. Manisha Pathak Shelat, of CDMC, MICA, Ahmedabad, Prof.Padma Rani, Director, Manipal Institute of Communication, Manipal, Prof. Sunetra Sen Narayan, Publications Department, IIMC, Prof. M.S. Sapna of University of Mysore, Mysore. Dr. Jyoti Raghavan of Kamala Nehru College, New Delhi, shared their views. The session was moderated by Dr Kulveen Trehan, GGSIPU, New Delhi.
On the first day of the programme, discussions were organized on the topic ‘100 Years of Journalistic Education in India and National Education Policy 2020’, ‘Multidisciplinary Approaches to Journalism Education in India’, ‘Hybrid Newsrooms and Blended Classrooms’ and ‘De-colonizing Journalism Education and pedagogy’. Eminent journalists and media educators of the world participated in this two-day conference and discussed the issues and challenges of Journalism Education in India.