The School of Journalism and Mass Communication (SJMC) at Apeejay Stya University (ASU), Gurugram recently organised a Masterclass on ‘The Future of Digital Journalism: Trends & Challenges’ for the student journalists. This workshop aimed to explore the realm of digital media with the upcoming trends and challenges in the 21st century for a media consumer.
The event kickstarted with felicitation of the guest speaker Dr Sanjay Kumar, Journalist and Media Educator, by the Dean of the Department, Mr. Sanjay Ahirwal. Following the inauguration, the event continued with an engaging presentation by Diya Bhattacharya and Rupkatha Roy, first-year students from the department, who narrated the journey from traditional media to new media.
While addressing the students, the guest speaker highlighted how digital media has undergone a significant transformation since its inception. As its popularity has increased, the scope of digital media has expanded from simple Google searches to a wide variety of media tools. The guest speaker emphasised, “Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and the strategic use of relevant keywords to effectively position a company’s webpage among the top search results is important.”
He also discussed the advantages of digital media, such as the no space limitations, accessibility from anywhere, and its speed as a medium. Personalisation and archiving of content were explained by the speaker through real time examples.
A major highlight of the masterclass was the significance of fact-checking. With social media often filled with misinformation and disinformation, it has become crucial to verify facts and information. The speaker suggested various fact-checking tools that can prevent students from being misled. He explained their significance and their application in the modern period where fake news and deepfakes have become very common.
The session concluded with Prof. Sanjay Ahirwal expressing his gratitude towards the guest speaker for an engaging and enthusiastic session where students gained new insights about the digital media and how to navigate it through different tools and techniques to become a better professional. The SJMC masterclass provided students with the essential tools to become accountable and responsible journalists as well as citizens in the future.