The Rising Need for Responsible Journalism

           “The courage in journalism is sticking up for the unpopular, not the popular.”

On one hand media has risen to attain new heights, but has been forced to fall in the trap of regular controversies, masalas, and biased journalism. Rather than digging deeper and showcasing the truth, the channels have nothing better but to portray biased opinions, and making hill out of nothing. Issues that need prior attention are sidelined and baseless topics get more attention. And even if a case has been taken up rather judiciously, it progresses from page one to last, losing the essence and the limelight.  It doesn’t end here – media is often shown throwing biased opinions on one topic than showcasing just the main news, aggravating the issue and selected group of citizens furthermore.

However the hope hasn’t died yet. There are revolutionary journalists trying to create a better world and a better news-cape for people. There are tons of people who believe in the power of journalism and are striving to add to the revolution media has created. The need of the hour is to have responsible journalists who understand the importance of adding a human touch to journalism and not perturbing people over sensitive issues. Those journalists who have the courage of portray own thoughts and truth after researching thoroughly on the subject. Stories that are printed or broadcasted should have balanced context and should not be born out of lies. Journalists cannot guarantee truth – nobody can, but if you are covering a piece you need to have your facts correct.

Inflicting harm on people is the last thing you would want to do. And even if your article creates a stir, you need to have the guts to own it up. Be accountable for what you do and learn to take its responsibility than throwing attitude in the air. The face of media is changing in our country. In fact we are regarded as “world’s most linguistically diverse news landscape,” with over 100 24x7 news channels, dailies and other mediums. Become a part of this revolution by pursuing journalism courses in Delhi from leading colleges.

3 interesting careers in mass communication

Mass communication opens doors to a wide number of career opportunities. With varying target audience and different mediums of communication, the aspects of mass communication have touched all kinds of industry. It is one of the most dynamic sectors to be in, wherein there is an ever growing demand of skilled professionals.

Colleges like Indian institute of mass communication and AAFT School of mass communication offer both degree and diploma courses in mass media studies to students who wish to make a career in this sector. With the changing face of economy, media has continued to grow at a fast pace. While a major portion of mass communication belongs to journalism (dispensing news and information through print and digital media), it is not all.

Today, with a degree in mass communication and mass media, you can take up several other job profiles. Here’s a list of professions that you can take up after acquiring a formal degree in mass communication.

•Radio/ TV announcer: An announcer is anyone who presents in information or elements of entertainment through verbal communication. As a radio/TV announcer, one gets to provide commentaries, interview guests and also host talk shows. Some of announcers also work as DJs in weddings. A profession like this is ideal for anyone who wants to be a part of entertainment sector.

•PR specialist: A PR specialist communicates with public and media on the behalf of his clients. Because Public Relations is all about building relationships, a PR specialist is seen in events, conferences, seminars to boost the image of his client. PR is also a lot about writing and editing.

•Screenwriter: Screenwriting is another major profession that people take up after graduating from top colleges like AAFT and international institute of mass media. It involves writing screenplays for films, TV programs and comics.

Mass communication undoubtedly has a lot to offer.

Types of Courses for Post-Graduation on Mass Communication

Mass communication has had the good fortune to establish itself as the leading course for student interested in making a career in the creative field. This course has not been in existence for that long, unlike science, mathematics or even literature, it’s not a course that has been taught since the ancient ages. It is such a generic area of study, that up until some time ago, it was not even considered a legitimate course and was dismissed as a waste of time. This was proven wrong with the rise of the media industry and the professions it ultimately created, which the mass communication took full advantage of. Not only it took up an otherwise bare industry and gave it a full time course, but it also gave students who are interested to work in this field a way to do so.

Mass communication has quickly become the go- to course for anyone that wants to make a career in the creative industry. And its popularity is so high that proper organizations and companies too, recognize it and give it preference over others. Media as an industry is one of the most powerful and profitable one, add to that the introduction of the internet and then the social media, there are endless ways to connect with the masses. This has created ample job opportunities for aspiring youngsters who want to have a more challenging and exciting job.

The course of mass communication has many benefits to it, that along with being a professional course it is also as stated above, recognized by eminent companies and industries. With this degree it is also easy to switch fields and industry, as has several different areas available like filmmaking, journalism, writing, mass media and public relations.

There are also different levels of this course that one can opt for, such as bachelors, masters or a diploma degree. Although a bachelor's degree is as good as any, it is usually noticed that students go for either a masters in mass communication or a diploma. This could be because doing this course at a post- graduation or diploma level, allows one to explore their options during their under-graduation.

With this system, one has the added advantage of having two different subjects that one is knowledgeable on. Being a professional course, there is some hesitancy over whether one would even want to go ahead in this field or not. This way, one can either continue in their preferred area or continue their higher studies in mass communication. If one is confused as to what type of courses one can apply for on the masters level in mass communication, then here are some options:

1. M.A. in Mass Communication and Journalism:
This is an obvious course, which is just an upgrade of its undergraduate level. However, the difference being that one will be learning more in-depth about the media industry and also doing more heavy and intense work projects. On the masters level, there will be less of studying and more of actually doing the work, like reporting, editing, creating and producing, and much more. This course can be found at any good Indian institute of mass communication.

2. Diploma in Language Journalism:
With the world becoming aware of other languages apart from English, native ones like Hindi, Urdu, Marathi, Odia and such are getting a lot of attention. There is an increasing scope of work in the area of language journalism.

3. Still Photography and Photo Journalism:
One can choose to either go for a full time course in this subject or a diploma. A diploma would be better since it would also let one work and thus get some essential experience that would help in getting paid projects later on. One can find this course at any good national or international institute of mass media.