Media experts refer to surgical strike, message of Pink to demystify journalism to students in workshop

The Institute in collaboration with Talk 360 and India Blooms News Services (IBNS) organized an International Workshop on “Journalism” in context with the recent trends and happenings in the country on  October 2, 2016 at The Heritage campus.

The Heritage Academy had started its two new courses in Bachelor and Masters in the Media Sciences this year to offer not only practical knowledge to the students aspiring to make a career in the media sector but also regular interactions with the top journalists and media honchos as a value addition to the practical knowledge.

The workshop witnessed participation of various students studying journalism in different colleges across Kolkata along with faculty members who had an urge to upgrade their knowledge with the modern techniques of journalism. 

Sujoy Dhar, Group Editor, IBNS and a roving correspondent with several Indian and US media, Jayalakshmi Sengupta, Editor, Niyogi Books and Consulting Editor, IBNS,  Pradip Bagchi, Senior Editor, Times of India, New Delhi and  Laura Ungar, Senior American Journalist, USA Today, Washington  shared their expertise.

Most recent happening in the borders termed as Uri attacks  and the surgical strike that followed was discussed as a case study of news reporting.

The speakers chose the reportage by The Guardian to explain the students how the event was reported in international media with a focus on objectivity.

The students were in the opinion that such attacks will result in a sharp fall in the economic growth of both the countries thus effecting adversely the common man.

Examples of follow-up stories in the same line with the Uri attacks were discussed like the effect of such attack on the film industry, economic growth, sensex and many more.

The workshop also stressed on the art of crafting a news story with the taste of latest innovations in the field of journalism.

How use of social media can enrich the journalism experience and how it can also adversely affect it were discussed.

Apart from these, television journalism, blogging, digital media and search engine optimization techniques were also touched upon.

Ritusmita Biswas, CEO of Digital Brands also interacted with the students about social media marketing and branding.

A young journalist of The Telegraph, who participated in the workshop, also shared his experience of the media in the past years and shared how he broke into the profession.

Content writer and freelance journalist Anuradha Dutta also shared her experience of landing projects and regular work as an indepenent mediaperson.

“The workshop is an eye-opener for the students who aspire to make a career in journalism”, said Dr. Madhupa Bakshi, Dean, Department of Media Sciences,

The Heritage Academy Kolkata. “Kalyan Bharti Trust had taken a leap in offering quality education by introducing two new courses in Media Sciences under the aegis of The Heritage Academy.

"Media sector is growing at a fast pace and many more colleges should come up in the country to cater to the demand for training the students to get prepared to face the challenges in the world of media,” said  Pradip Agarwal, CEO, Kalyan Bharti Trust, the parent body behind the establishment of Heritage Group of Institutions Kolkata.

Talk360 India coordinator and senior journalist Sujoy Dhar said: “We have been organizing these workshops since many years and our motive is to give a practical insight to the students of journalism,"

A participant in the workshop said: “We got a great exposure and such exposure helps us to understand better the world of media in a nutshell."