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IIJNM has
had a steady flow of visitors. Prominent among them are:
Needed:
Alternatives to the market economy
 Modern
market society is not a natural evolution but is a human construction,
imposed upon mankind by a market system, said Trent Schroyer, professor
of Sociology and Philosophy at Ramapo College of New Jersey. He
was speaking at a guest lecture at the IIJNM campus.
Schroyer spoke about the application of economics
in the world today, based on his experiences while working with
TOES (The Other Economic Summit-a movement against the G8 agenda
of creating uniform economic strategies for all countries). He said
that powerful countries and organizations like G8, World Trade Organization
(WTO), International Monetary Fund (IMF), United Nations (UN) and
World Bank develop policies that are not very feasible to the poorer
nations. The basic propaganda is for a capital-driven market economy,
and most nations still believe that economic growth is the only
solution for removal of the vices of human society like poverty,
rich-poor gap, etc.
He said, "An economy led by the market does
not take into account the axioms of human behaviour and rationality."
Schroyer said that the world now needs to look at
alternatives to the capitalist economy. One of them is the regeneration
of natural assets. Environmentalism, as well as sustainable growth,
is an effective way, he said. But unfortunately, during the Earth
Summits too, people were not looking beyond economic growth as a
way of the sustaining environment, he remarked.
He said that NGOs had helped a great deal in educating
the illiterate mass about the alternatives and was confident that
such micro-level ideas would come to the forefront.
TOP
Writing
Workshop provides insights
 Bangalore-Many
myths were shattered in a writing workshop held by Michael Cobden
at the Indian Institute of Journalism and New Media (IIJNM). The
students of IIJNM were pleasantly surprised when Cobden condemned
to damnation, all that they had taken for granted.
Cobden started off with a review of all the write-ups that the students
had sent across to him. "There is a lot of warmth in your writing,"
he said. And then followed the earth-shattering revelations. It
takes lesser time to read long sentences than a series of short
sentences, it's better to write short sentences, avoid adjectives
and adverbs, do not use big words - these are just a few of the
many eye-openers. The class was taken aback at first, but quickly
recovered to ask some insightful questions.
The workshop was generously sprinkled with anecdotes. The anecdotes
varied from E.B.White's penchant for making seven drafts of a simple
news story to Tom Wolfe's near-resignation experience.
The hourglass need not just refer to a woman's proportions. It can
even be a style of writing news stories creatively, revealed Cobden.
The students were amazed when they learnt that a news story doesn't
necessarily have to be boring. But always remember to put the news
first. Period.
TOP
Demystify
Science
 “The
biggest challenge that confronts the science writer is today is
of demystifying science,” said Edward Friedman from the Stevens
Institute of Technology who was here to talk to the students about
Science Writing.
He gave the
students tips to make the science articles more reader- friendly.
He illustrated by example how the technical science words, which
are also used in everyday language, can lead to confusion. He said
the only way to obviate confusion is to define the words clearly
and not to take the understanding of the readers for granted.
He interacted
with students and discussed some of the issues that have appeared
in the media like exclusion of Pluto from the list of planets and
the more recent controversy involving James Watson. He elaborated
on his views about some of the basic science phenomena like Einstein’s
relativity theory, time travel etc.
He explained
the importance of staying objective, keeping the personal bias out
and understanding the national policies. Towards the end of the
lecture, he took questions by the students. He wrapped the lecture
by encouraging the students to take up science writing as a career
and report on the issues in science as well as the issues in the
society that are directly related to science.
TOP
‘Science
journalists should look into life’
 Science
journalists should look more into life and less into the lab said
Professor Holger Wormer, a German science journalist.
Prof. Wormer,
who is the Chair of the Science Journalism Department at the Dortmund
University said that though medicine, biology, technology, astrophysics
etc. were the most widely-covered areas in science journalism today,
there was a need to bring science reporting into facets of everyday
life. This would make science journalism more popular as the layman
would then be able to relate to it, he said.
Natural Hazards
were widely covered by science journalists, Prof. Wormer said, followed
by major diseases. Science journalism had grown tremendously in
the last two decades, especially after the birth of Dolly, the cloned
sheep, Prof. Wormer said. The cloned sheep had set off a series
of political debates about cloning and stem cell research, he pointed
out, which led to science journalism becoming more popular.
Germany, especially,
was concerned about stem cell research due to its history of biological
experiments in the Second World War, Prof. Wormer explained.
Talking about
how the basics of good journalism applied to science journalism
as well, Prof. Wormer said that a balance between the story’s
importance and the people factor was crucial. Science journalists
need to verify the information they receive, just as much as regular
journalists have to, he said, adding that in the case of science
journalism it was even more important for them to do so.
He said that
articles must be interesting; flat and boring articles would be
ignored by the readers. The market for science journalists was expanding
in Germany, Prof. Wormer said, adding that science journalism became
more popular as media expanded.
Prof. Wormer
also emphasized the need to stick to ethics in science journalism.
TOP
'Internet
Radio: the quickest way to connect people'
  Bangalore,
Sep 13-It isn’t everyday that we get to listen to music and
watch YouTube videos during our class hours in the auditorium. When
Gaurav Vaz and Shreyas Srinivasan of RadioVerve came to speak to
us, we got to do that and much more.
Starting
with the story of how sliced bread came into existence and that
it wasn’t bought by anyone for the first 15 years of its existence,
the speakers got us hooked onto the session right from the start.
RadioVerve is an Internet radio station that is the dream of three
men who work in the software sector. The station was started in
June 2006 with barely five listeners for their one-hour shows. Broadcasting
from a basement, today they have an audience of more than 10,000
listeners, round the clock . Indians living abroad can listen to
Indian music under various categories like rock, gospel, Konkani,
metal, folk, classical and easy. Many an artist has received opportunities
to go perform in a foreign country as a result of this.
Pointing out
the vastness of the reach of the Internet, the duo explained how
Internet radio can quickly become widely listened-to.The Internet
is a whole different world and Internet radio is connecting people
more quickly, they said.
Shreyas and
Gaurav followed their dreams and stuck to them. They have created
something remarkable and different through their forum for Independent
Indian Music. They have opened doors of opportunities to Indian
musicians who haven’t necessarily got their due.
Taking what
you have to the masses and appealing to their needs is what Internet
radio is all about. The immediacy and vastness of the Internet makes
it a tougher and challenging job to bring Radio IIJNM to life. But
we are all looking forward to it because ideas that spread can sure
help us win!
TOP
 Continue
the watchdog tradition: Susan King
In today’s era of information overload, it is the job of the
journalist to guide, sort, prioritize, verify and analyze the information
for the reader, said Susan King, Vice President, External Affairs,
Carnegie Corporation.
Ms. King, who
is Director, Journalism Initiative, Special Initiatives and Strategy
at the Corporation spoke to the students of IIJNM on Digital Democracy
on Monday, August 13.
Pointing out
that more and more young people in America are accessing the internet
for news that they want, in the form they want, Ms. King said that
this has shifted the emphasis from what a journalist says to how
s/he says it.
Nevertheless,
said the two-time Emmy award-winner, the key words for a journalist
remain Content, Context and Commitment.
Ms. King, who
was anchor and political analyst during her career as a journalist
pointed out that apart from the five Ws and one H, journalists must
also learn the seven Is of Integrity, Independent, International,
Interactive, Individual and Illuminating.
She added that
journalists must continue the watchdog tradition of journalism held
by people like Rachel Carson, Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein.
TOP
 “Journalistic
writing and literary writing follow different styles,” said
Eddy L. Harris, addressing the students of the Indian Institute
of Journalism and New Media. “My style of writing is flowery,”
he said, adding, “it is like a poem that flows freely and is
full of emotions.” A journalistic piece of writing, he pointed
out, should present plain facts, with objectivity. “The story
is more important than your voice or ideas.”
Eddy Harris
is the author of several critically acclaimed books including: Mississippi
Solo, Native Stranger, South of Haunted Dreams, and Still Life in
Harlem. Harris said that he would never like to write for a newspaper
because the writing style is very structured and limits the freedom
of the writer, whereas his writing is more spontaneous and poetic.
He did, however, recognize newspapers as one of the most important
sources of information. He lives in France, and reads the International
Herald Tribune. His all time favourite magazine is the Time magazine.
Stating that
the whole world was governed by the profit motive, including the
media, Harris however, said that journalists should try to strike
a balance between “freedom and responsibility.”
Almost all his
writing is in the form of a memoir, an adventure tale, and a travelogue,
inspired by the journeys undertaken by him. Another important aspect
of his writing is the questioning of his black and American identity.
Describing his
journey down the Mississippi River and how it helped him as a writer,
he said that he has spent years trying to resolve the identity crisis-“to
figure out what makes me black and what makes me American.”
This is what made him take the long journey down the Mississippi
River, chronicled in his book Mississippi Solo. This journey, he
said, made him understand that, “I cannot buy the colonisers’
view of me. I will buy only what I am or who I am.”
“Racism
is prevalent in every sphere and every community,” says Harris,
who has, in his writing, has tried to capture and bring forth the
experience of being black in different settings.
TOP
Lokayukta
to prosecute eight under IPC
 Karnataka
Lokayukta Justice N Santosh Hegde said that proceedings would begin
next week against elected representatives who had not declared their
assets and liabilities under the Lokayukta Act.
Justice Hegde
said that though the deadline of June 2006 had long gone past, these
eight members had still not submitted the statement. He said that
proceedings would begin under the Indian Penal Code, where non-declaration
of assets and liabilities by a public servant was a punishable offence.
The Lokayukta
was speaking to the students of the Indian Institute of Journalism
and New Media (IIJNM) here this morning.
Justice Hegde
said that he was trying to make the Lokayukta more proactive. He
has proposed amendments to the Lokayukta Act by which the Lokayukta
would get suo motto powers. "It's a psychological war between
the government and Lokayukta. They are nervous that the Lokayukta
will conduct a raid at any time," he said.
 He
said that anti-corruption was only one facet of the Lokayukta's
responsibilities, although it was the most publicised. He said that
the Lokayukta could and did make a huge impact on redressal of grievances
that went unaddressed, maladministration and administrative hindrances,
but since these were individual cases, they went unnoticed in the
media. He said the Lokayukta was an institution formed to oversee
good governance.
At the interactive
seminar on The Lokayukta and the Media, he said that courts were
overburdened, with 3.36 crore cases pending. Since people were now
more aware of their rights, they had become more litigious. There
were 1,80,000 cases that came before the Supreme Court alone, in
the past year, while between 1950 and 1960, there were only 8000
cases. He spoke in favour of an alternative dispute resolution system,
which has worked successfully in other countries.
He said that judgements in courts were made by parameters laid down
by law and not perceptions or personalities. He came down heavily
on SMS polls regarding cases that were pending or under trial, conducted
by the news media. He said that these were done without consideration
of evidence or the due process of the law.
"Opinion
poll in the judicial system is dangerous since it interferes with
the process of justice delivery," he said. He added that writing
about a trial or a pending case influenced the mind of the judge
and amounted to contempt of court, but no action could be taken
because of the personalities involved.
He asked the
media to show responsibility, accountability and positive thinking
since it played an important role in moulding public opinion, and
hoped that loose journalism would become a thing of the past. He
said that the collective voice of the public could be heard only
if people showed more initiative and interest.
TOP
Radio
with verve
What
started out as fun and a means to connect with music lovers in India
slowly grew into India’s first Internet radio station. This
is Radio Verve, (formerly known as Infinity Radio), which was started
by Kaustabh Srikanth in late 2003 to help independent musicians
across the country promote themselves. Gaurav Vaz and Shreyas
Srinivasan who joined in 2005, form Radio Verve’s core
team.
In an age, where
recording labels charge a fortune to cut an album, Radio Verve provides
an opportunity to any artist or group who has difficulty in broadcasting
their music. The station plays music that is original and by people
who have no affiliations to any record label.
 Internet
radio stations differ from radio stations as the broadcast service
is transmitted through the World Wide Web than through wireless
means. Internet radio stations also don’t have to deal with
bandwidth restrictions. Drawing on the limitless possibility of
the World Wide Web, Kaustabh, Gaurav and Shreyas, who are IT professionals,
came up with their independent Internet radio station so that talented
musicians across India can come together and share music not restricted
to a niche audience or a geographical area.
The station
also has a number of one-hour shows that run through the day, so
that there is something to listen to all the time. A user who wants
to listen to Verve’s programmes can go to the site (www.radioverve.in)
and click on the link provided to stream the content directly. Radio
Verve is also built on free and open source software, and has a
permanent loop allowing music lovers to listen to their favourite
numbers all day. With compositions of more than 70 bands across
India, Radio Verve is running on the money that the three promoters
pool in, besides sponsorship from friends who believe in their cause.
However, the
trio doesn’t plan to stop here. Their plans for the future
include interviews with bands, special features ranging from death
metal to hip hop and even story telling for children.
TOP
Daily
TV Reporting through the eyes of a professional
 In
today’s competitive environment, content and objectivity in
news is important, said Nidhi Mahesh, Principal Correspondent,
Times Now. Ms. Mahesh said that news should be like a full course
meal that should be appetizing, nutritious and filling. She was
speaking to IIJNM students about daily reporting in 24 X 7 news
channels.
In order to
ensure that there was something for each hour on the channel that
could keep the audience glued, Ms. Mahesh pointed out that the channel
must explore all angels of news to provide a comprehensive picture.
She emphasized that it is important for 24X7 news channels to pay
attention to events happening in the area, routine developments
of any issue, human interest stories, popular interests and to take
up issues/campaigns. “It’s very important to keep stories
alive and updated,” she said.
Ms. Mahesh has
worked with Doordarshan and ETV before joining Times Now. Sharing
her experiences, she said that since television is an audio-visual
medium, it’s important to think visually. She reports live
a lot of times and she emphasized that it is important to know why
you are going live, what the viewer wants to see, how long can the
story last and how much you can cover. She added that it’s
important for journalists to do background research for a story
and work in tandem with their camerapersons.
She gave some
tips for budding journalists, telling them to plan their days in
advance. She also said that timeliness is very important in this
field. She added that all journalists should be aware of the events
and happenings in and around their area.
TOP
Foreign
policy won’t influence US voters: Kurtz
 OCTOBER
30: The Iraq war is not likely to affect the forthcoming Congressional
elections in the according to Karl Kurtz, Director of the
National Conference of Legislatures in Washington DC. "Most
Americans agree that the Iraq war was a mistake, but there is very
little consensus on the solution," said Dr Kurtz in an address
to students at the IIJNM. The political pundit who heads the body
that researches and gives inputs for all two houses of Congress
and legislatures of the states explained that elections in the United
States were fought on local issues like education and not foreign
policy. This was one reason why despite the growing disappointment
among Americans at the way the war turned out, George Bush was re-elected
in 2004.
Mr. Kurtz whose
thurst of the speech was on cynicism and its effects on elected
governments, said that although America’s political system
was based on scepticism and debate, cynicism was demoralising. He
said that excessive focus by the media on conflict and disagreement
increased cynicism among the people. He said that many journalists
and reporters in the United States did not understand the process
of governance. He pointed out that in American, just like in India,
there was a disconnect between elections and governing. He said
that it was important to be aware of who was in power to improve
accountability among the political figures
TOP
New
Media is the future
 ‘Journalism
is a calling it is neither a profession nor a job’ said Jeff
Gralnick, former CBS, ABC and NBC producer addressing students
on October 18. A journalist is known and is remembered by what he
actuates, truth lives and lives not to be chased but to be chosen
for the common good.said the veteran journalist who now lectures
at the Columbia School of Journalism. Faced with an ethics question
from the floor "Will you shoot (film) a man dying or save him,"
the man who has covered the Vietnam war remarked with authority:
"Shoot him to save him." His explanation was that depiction
of truth should have an effect on society by prompting the offer
of help and preventing a recurrence.
He cited instances
of how the media has played a role in moulding the public mind and
espoused the cause of New Media which he said was all set to make
a difference, He predicted New Media was on the verge of taking
over the media world for two reasons: Internet's rapid rate of growth
and its ability to provide ulimited amount of information in quick
time. With the advent of blogs and the spread of wireless connectivity
the dependence on the New Media is unshakeable, said Prof.Gralnick
who serves as Special Consultant on Internet and Mew Media technologies
to the NBC News besides heading his own firm Explosion Consulting.
TOP
 August
28, 2006: Mustafa Stefan Dill, a web journalist and editor
of newfreemexico.com news website run from Santa Fe, New Mexico,
says a good journalist has to bridge the gap between the newsroom
and the community. And to do that, he told students of IIJNM, that
there should be trust. These days the people don’t trust the
media, so a journalist in turn must trust the public,” he said,
delivering a guest lecture.  The
key ingredients for good journalists, he said, are; responsiveness
to the public, reacting to the public and listening to the public.
He said web journalism works well in this cause, as it is much easier
and more comfortable for the people to read than a newspaper. A
web journalist should see what the public wants and should give
public the space to raise their voice. He said public comments on
a news website draws the attention of the government. He also emphasised
a web journalist should present the news with enough hyperlinks
so that the people get additional information and backgrounders
which distinguish a web report from a newspaper report.
TOP
 August
23, 2006: Mr. S. Narendra, former Principal Information Officer
to the Union Government, and the head of the Center for Media Studies
(New Delhi), kicked off his talk to IIJNM students with the question:
“Is the government a credible source of information?”
Seeing many who had “nay” for an answer, his counter poser
was: “What makes you think the private agencies or corporates
tell only the truth.”
Speaking from
his experience of having served four prime ministers as PIO (I K
Gujral, Deve Gowda, Narasimha Rao and A B Vajpayee) and one PM (Chandra
Sekhar) as Director-General DAVP, he told us that throughout his
tenure he had tried his best to be transparent and honest in his
dealings with the media. Questions were raised regarding the importance
of the PIO and its credibility in the current scenario. He accepted
that successive governments have undermined the importance of the
chief source of information for the government and explained that
it was reflective of the larger divide in the ranks of the government.
Mr. Narendra himself moved out from the hot seat of the Union Government's
chief spokesman in 1998 to become Principal Adviser to the Planning
Commission from where he opted to retire in 2000.
The talk was
a peek into the future for journalists-to-be, as he spoke about
the nitty-gritty of the media-government interface. Students found
it interesting to get the views of an insider and he spoke about
the tendency of the media to conduct a trial instead of an investigation
and the responsibility of the media to the people as well as the
functioning of the democracy. Mr. Narendra spoke about instances
like the Ayodhya riots and Charar-e-sharif, when he had to haggle
with the media to refrain from broadcasting news that would escalate
tensions in the country. He admitted that the government did withhold
information in the name of “national and public” interest,
and said that it was often dictated by political exigencies of the
day.
A wide range
of topics from the Prasar Bharati broadcast bill to the RTI act
was discussed. When asked about ethicality of ‘sting operations’,
he said that the media tended to trivialise news. In doing so, it
took away from its own credibility. His anecdotes provided valuable
insights into the ways of the government and made them think about
the ethical aspect of reporting. The seminar raised various questions
that future journalists would have to deal with and gave them a
perspective view of the world of political reporting.
TOP
 The
students at IIJNM yet again had the opportunity to learn and interact
with a journalist from the television industry. G. K. Madhav
of 'Times Now', a channel started by The Times of India spoke about
the various technical skills involved in being a television reporter.
Mr. Madhav reviewed the daily bulletins brought out by the students
and discussed how to improve on them. He emphasized that in broadcast
journalism, visuals are the key elements. "Try  and
marry the visuals and the script to reach the audience, " he
said.
He also took
the students through a tour of words that form the jargon in television
journalism. He also conducted a scripting exercise where in students
re-worked a news agency report from Reuters. He emphasized the idea
of KISS-'Keep It Simple and Short', when one writes for a news channel.
Though IIJNM
students continually learn to script news stories, try and make
the story look visually much more appealing, this work shop has
been a insightful experience as the students got to know how it
is done out there in the field.
TOP
 New
technology in journalism
November 9,
2005. All living things have their roots, and so does technology.
Over the years, technology has changed so much that although it
has made work easier it also is man's greatest competitor.
Students and
faculty of IIJNM had the opportunity of interacting with Kevin
Burden, Managing Editor, iLearn, BBC who took the listeners
through a journey of changing technology in journalism. He spoke
of the times when cameras were as expensive as buying a house, yet
they were so bulky that it required a special trained cameraman.
Over the years, cameras have evolved to become light and user-friendly
equipment that can perform miracles.
A journalist
for 16 years, Mr. Burden has worked with print, radio and television
media. IIJNM had the opportunity to view a documentary he made on
Asians displaced from Uganda and rehabilitated in Bristol.
Mr. Burden's
visit was a highly informative one. The students enjoyed talking
to him over lunch, too, and exchanged some cultural trivia.
TOP
 Lucky
breaks in foreign lands
November 4,
2005. Nose for news and experience are not the only criteria that
go in to making an international correspondent. Along with these
qualities come aspects such as effective communication, building
a network of sources and sensitivity to issues.
Mr. Shyam
Bhatia, an international war correspondent, spoke to students
at IIJNM about international reporting. Speaking with 30 years of
experience in the field of journalism, he gave an insight to the
job of an international correspondent. He blended it with his experience
as a war correspondent in several countries such as Egypt, Iran,
and Afghanistan.
Shyam Bhatia,
speaking from his experience, said that luck plays an important
role in the life of an international correspondent. He also said
that one should be able to expand one's sources in different areas,
so that a probable scoop is never lost.
According to
Shyam Bhatia, media has turned more dramatic and lost its content,
especially in the case of television.
By recounting
his own experiences in Cairo, Iran and war-torn Afghanistan, Shyam
Bhatia has opened the doors for the student-audience to venture
in to the field of international journalism and have an out-of-the-world
experience!
TOP
 Google
that has almost become a household name, came visiting to IIJNM.
Shahela Sajanlal of the Human Resources department of Google
conducted a short workshop on "How to Ace an Interview."
The workshop
was part of Google's hiring process and aimed at preparing the students
for their first interviews. The workshop was meant to build their
confidence and give them a perspective on answering frequently asked
questions at interviews.
Google plans
to return to IIJNM later this academic year for campus recruitment.
Two of our alumni, Anushuka Rathour and Sohna Ravindran, are already
working for Google in Hyderabad.
TOP
 The
Concerned for Working Children (CWC) has been working in the area
of children's rights for several years. Director, CWC, Kavita
Ratna, visited IIJNM recently and spoke to the students on the
need for an alternative media, as well as on the question of media
and children's rights.
She spoke of
the impact media reports had on children's lives and said that media
needed to work with a certain amount of sensitivity when it came
to reporting on children.
She also explained
the working of the Bhima Sangha, an organization for and by working
children that runs several children's panchayats in villages. Kavita
showed the students a wall newspaper, Bhima Patrike brought out
by working children. She elaborated on the role played by the newspaper
in networking working children and making them aware of their rights.
TOP
 Ashok
Pannikar, an expert on Alternative Dispute Resolution and Meta
Culture spoke to the students of IIJNM. He spoke on the need for
mediation in a modern society and said that in an increasingly complex
world, organizations and communities have to deal with difficult
communication and cultural challenges. These challenges could be
met with Mediation and Alternative Dispute Resolution he said, adding
that these concepts, while relatively news in India, are becoming
increasingly popular in the West.
Mr. Pannikar's
presentation introduced students to simple and innovative methodologies
that could help them respond effectively to disputes and conflicts.
TOP
 Shankar
Aiyer, the man with a difference
July 29, 2005.
IIJNM saw a man who enthralled its students and faculty with his
lecture on journalism. When he spoke of his experiences, the listeners
were impressed by this young gentleman, who talked about how he
lived as a journalist.
He played a
tape which featured some celebrities whom he had interviewed. They
included Pakistan President Gen. Pervez Musharraf, former Indian
Prime Minister A.B Vajpayee, former Indian Deputy Prime Minister
L.K.Advani, UK Foreign Secretary Jack Straw and US Defense Secretary
Donald Rumsfeld.
He spoke about
the practical difficulties faced by journalists while working and
enriched the audience's knowledge about the flip side of journalism.
The impact made by television was discussed and all the students
and faculty participated. Everyone felt that TV indeed had a great
impact on the thought process of people.
He added that
a good journalist has some social responsibility and must always
think of the welfare of the society.
He went on to
add how one should report matters on TV by giving out important
details and not stating the obvious. He said that whatever one reports
should have an interesting point of view and should attract the
viewers.
He is working
as a freelancer. His visit was definitely a memorable experience
for IIJNM.
TOP
 Right
when the blogging business had taken effect on our class debates
and spurred many discussions crucial to battle out the "blogging
vs. journalism" see-saw, there arrived Andrew Lih,
the man himself who helped create the new media program at the Columbia
University Graduate School of Journalism from 1995 to 2000, and
who is now the Assistant professor and the Director of technology
at the University of Hong Kong.
On a recent
visit to the IIJNM campus, he left many of us filled with a double
dose of insight on blogging, its benefits and drawbacks, and ways
to have a certain amount of control over it. Starting with what
is termed the "common- based peer production" (CBPP),
he went on to explain what kind of output collaboration with peers
can generate, particularly in the field of journalism, when each
individual brings out the best of his abilities in the aspect he
is best at.Relaying real-life examples that had us all smiling in
our seats, thinking back on our own reporting days, he brought the
entire class closer to his thinking and belief in everyone's potential-
the kind of push every aspiring journalist needs at one point on
their ladder to success.
Among his deep-rooted
discussions were the growing number of collaborative efforts of
citizens on the net, resulting in a site completely controlled by
the general public who want their voices heard in the context of
both reporting and commenting. In order to seize our bafflement
of the clash between blogging and journalism, he would never fail
to assure us with the professionalism and credibility of mainstream
journalism, something blogging, regardless of how much it improved,
can never take away from real journalism. "Do not be threatened
by the takeover of the blog revolution, journalism will always remain
in its rightful stand and will in no way blend in with it,"
was what Andrew had to say. It was a moment of truth and confirmation
of our high hopes in the career we had chosen.
Thanks to Mr.
Lih, we are now able to look ahead without creasing our foreheads
and constantly worrying about our career prospects being overshadowed
by new evolutions. We, in fact, already have our hands full with
the responsiblities of exercising the best of our journalism abilities
and making a difference in a world that "needs" journalism.
TOP
 "Never
challenge the authority of your intellectual inferior. Because intellect
is inversely proportional to the ego of a person", said John
Thomas, Editor Operations at Vijay Times, while addressing the
class of 2004-05 at the Indian Institute of Journalism & New
Media. With this witty statement that both amused and astounded
the aspiring journalists, he proceeded to explain the dark murky
politics, which lurk behind the publishing of any newspaper.
He cautioned
the students in a tongue and cheek fashion that there will be grouchy,
prehistoric specimens of editors, who will be as immovable as the
Rock of Gibraltar, and refuse to budge from their esteemed posts,
giving one almost zilch opportunities to grow and expand professionally
in the near future. "I myself tried my best not to look my
age", he added, poker faced. And then of course, he added that
journalism is a grossly underpaid job, where gender discrimination
is rampant, and the kind of stories one usually ends up doing are
a far cry from what passionate journalism students fresh out of
college aspire for.
He had his audience
giggling in helpless peals of laughter as he continued to make a
caricature of the innumerable problems one would face as a journalist.
Behind all the farce of cynicism and worldly wisdom was sparkling
wit and humour. He was what every journalist aspires to be: brutally
honest, incisive, humorously intelligent, and above all refreshingly
outrageous. His passion for journalism shone through brightly, and
despite his bitingly caustic remarks, apparently trying to downplay
his emotions, he instilled the students with a renewed fervor towards
the profession along with being an eye opener for the future, not
a small task by any means.
TOP
 Gauri
Lankesh, the former editor of Kannada weekly, Lankesh Patrike,
discussed the future of Naxalism and her controversial association
with the movement at the IIJNM Campus on Friday April 1.
Though she lamented
the fact that the "Naxal issue" receives little coverage
in India Today, Outolook, or even Tehelka, Lankesh was adamant that
she is neither a member nor a spokesperson for the movement. She
said that while she respected their cause, she could not reconcile
herself to the means used to achieve it. An armed struggle in the
name of the common man was not effective in a nation largely predisposed
to the Gandhian path of non-violent civil disobedience.
In the brief
but wide ranging question and answer session with IIJNM's class
of 2005, Lankesh weighed in on the current state of print journalism:
"The media has become totally over-trivialized-with credit
to The Times of India"; the credibility of television: "To
really do anything in depth, television is not the medium. If they
[television] want to go in depth they have something like "The
Big Fight" but that is just talking heads"; and what her
new magazine is looking for from young reporters: "no corruption,
liberal democrat ideology, and the ability to write and communicate
well.
TOP
 Michael
Anderson Minister Counselor for Public Affairs U.S. Embassy
in New Delhi, and Ravi Candadai Consul for Public Affairs South
Asia U.S. Embassy Chennai addressed the students of IIJNM on Friday
October 1. They spoke on three subjects Indo - U.S. relations, journalism
as a profession and student exchange programs between India and
U.S.
Anderson stated
that India is important in the eyes of the U.S. It is fast becoming
a world power and that ties between India and U.S. had become close
in the recent past. He said that in the past there had been disagreement
between the U.S. and India over nuclear testing, but America was
now trying to reduce restrictions on India and was looking at selling
high-level technology to India.
Candadai commented
on the need for journalists to familiarize themselves with official
jargon. He suggested adapting papers like The Minneapolis Star and
St Paul Dispatch. Anderson also spoke about the importance of journalism.
He said it was a calling with less pay. He stressed the role journalism
can play in improving society and in representing the people.
TOP
 Rebecca
McDuff, information resource officer at the U.S. Embassy in
New Delhi, India visited the IIJNM on April 22 and gave a presentation
to its students on Internet as an information resource for journalists.
An exhaustive list of online resources was brought to the attention
of the students. She also gave a brief introduction to the Internet
and its related terms.
McDuffworks
as a consultant for the seven American Information Resource Centers
(AIRCs), also known as American Libraries, in Bangladesh, India,
Nepal, and Sri Lanka. Shelectures widely on the Internet resources
available on a variety of topics including e-government, business,
journalism, NGOs, democracy and American culture.
TOP
 Deepa
Dhanraj, an experienced documentary maker from Bangalore spoke
to IIJNM students on 11 February 2004. She shared valuable thoughts
based on her 20 years experience with video documentary production
on development issues. Her recent documentary on state Information
Act gave opportunity to IIJNM students to understand the nuances
of the Act. Along with Deepa delivered lecture on history and evolution
of Information Act in India, from MKSS to contemporary situation.
TOP
 K.S.
Dakshinamurthy, website editor for al-Jazeera visited IIJNM
on 23 January 2004. He had a detailed discussion with IIJNM students
on Arab media scenario in general and al-Jazeera in particular.
The first independent mass medium from Arab world, al-Jazeera, was
in trouble during and after the recent Iraq war. "We have broken
the rules on many fronts," Dakshinamurthy said. "al-Jazeera is used
by the public to let out their steam." Since the channel has been
on the air, it has brought many issues to focus, which have helped
in making people's minds broader, he said.
TOP
 Art
critic Suresh Jayaram visited IIJNM campus on June 11 and
addressed the students on the finer aspects of critiquing art. He
also admitted that art is an elite occupation and that the poor
have no time for it as they are too busy surviving. He spoke about
contemporary Indian artists, their influences, their medium and
about their display subjects.
Jayaram is
the HOD of Art History at the The Chitrakala Parishat, Bangalore.
He is a recipient of the Nehru Small Study Grant from the Nehru
Trust and the Victoria & Albert Museum for his M.FA. Research. He
was commissioned by the Asian Women’s Human Rights Council, Manila
and Bangalore to design their Logo and poster for the Beijing Summit
in 1995. He has designed postage stamps for SAHMAT to commemorate
50 years of Independence. He has had many group shows in India and
one in Nepal. His work was included in the “Human Form in Art”,
an exhibition curated by the Lalit Kala Academy, in 1997. He has
reviewed art for the Times of India, Bangalore and has written many
exhibition catalogues. He has also co-edited an anthology of quilts
titled "Star Quilt."
TOP
 Vedic
heritage scholar Dr. N.S. Rajaram, made a powerpoint presentation
on the Sindhu civilization on May 9. Dr. N.S. Rajaram is a mathematician,
a linguist and historian of science who has written several books
on ancient India. They include Vedic Aryans and the Origins of Civilization
(with David Frawley, Voice of India) and The Deciphered Indus Script
(with N. Jha, Aditya Prakashan). His columns on history, culture
and current affairs have appeared in publications worldwide. His
most recent book, A Hindu View of the World, examines India and
the world from a pluralistic Hindu viewpoint. He is regarded an
authority on Christianity also having authored a book on the early
history of Christianity called The Dead Sea Scrolls and the Crisis
of Christianity, published in England in 1997. His two other books
on the subject are Christianity's collapsing Empire and Its Designs
in India and Christianity's Scramble for India and the Failure of
the Indian Elite.
TOP
 Islamic
scholar Yoginder Singh Sikand addressed the students of IIJNM
on the evolution of Madarasas in India on May 02. Sikand, who has
written a number of books and articles on Islam, spoke about its
many aspects, its traditions and religious practice. His PhD from
Royal Holloway, University of London on Tablighi Jama'at has been
published by Orient Longman. He also edits a webzine, Qalandar,
available online at www.islaminterfaith.org.
Sikand is a Bangalorean who travels extensively in India and abroad
advocating interfaith harmony.
TOP
 Senior
IT journalist of The Hindu, Anand Parthasarathy presented
a Power Point program on IT and New Media at the IIJNM campus on
April 30. In his presentation, he emphasized that IT programs should
be people friendly. He remarked sadly that the silicon city, Bangalore
is lagging behind in bridging the digital divide where as other
cities of the country are catching up fast on IT services for the
common people. Speaking about the convergence technology, he said
that the dividing line between print, television and the Internet
has disappeared and that today's journalist must leverage the advantages
provided by convergence technology and be totally equipped in working
with multi media. "Today's journalist should not expect a separate
team of photographers and cameramen to go along with him to cover
his assignments, but he should be willing to do all of these if
the need arises." he said.
Anand completed
his B.E. from the University of Pune and did his Masters from Birmingham
University, UK in 1975. He has worked on parallel computing systems
development and served as a Systems Manager for Surface-Air Missile
on the Indian Missile Program in Hyderabad. He has written a number
of articles on E-commerce, Convergence technologies and on the Internet.
He is currently based in Bangalore.
TOP
 Richard
O’ Regan, senior producer and writer of Granada Television/NY
Times, visited IIJNM on Thursday, April 17. He is currently working
on a project for the Discovery channel on south-Indian weddings.
Addressing the IIJNM students, Regan remarked that the quality of
writing in the Indian newspapers is appalling. He said that the
newspapers resorted to cheap word play and that there was a sense
of artificial enthusiasm in covering events. He advocated for a
more transparent journalism, which speaks to the reader instead
of calling attention to the writer, who thinks that he/she is smarter
than the audience. Regan, who also teaches Tools for Television
at Columbia University, New York spoke about how the broadcast industry
has changed since the last few years, especially in terms of technology
and noted that nowadays it was far easier to control 'your journalistic
destiny' than it used to be before.
TOP
 Poornima
Makaram, one of the few women photojournalists in the city visited
IIJNM on Friday, March 28. A woman of few words, she let her pictures
speak and showed some of her work to the students. She also enlightened
the students of the professional hazards of photojournalism while
covering communal riots and fire accidents, which can be quite dangerous
if you are not cautious. But, "you have to learn how to get around
the problems" she also told the students the difference between
war, travel, sports, and feature photography. Poornima was earlier
with The New Indian Express, but currently she works for the Deccan
Herald as a photojournalist.
TOP
 Smita
Paul, a New York-based multimedia freelance journalist with
more than a decade of experience visited the IIJNM campus on Saturday,
March 22. Smita shared her experience as a freelance Journalist
and Instructor at the Columbia University New York, with the IIJNM
faculty and students. Smita started her career as a newspaper journalist
in Cincinnati. She found her way to New York City by way of Phoenix,
Memphis, and New Delhi. In 1995, she attended the Columbia University
Graduate School for Journalism and graduated with a master's degree
in broadcast and New Media journalism. She received her undergraduate
degree from Northeastern University. She has worked as a freelancer,
employing all of her multimedia skills. Her work includes digital
video documentaries for The Discovery Channel and the New York Times
television company; radio reports for National Public Radio; and
magazine articles for Civilization, Hemispheres and the Asian Wall
Street Journal. Her online work includes several expedition stories
with the Discovery Channel online.
TOP
 Donna
Fernandes of Vimochana, a women's organization in Bangalore,
addressed the students of IIJNM on Friday, October 31, 2003. Fernandes
touched upon a wide range of women's issues in India, including
female infanticide, female feticide, sexual abuse and the evils
of dowry. This is Fernandes's second visit to IIJNM.
During her first
visit, Donna spoke about the feminist movement in India on Wednesday
March 19, 2003. She noted how the patriarchal system in India continues
to exploit women in the form of dowry and female infanticide. She
said that the problem of such social evils cannot be eradicated
only by a few NGOs, but both men and women in general should come
forward to solve the problem. She also believed that there are plenty
of loopholes in the existing legal framework and that many of the
laws need to be updated and amended. Quoting the example of the
Mathura rape case, she mentioned how a women's organization was
successful in securing justice to a victim of rape, who otherwise
was accused of being characterless and therefore did not deserve
justice.
TOP
 Priya
Ganapathy of FM Radiocity, Banaglore visited IIJNM on Saturday,
22 March to give a talk about radio journalism. Very popular among
the students, who were quite familiar with her Lingo Leela and Sister
Stella acts on the radio, Priya spoke about the invisible medium
of radio. She said that radio journalists should have a talent with
their voice because it was a medium that depended mostly on sound.
She spoke about the various segments in radiocity and how popular
it had become in such a short period of time. She also compared
how radio journalism had changed over the years and how light and
people- friendly it had become of late. Radio journalism where she
worked, was more of a media entertainment business than about hardcore
journalism, she added that people tuned to radio city not for news
but in order to connect with other music lovers in the city.
TOP
 Abdul
Rahman Kamruddin, a former advisor to UNESCO, UNIDO and IDB
visited IIJNM on Wednesday, March 5, along with the Director of
Al-Ameen Management College to give a talk about Islam after 9/11.
Kamruddin spoke about the growing misrepresentation of Islam in
the media and proceeded to give a quick introduction to the basic
tenets of Islam. Kamruddin, who is also well versed in Vedic literature
interspersed his speech with Sanskrit quotations and comparisons
with Indian philosophy. At the end of the lecture, there was an
intensive interactive session with the faculty and the students
who bombarded the visitors with questions related to women in Islam
and Islamic fundamentalism to which both the guests Kamruddin and
Ataulla, responded patiently and diplomatically.
TOP
 Noted
journalist and author Sauvik Chakraverti gave an economics
workshop for all IIJNM students on Wednesday Nov 5 and Thursday
Nov. 6. Internationally renowned economist Sauvik Chakraborti's
two-day campus workshop got the IIJNM students thinking about his
revolutionary ideas, including one that portrayed democracy as being
"hazardous" to one's health.
Chakraverti,
who now writes for the Economic Times of India, is a winner of the
Frédéric Bastiat Prize for Journalism, an award given by the International
Policy Network of London to journalists who through their writing
support institutions of a free society. Chakraverti writes about
free market economics and free trade. He is the author of Antidote
- Essays Against The Socialist Indian State, published by Macmillan
India Ltd. in 2000. He studied at the London School of Economics
and Political Science and has long been a freelance writer for Indian
publications. He is currently on the editorial team of The Economic
Times, and writes a fortnightly column called Antidote.
In his earlier
visit to IIJNM, Sauvik Chakraverti gave a lecture on "Why democracy
may be bad for you" on Friday, 28th February 2003. He spoke about
a society based on free market, which was an eye opener to many
of the non initiated audience members of economics. "Is being able
to vote better than freedom? What is the point in having political
freedom but no economic freedom? and "why is it that our text books
don't teach about political failures but only talk about market
failures? he said questioning democracy as practiced in the country.
He gave examples of societies based on free market like Geneva and
Hong kong and asked rhetorically why we are afraid to choose prosperity
and continue to advocate a system that continues to encourage poverty?
Currently he is the Editorial Director of a libertarian organization
called Centre
for Civil Society.
TOP
 Dr
Asha Kiran, a doctor of homeopathy working in Australia, during
a brief visit to Bangalore, spared some time off her busy schedule
to speak to the students. She was speaking on the topic of health
and culture and the link between the two concepts. She said that
culture affects health and thus by effecting changes in the culture
of a nation, its health can be influenced to a very large extent.
Public health systems in India have failed, she said because the
country has done very little to deal with its own health issues.
The mistake has been that we have focussed too much on 'disease'
rather than on 'health' itself, while these two concepts are distinct
and should be dealt with differently.
TOP
 The
new semester at IIJNM commenced with an address by the New York
based journalist Jeremy Caplan. Caplan, who has worked on
staff of such reputed publications as Newsweek, Yahoo Internet Life,
and The Paris Review, spoke on the "Trends in American Journalism."
Caplan vehemently argued the steady degeneration of magazines in
America - how they have fallen prey to pop culture, and how they
have essentially become an advertising vehicle. A technology and
Internet writer, he also shed some light on the need for a journalist
to package himself well in today's times.
TOP
 Internet
consultant and author Madanmohan Rao visited the IIJNM campus
on Tuesday, December 24. Rao gave an audio visual presentation on
the challenges and opportunities in wirelss content. He spoke about
the 8 Cs of the Digital economy: Connectivity, content, community,
commerce, capacity(human resource), culture, cooperation and capital.
He remarked how Asia was ahead of the European market in the wireless
revolution that is changing the way we think and behave in the world
today. He said that there was one billion cell phone users and this
was the fastest growing media in the world today. He spoke about
the opportunities that was available because of this growing market,
both in the areas of content as well as in the hardware market.
At the same time he cautioned to tread carefully as there were certain
ethical issues that still needed to be ironed out in this new field.
Madanmohan
Rao is an Internet consultant and writer based in Bangalore, India.
He is the co-author of the handbook "The Internet Economy of India,
2001." Madan was formerly the communications director at the United
Nations Inter Press Service bureau in New York, and vice president
at IndiaWorld Communications in Bombay. He graduated from the Indian
Institute of Technology at Bombay and the University of Massachusetts
at Amherst, with an M.S. in computer science and a Ph.D. in communications.
Madan is a
frequent speaker on the international conference circuit, and has
given talks and lectures on Internet-related issues in about 40
countries. He has worked with online services in the U.S., Brazil,
and India. He is on the board of editors of the magazines Electronic
Markets (www.electronicmarkets.org - published from Switzerland)
and On The Internet (published by the Internet Society in the U.S.).
His articles have appeared in New Asia Review, Asia Internet Business,
Economic Times, Business Standard, Economic and Political Weekly,
IndiaInfoline, ValueNotes, TechMail, LAN Magazine, Express Computer,
Thailand’s Bangkok Post, New York-based Editor&Publisher magazine's
MediaInfo site, and Malaysia-based Skali (the Altavista mirror site
in Asia); some of his writing has also been translated into Spanish
and German.
TOP
 Mr.
Pradeep Nair, the chief copy editor of The Times of India, Bangalore,
visited the campus on Friday, November 22. Addressing the students
on the topic of copy editing, he said that copy editing is more
of a precis writing exercise than about knocking off sentences and
censoring content.
Explaining
the process of editing, he discussed the fine points of selection
& rejection of stories, prioritization of news based on contextual
importance, and the aspects involved in design and layout. He also
commented on how the newsroom had transformed itself over the years.
"The telegrams,
the faxes, the telex are of the bygone era. News today is recieved
via the E-mail. The technological transformation has made the copy
editor more independent than before. It has got rid of the harrowing
experience of pleading with the cut & paste pagemakers, who had
little knowledge about journalism, to make any last minute changes."
Mr. Nair said.
TOP
 'Communalism
is a political and not a religious phenonmenon' said Dr. Ali
Asghar Engineer during his visit to the IIJNM campus on Tuesday,
November 12.
In his lecture
to the students on communalism in India, he reiterated the importance
of the role played by the media in imparting the correct information
to the public. He said that contrary to the general perception,
communalism has its roots in the middle class India and not in the
poor masses. He substantiated this theory by citing well-researched
and interesting examples from Indian history.
He believes
that, prior to the British political strategy of divide and rule,
India was well integrated and the hindus and the muslims had no
problem living together. He cited the example of the first war of
Indian independence (1857) when the hindus and the muslims came
together to fight their common enemy, the British. "It was very
tragic that they did not think on the same lines when Jinnah demanded
a separate nation for the muslims," he said. He also believes that
the partition of India would never have happenned had there been
an adult fanchise in India then.
Dr. Engineer
is a human rights activist and heads the two organisations, Institute
of Islamic Studies and Centre for Study of Society and Secularism.
He has authored/edited 44 books on such issues as Islam and communal
and ethnic problems in India and South Asia in general.
TOP
 Ms.
Naazreen Bhura, the Resident Editor of Asian Age, Bangalore
visited the campus on Friday, October 18.
Ms Bhura engaged
the class with a variety of topics including trends in journalism,
Page 3 Journalism and the trivialization of news. She feels that
trivialization of news consists in the treatment of news and that
there is no such thing as trivial news. She believes that there
is nothing wrong in carrying front-page stories on celebrities on
lean news days.
Ms Bhura said
she was very pleased to be working for a news paper like Asian Age
which carries alternative news stories on the front-page when most
other Indian news papers relegate such stories to small items in
the inside pages. Here she gave the example of a young blind boy
with exceptional skills such as telling time without looking at
a watch. She is extremely critical of cynical reporters who see
nothing interesting in life to report and write about.
TOP
 Max
Martin, the chief reporter of New Indian Express, Bangalore
briefed the Indian Institute of Journalism & New Media (IIJNM) students
about the intricacies of environmental reporting and specifically
the coverage of World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD).
Max discussed issues as wide ranging as the Stockholm conference,
the Rio summit, and the Conference of Parties meetings in context
of the WSSD.
In his frank
opinion, Max said that he was disappointed by the WSSD as pro-trade
lobbies hijacked the sustainable development agenda. Max was also
disappointed with the cynical approach of the Indian Government
to the WSSD.
TOP
 Ms
Helen LaFave, Deputy Public Affairs Officer from the US Consulate
in Chennai visited the Indian Institute of Journalism and New Media
on August 22.
Prof Anand
Sagar took her around the campus and gave a presentation on the
activities of IIJNM.
During an hour-long
interaction with the faculty members, Ms LaFave spoke about her
own experience with the press as a diplomat in India.
Ms LaFave also
had a brief interactive session with the students. Most student
queries were related to higher education in the United States. Responding
to the students’ questions, she stated that contrary to popular
belief, the number of students going to study in the US had increased
post-September 11. She also maintained that increased surveillance
of foreign students in the US would not infringe upon their civil
liberties.
Quite Impressed
by IIJNM, and sharing her enthusiasm for a vibrant and independent
media culture she said in a parting note, "I think you have a fabulous
idea and vision and hope we can work to fulfill it".
TOP
 Mr.
K. N. Harikumar, former editor of the Deccan Herald visited
IIJNM on Friday, May 3, 2002.
Responding
to students' question "why Deccan Herald is steering away from controversial
issues and not taking risks to expose scams", Mr. Hari Kumar replied
"Gundu Rao wouldn’t be mad at us and Ramakrishna Hegde wouldn’t
want to burn down DH if we had stayed away from controversial issues.
DH may not have done many investigations, but it has been adventurous
in many other ways. We have fought Kannada chauvinism, for instance.
The most important thing for a newspaper is to have a strongly independent
and secular stance and I think we have done it."
Mr. Hari Kumar
is now the Managing Director of Kaveri Communications which recently
launched e-tapaal, the multi-lingual, multi-feature e-mail service
provider.
TOP
 M.
K. Madhusoodan, the chief reporter of Tech Mail, visited the
IIJNM campus on Monday, April 15, 2002. Addressing the students
on the techniques of reporting, Mr. Madhusoodan gave them a '100
metres' reporters mantra.
According to
this mantra, he said that there was a story within every 100 meters.
"The distance of 100 meters refers not to the actual distance but
to the length and breadth of your thinking" he said.
"Being inquisitive
and asking questions is the foremost requirement for a successful
journalist," he told the students. He advised the students to see
things in a historical perspective and asked the students to think
beyond the 'press conference' mentality.
M. K. Madhusoodan
has worked for the Indian Express, India Abroad News Service, and
taught Journalism in the Mysore University.
TOP
 Bala
Murali Krishna, business editor of India West, shared his many
years of journalism expertise with the students of IIJNM on Friday,
April 12, 2002.
Bala discussed
the techniques of page layout with the students. Comparing the page
layout of a few international publications with that of the Indian
publications, he offered suggestions on how to improve the IIJNM
student publications.
Bala also gave
them tips on reporting and writing. While critiquing the student
publications, he told the students to write more in-depth articles,
and suggested that they prepare and submit to the faculty a brief
outline of their stories before actually going on their beat reporting.
Bala advised
the students to take criticism in a positive way. He said that even
the most seasoned writers have experienced the sharp edges of the
editors’ knife sometime or the other in their journalism career.
After working
for a few years in a daily in Hyderabad and then at the Deccan Herald
in Bangalore, Bala worked as a reporter at India Abroad in New York,
as business editor at India West in San Francisco and a reporter
at Silicon India in California’s Silicon Valley. He also helped
set up SiliconIndia.com. He is currently heading India-West’s Bangalore
bureau.
TOP
 Deputy
Superintendent of Police Srikanta Kunigal visited the IIJNM
campus and delivered a lecture on Cyber Law on Saturday, April 6,
2002. According to the Dy. S.P., it appears that the Silicon Valley
of India is all set to nab cyber offenders by making the law keep
up with changing technology.
In a proposal
to the government of India, the cyber police of Bangalore have asked
all the Internet users in the cyber cafes to carry photo identities
on them. Further, in an attempt to keep the judiciary informed about
new technology, they were conducting many training programs in Law
schools across the city and state.
Dy. S.P. Kunigal
is very popular with both officals and journalists. He was recently
awarded the Chief Minister's Medal, the second time for his innovative
role and valuable contribution to the department of Police.
TOP
 Professor
C.K.N. Raja enthralled the audience of students and faculty
with a lecture on Indian Constitution and Limits to the Freedom
of Press on Monday, March 25, 2002.
Professor Raja
has over 44 years of teaching experience and is the first person
to have a doctorate degree in Constitution law. He is the former
Professor and Dean of the Faculty of Law at the University of Mysore,
and his specialization is international law. Following his retirement,
he now speaks at the best institutions across the country. He has
to his credit, five books published on Law, over 250 articles and
two novels in Kannada.
TOP
 Allen
J. Mendonca the editor of Bangalore Times, a supplement of Times
of India, had the entire class spellbound with his human-interest
stories. Reaching out to people through his stories is what Mendonca
does best. And that is precisely what he did when he visited the
IIJNM campus on Saturday March 23, 2002.
Talking about
the lack of a world-class newspaper in the country he remarked that
the ‘journalism of courage had given way to a journalism of consensus.
He further added that "although there are some world -class writers
in the country, there are very few world-class journalists”.
Mendonca believes
that the need of the hour is to write stories that would act as
‘catalyst of change in the society’. He urged the students to write
with passion and fire in their belly and not to go after ‘bylines
and perks.
TOP
 Justice
H G Balakrishna, Former Judge, High Court of Karnataka
"The greater
the efficacy of press, the greater the strength of democracy” said
Justice H.G. Balakrishna while speaking on “Press laws relating
to Defamation and Libel” at the IIJNM campus on Saturday, March
16 2002.
Talking about
the declining standards of journalism, Justice Balakrishna expressed
sadly that the state of reporting in the country was "not up to
my expectation”. Noting the similarity between the professions of
Journalism and that of Law in its pursuit of truth, he advised the
students to practice “Clarity of thought, Brevity of expression
and Lucidity of exposition”, which were the three guiding principles
that aided in achieving truth.
Justice Balakrishna
had the students up to their ears with information related to defamation
and libel. The students in turn overwhelmed the Justice with tons
of questions related to press laws and practice. Author of “New
Dimensions of Law and Justice”, a book prescribed as reference material
for all law colleges in India, Justice Balakrishna has a great passion
for teaching and this is h | 
