RETHINKING

Journalism Education:
Needs and Challenges

Dr. Mrinal Chatterjee

 Journalism
• Journalism is the activity of gathering,
assessing, creating, and presenting news and
information. It is also the product of these
activities.
 Journalism and Media
• Though journalism and media is often used as
synonyms, there are some fundamental
differences- in its purpose and practising
process.
 Journalism and Media 2
• While journalism occupies a much smaller
space in the media ecosphere, it is perceived
as being more valuable, impactful and
arguably powerful.
Purpose and Process of Journalism
• The purpose is to provide people with verified
information they can use to make better
decisions.
• Process – a discipline of verification – that
journalists use to find not just the facts, but
also the “truth about the facts.”
 Some elements of journalism
• Journalism’s first obligation is to the truth.
• Its first loyalty is to the citizens
• Its essence is a discipline of verification
• Its practitioners must maintain an independence from those
they cover
• It must serve as an independent monitor of power.
• It must provide a forum for public criticism and compromise.
• It must strive to keep the significant interesting and relevant.
• It must keep the news comprehensive and proportional
• Its practitioners must be allowed to exercise their personal
conscience.
 A Brief History of Journalism Education in
India
• The first systematic journalism course was
introduced in National University at Adyar in
Madras in 1920s.
• The second attempt to introduce journalism
education was made in Aligarh Muslim
University in 1938 with a diploma course.
• The next attempt was in Punjab University,
Lahore in 1941.
 Present Status
• By end 2022, India had over 2000 colleges and
universities, offering various courses in
journalism and mass communication-
including public relations, advertising, media
management, film making, etc. compared to
just over 50 in the early 1980s.
The Architecture of Journalism Education: 3 axes

• An axis comprising the norms, values, tools,

standards, and practices of journalism;
• An axis emphasizing the social, cultural,
political, economic, legal and ethical aspects
of journalism practice both within and outside
the national borders; and
• An axis comprising knowledge of the world
and journalism’s intellectual challenges.
 Status of Journalism Education in India

• Looking from a theoretical framework,

journalism education in India is on the right
track.
• However, there are problems both in the way
it is envisaged to be conducted and also in its
practical implementation.
 What are the problems?
• Clarity about the Learning Objectives. Too
many things to learn- thus the confusion.
• With media becoming more and more
technology driven, the praxis part is requiring
extra attention, which most of the institutions
are unable to provide.
• Industry-Academia disconnect
 More Challenges
• Orientation to the basic purpose of
journalism- satya, nyay and dharma (truth,
justice and righteousness)
• Ethical and Moral Grounding
• Constant change in trends and industry
requirement, with which our education
system is not able to keep pace.
 Meeting the Challenges
• Marrying basics with praxis
• Make Teaching and learning more
collaborative
• Teaching ethics and values
• Teaching fact-checking and data aggregation
• More empirical research
 Thanks
mrinalchatterjeeiimc@gmail.com
91 9437026194