Covid Impact on Media Houses: Objective journalism key to survival
Amid shrinking space for press freedom and changing consumers' habits during Covid-19 pandemic, good old-fashioned, objective journalism is the key to survival for media houses, speakers said in a webinar organised by Asia News Network (ANN) on Wednesday.
The online conference titled 'Covid-19 and Impacts on the Media' was attended by ANN members as well as academics from reputed universities.
"Covid-19 pandemic has wreaked havoc on global development rarely seen in history,' said Zhou Shuchun, Standing Committee member of the CPPCC National Committee and publisher and editor-in-chief of China Daily, in his opening remark.
Acknowledging the critical role and challenges the media is facing, he applauded ANN, which comprises of 23 leading media houses across Asia, for its efforts to aide people through objective and responsible journalism.
He hoped ANN and it members will work together to counter future challenges and contribute in global development by fulfilling their respective roles.
Dr. John Gong, professor of economics, University of International Business and Economics opined that the challenges media houses are facing now predates the pandemic.
He pointed to the growing trend among people of 'relaying messages'.
With advent of social media and smart phones, people are spreading information which they think will be liked and shared by others. And according to Dr. Gong, people tend to relay those messages which are 'extreme' in nature: either Left or Right. He said people don't usually share or 'relay' 'balanced' news or information, a phenomenon he termed as the 'extreme tendency of the relaying model'.
Another alarming phenomenon which is posing serious challenge to the traditional view of how people perceive news is use of Artificial Intelligence by social media and search engines.
"People are seeing what they like to see, not what they need to see," Dr Gong said.
Adding to the confusion, there is a growing demand for short video clips of 'news and views' which blurs the difference between a news article and an opinion piece, he said.
Dr Gong noted that the pandemic has accelerated these trends. Admitting that media has to adapt to these demands to some extent, he cautioned against going after online traffic compromising the standard and values of journalism.
"More traditional, more serious media need to tighten their seatbelts and stick to what they are doing," he said, adding people will eventually find out the right content after the initial chaos of misinformation.
He urged the governments to do more to regulate the market.
Though media revenue took a significant blow worldwide, trust in media has grown significantly, which implies the value of proper journalism, Dr. Debao Xiang, professor of School of Journalism and Communication, Shanghai International Studies University, said.
According to an International Centre for Journalist (ICFJ) report audience trust in journalists has grown 43 percent during the pandemic.
He advised media to feel the pulse of the audience and produce positive contents accordingly.
Choo Joon Kian, deputy editor-in-chief of Sin Chew Daily, Juliet Labog Javellana, associate publisher, Philippine Daily Inquirer, Zhiming Chen, Deputy Director of International News Department, China Daily, Philip Golingai, news editor, The Star (Malaysia), Vivian Hsiao, reporter, China Post (Taiwan), Min Thaw Htut, executive director, Eleven Media Group (Myanmar), Nitish Kapoor, ANN editorial coordinator, The Statesman (India), Ly Tayseng, CEO, Phnom Penh Post (Cambodia), Ziaul Hoque from The Daily Star (Bangladesh), and Sanjeev Satgainya, editor-in-chief, Kathmandu Post (Nepal) attended the webinar.
Pana Janviroj, executive director, Asia News Network, and Dr. DJ Clark, multimedia director, China Daily Asia Pacific, jointly moderated the conference.
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