Dr G Naga Mallika Department of Mass Communication & Journalism The English and Foreign Languages University HYDERABAD ANDHRA PRADESH
Introduction
One of the earliest J Schools in India came from the state of Andhra Pradesh.
Forest O'Dell established the department of
Journalism in Osmania University, offering a diploma course with assistance from World Literacy Inc. in
1954.
Bachelor's Degree (BJ) course in 1962
Master's Degree (MJ) course in 1974
Universities do not offer a degree only in Journalism but club it as Mass Media and Communication.
A professional and academic programme but pegged as professional with the mandate to train journalists to enter the industry.
As website of Osmania University states:
‘the teaching methodology is practical, hands-on and real-time, rather than merely theoretical’.
12 universities out of a total of 43 in the state of Andhra Pradesh offer MCJ programme.
Only the private media houses offer Journalism course as a one year diploma programme.
Exploring journalism pedagogy in state universities of AP, is mirroring all India concern regarding issues in Journalism education.
Profession in the service of development
During ‘50s and ’60s government’s tools of propaganda were mass media. Established All India Radio and
Doordarshan, under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
Mandate was to help in the ‘development’ process of a newly independent nation.
To provide support, trained ‘communicators’ by setting up the Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC) in 1965 by the education wing of the Ministry.
Both electronic media and mass communication education began in India to serve the interests of the government in power.
In contrast, print Journalism was under private ownership from the beginning.
Print media was traditionally seen as the ‘the critical - investigative-'adversarial'-'watchdog' (Ram, 2000).
Journalism under private media stood in contrast to government owned mass media and mass media
education.
It is in this context that we need to examine the growth of media education in India.
Given the directive of UGC all state universities evolved a syllabus on the lines of developmental model via mass media.
Dichotomy between being organs to take forward the government’s mandate as well as be the critiques of government in MCJ programmes.
Refrain is to train journalists but also blend it with sensitization to bring about social change.
Professional training is required, but in the service of the larger goal of development.
Uneasy relationship between academic and professional worlds
Private television entry in ‘90s completely commercialized in a market driven economy also changed the profile of the print media and Journalism practice (Mehta, 2009, Kumar, 2007, Mannathukkaren, 2008).
New equation of Journalism within the media industry further perplex media scholars about their role and
relevance.
Journalism departments more appendages than extensions of the media industry. Industry opines that students did not have the right training due to the divide between a fast changing media industry and a lethargic academy.
Not possible to incorporate all changes that occur in the industry into the syllabus or train faculty in the changing technologies given the limitations of a state university.
Osmania University’s declaration for credibility:
‘at every stage of the learning process, interface with the industry, interaction with practicing professionals and internship with corporates is given precedence’
(osmanisauniversity:online)
Until ’90s, public broadcaster worked with the
academy, some of whom earlier worked in the public broadcasting organization.
Private media in the post liberalization period, developed on a liberal tradition, promoted
-- ‘modernization through a process of message delivery and a process of information
transmission, via the delivery and insertion of technologies and/or inculcating certain values,
attitudes and behaviours in the population that was primarily market driven’.
Jobs Vs Theory
Profession Vs Academy
The private media sector in India grew primarily due to the large number of regional media channels that emerged.
More than sixty private channels began transmission in Telugu in Andhra Pradesh (AP) over a period of two decades. AP has the largest number of news channels in India and still growing at 18.
However, a vibrant industry did not witness a
corresponding increase in the number of private J schools in private universities.
Just one private university began to offer a MCJ programme in AP a year ago.
Of the 43 universities, 12 state and central universities offer a two year degree programme in Journalism and Communication.
One of the main reasons is the profile of the student population in AP where a large majority of the
students opt for engineering and medicine.
J programmes, once considered elite, changed with the profile of the students who opt for this programme in a state university.
Almost 90% are from rural areas where students hope to find ‘permanent’ jobs in government organizations.
So, strive to join a state university where there are incentives and facilities
Telugu university established in the ‘80s by the then chief minister N T Rama Rao who won elections on the plank of Telugu pride and identity began a journalism programme in Telugu.
National Urdu University established in the ‘90s offers a programme with Urdu as the medium of instruction.
Syllabi shows there is no perceptible change in their syllabus from other MCJ programmes.
The elements of ethnicity, identity or socio political changes that brought the ‘regional’ into focus and set them apart from other universities do not reflect.
Post nineties, the increase in regional channels saw the entry of media houses into the ‘business’ of education.
Free in- house training replaced by training
programmes for which students pay and are popular.
Inference: it is not a matter of language that makes a programme, but the professional angle and placement opportunities that attract students towards a particular programme.
The debate over contextualisation
Mandate of state universities not relevant to the
student population concerned as no local practices or issues incorporated to build human resources.
Current syllabus provides no space to contextualize the various debates in the Indian political and social
scenario, unless the individual faculty incorporates it during his/her lectures.
Limited by time constraints, not possible to discuss or debate diverse aspects of all subjects.
Value addition possible in terms of educating students on issues, at a macro, micro and a meso level within a historical, social, political and cultural context.
Teach them to evaluate intellectually around these frameworks.
By this, they could score over the students trained in a diploma programme.
The aim is to ‘avoid making any unilinear
comprehension of events, as such an approach cannot help them grasp the basic reality’
Capacity building needs faculty trained in critical thinking with exposure to a wider knowledge base.
Systemic problem where the education system in India does not inculcate critical thinking at any stage of
education.
Quite a task to balance out and train students keeping in mind
the mandate of a state university that faces stiff competition from a highly dynamic industry;
where it is important to make them conscientious journalists who are
to find jobs that fetch decent salary in the same commercial market place.
All universities follow a 3-pronged approach.
Courses offered only by one university
Theory courses Practical /production/skill based oriented courses
Market oriented courses
Mandated by UGC/APSCHE
Media and Human rights
Science and environmental communication MANUU
Urdu Media ( media analysis)
Media Law and Ethics ( Human Rights)
Krishna University &
Sri Padmavathi university
Media and current affairs
Sri Padmavathi university
Media and Gender
Science Communication
• E-business
Telangana University
Telugu journalism and print media
Translation studies
1. Introduction to Mass Communication Theory
2. Media Laws, Ethics
3. Media Globalisation and International
Communication
4. Development Communication
5.Communication Research
6.History of media
7.International and inter cultural communication
1. Basics of reporting and editing
2. Media Language and Translation
3. Reporting, Feature and Editorial Writing
4. Writing for Radio and Television
5. Television Production 6. Documentary
Production
8. Photo journalism
9.Web journalism
10. Computer applications
1. Business Journalism 2. Media Management 3. Advanced Public Relations and 4.Organizational Communication 5. Information and Communication
Technologies and New Media (Multimedia production)
6. Advertising and Marketing Research.
7. Public Relations
To a large extent this dichotomy between the
profession and academics, is echoed in Sri Padmavathi Women’s University’s programme in MBA (media
studies)
Established to cope with the onslaught from
management programmes as well as other private
universities that offer short term professional diploma courses, assuring ‘100% placements’.
Conclusion
Media education paradox:
diagonally opposing view, teaching a student to produce something for the industry as well as critique the very same product that one teaches to produce.
Counter argument to this:
easy for any student to get sucked into the vortex of
commercial media losing sight of the larger interests of society;
role of upholding a mirror to him/her and learn to be the proverbial outsider, to be taken up by the media schools.
Only media scholars are neutral and critical observers of a media that has the power to naturalise hegemony not just for the society but also for journalists.
As Journalists once were the conscience keepers of a nation and a government, media schools today ought to act as the conscience keepers of the media.
Although the murdochisation of media is very much a reality, the J schools could build the bridge that might stop the media from crumbling from its own greed, a la Murdoch!
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Osmania University:online http://osmania1.tripod.com/
www.teluguuniversity.ac.in
http://www.teluguuniversity.ac.in/home%20page%20top%20links/pages/aboutus/about .html
www.manuu.ac.in http://www.manuu.ac.in/overview.php
www.krishnauniversity.ac.in http://www.krishnauniversity.ac.in/aboutus.aspx
www.telanganauniversity.ac.in
http://www.telanganauniversity.ac.in/html/aboutUniversity.html
www.spmvv.ac.in http://www.spmvv.ac.in/about_spmvv.html.
engineering.careers360.com:online
http://www.engineering.careers360.com/engineering- total andhra-pradesh
mapsofindia:onlinehttp://www.mapsofindia.com/hyderabad/hyderabad-engineering- colleges.html
