Sunayan Bhattacharjee, Author at Adamas University

#JournalismPlus: Journalism Education Needs A Paradigm Shift In Approach And Strategy

When the first Covid-19 case emerged in the Hubei province in China in the later part of November 2013, very people could imagine that it had the potential to redraw the history of the world. Almost 10 months down the line, scientists are still grappling to contain the deadly disease that has affected more than 17.5 million people and terminated the lives of nearly 7 lakh people.

While governments the world over continue to adopt lockdown as the only viable means to contain the surge of the virus, our lives have drastically changed. Almost all the areas of human activities are being done online barring the essential services. In the given scenario, education has also witnessed a radical change in its delivery structure. From offline classroom delivery to online virtual interactions and from a pen-and-paper evaluation structure to online examinations; education isn’t the same anymore.

The larger trends have been the same across specializations and domains. However, like everything else, the approach and strategy to deal with different domains are evidently different. Journalism, as a field and as an academic discipline, needs a certain rigour that can be delivered online only if certain checks and balances are religiously followed.

In consonance with the spirit, journalism academics globally are resorting to some innovative means. This has resulted in some distinct changes in the structure and mode of educational delivery. Unless we are in denial, these changes that have cropped up due to the sudden onset of Covid-19 are here to stay even when the Coronavirus scare becomes history. Let us look at how academics are coping up to keep the flag of journalism education fluttering high:

The Purpose of Journalism Education Has Changed: Before the pandemic, teaching journalism was all about instilling the right skills. Now, it is not just about skills, it is about adaptability as well. From “how and what to cover the story”, it is now “what are the other means if a certain story can’t be covered according to the rules given in the book”. Covid-19 has taught journalists that skills and knowledge alone don’t suffice. Flexibility and alternative ideas are required when the going gets tough. Covid-19 has also shown the ugly side of the industry that has been brutal in evicting even good journalists from the system.
Technology Will be the Key Differentiator: From a domain that was largely content-driven, journalism has metamorphosed into a technology-driven field. This change that was setting in since the last two decades has been suddenly given a major push by the onset of the pandemic. Journalism academics are now increasingly focusing on building the technological skills of the students. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to note that a technology-deficient but content-proficient professional would be able to go nowhere. Not only now but even after the pandemic, academics would do well to keep this reality in mind and train the students accordingly.
A Deep Dive into the Field Has Become a Sine-Qua-Non: Today, more than ever, a deeper knowledge about the governing dynamics of the profession has become critically important. The fact that the industry is chucking out people by the hordes and slashing salaries are necessitating a deep introspection into what might have gone wrong. Covid-19 couldn’t have caused this big a jerk. The churning in the industry only illustrates the pre-existing maladies, which have only been intensified by the onset of the pandemic. This is exactly where the journalism academics should come in. They should reflect on what is wrong and how the same could be rectified. The resultant knowledge should be passed on to the students so that they become resilient professionals, who could change the rules of the game.
Journalism Students Need to Understand that News Is also a Business: All these while, the students of journalism were blissfully ignorant of the revenue structure followed by the news industry. The academics were partly responsible for this trend. However, Covid-19 and its impact on the industry have established the primordial nature of revenue in the news industry. The students need to understand that it is important to generate revenue in addition to churning out fantastic stories. One of the reasons the news organizations are shutting down the world over is falling profitability and lessened advertising revenues. The students need to be mindful of these shortfalls.
Journalism Education Needs to Adopt a More Humane Approach: With the Coronavirus having shown the rather hapless condition of humanity when confronted with nature, it is primordially important for journalism students to have a humane approach towards the profession. Even in terms of business, consumers are increasingly turning to human interest stories. In fact news organizations such as BBC News are churning out an increased number of human interest stories to keep in tune with the demands of time.
Industry Collaboration Holds the Future Key: Journalism education can’t happen in a vacuum. All these while, multiple institutions were conducting journalism courses sans any effective industry collaboration. Today, it is critically important for the students to learn from the key figures in the industry. Therefore, academic institutions need to forge meaningful ties with news organizations and reduce the gap between the industry and the academia.
Convergence and Mobile Journalism Will be the Twin Keywords in Journalism: Journalism academics need to increasingly teach the students about the importance of convergence in journalism. No longer will content be unidimensional. The industry will demand content that is multifaceted and multimedia. The sooner the students understand this, the better it is. Mobile Journalism or MoJo will continue to grow in significance. The Covid-19 tragedy will only quicken this process. Academics need to take stock of their own knowledge base and update it so that students are prepared for the post pandemic scenario.
The Importance of Skill-Based Education Will Only Grow: With Covid-19 having shown us the mirror, journalism academics should uncompromisingly emphasize on the importance of skill-based education. The intent is to create industry-ready professionals, who can take journalism to the next logical level.

The Kolkata-based Adamas University has more or less dabbled with all the above-mentioned points. The online educational structure adopted by the university after the pandemic set in has left an indelible mark on the students of journalism. These students are now only growing with each passing day and the day is not too far away when they can safely graduate into the industry ready to make a difference.

#PositiveCorona: Journalism Continues To Evolve Rapidly As Covid-19 Wreaks Havoc

Journalists are a challenged lot! The increasing hunger for news and the scourge of paid and fake news seem to have pushed journalists to a point of no return. As Covid-19 continues to ravage the world, the sheer necessity of verified and credible journalism appears all the more important. However, as it is, the pandemic has had irreversible impact on the profession. While we all know how salaries have been cut and mass firings have been conducted across media organizations globally, it might be interesting to look at how the Coronavirus disaster has made some systemic changes to the profession. Forgive me for pointing out that some of these changes are extremely heartening and are here to stay. Without being overtly morbid, it might be interesting to look at how the fourth estate of the government stands to gain from the global tragedy, melancholy as it is:

Increasing Trust in Journalists: For once, the netizens are trusting the actual journalists and not the social media. If we take a closer look at the media ecosystem, we shall be able to appreciate that over the past half a decade, institutional journalism had given way to social media in terms of news dissemination. However, for a change, people are realizing that only a journalist can provide him/ her with a verified piece of information. Therefore, there seems to be a renewed interest in information dished out by mainstream media organizations. As the social media continues to be a trash bin spreading rumours about the deadly disease, the media organizations seem to have done well for themselves.
The Obvious Infusion of Technology: As the world continues to be locked down while the disease spreads like wildfire, journalists from across the world are increasingly banking on novel technologies for both collection and dissemination of information. The advent of the pandemic has acted as the right catalyst for journalists to instantly go digital. Earlier, news items that were produced based on just hearsay have been replaced by concrete multimedia content that can be verified by anyone and everyone. Multimedia news is dominating the news paradigm and audio-visual interviews seem to go with every story thus making it more credible. It is no clairvoyance to say that Mobile Journalism or MoJo would be the dominant force in the world of news.
Journalists Have Understood the Primacy of Research: Interestingly, stories that are appearing these days are more nuanced and researched. Given the gravity of the current situation, any half-baked story can be disastrous. Hence, more and more journalists are coming up with detailed stories with multifaceted information. Journalists have understood the hard reality that the only way to survive in the current market scenario is to churn out stories that have the potential to make a difference. While it can’t be denied that the scene is also replete with stories that don’t do justice to the topic, it can’t also be denied that the sheer number of meaningful stories has also significantly increased.
The Subscription Revenue Model Is Gaining in Prominence: As an increasing number of businesses continue to bleed amid the global economic turmoil caused by the pandemic, the revenue garnered by media organizations from advertisements is evidently on the wane. This has made organizations understand the importance of a subscription-based revenue model, where the consumers themselves pay for the news that they are consuming. This trend has a direct bearing on the quality of news being churned out. We all are aware of the basic news reality that advertisers have a significant say in editorial decisions. However, with an increasing number of organizations opting for the subscription-based model, editorial integrity and freedom would drastically increase.
Rationalization in the Media Industry: While job and pay cuts can never be supported, the bare fact remains that the industry was set for a rationalization of sorts under any circumstances. The boom that was setting in the news industry was bound to bust at some point in time or the other. The Coronavirus scare has quickened the process and cut the news industry to the right size. The multiplicity of information, often from malafide sources, was significantly hampering the credibility of the profession. While the news industry has always been and will continue to remain a business, it possibly can’t be emphasized enough that the business has a public service angle as well. The springing up of spurious news organizations that were maligning the image of the news industry would be a thing of the past thanks to Covid-19.
The Sudden Popularization of Data Journalism: While data journalism was gaining in prominence even before the onset of Coronavirus, the disease has pushed the practice to the next level altogether. Now, we are experiencing an increasing number of data-driven stories, not necessarily on the disease itself but on many other issues. Data significantly enhances the credibility of stories. As we irreversibly move towards a world dominated by multimedia, data-driven stories will constitute the biggest trend in the world of journalism. The sudden onset of Coronavirus has only quickened the process that had gained pace possibly over the past half a decade.

As we continue to wait for a viable vaccine to combat Covid-19, the world is changing for good and journalism is no exception. The fundamental question, though, remains unchanged. Would journalism survive the pandemic? It would suffice to say that the profession would not only survive but reemerge in a stronger and better avatar. As they say, time would constitute the biggest testimony.

FACTORS AFFECTING THE FLOW OF COMMUNICATION IN A GLOBALIZED WORLD

Communication, they say, is the key to maintain global peace and equilibrium. However, peace and equilibrium seem farfetched in the prevailing crisis situation. As Covid-19 ravages the world, people are increasingly getting to comprehend the sheer importance of communication and resultant collaborations.

Whether it is the development of vaccines and medicines to combat the dreaded virus or its possible control, humanity is decidedly dependent on international and intercultural communication. Concomitantly, it becomes critically important to examine the factors that affect the flow of communication between individuals, communities and nations.

While we are at it, let us carefully analyze the primary factors:

Language: Language is probably the most important element in the communication chain. To put it simply, language is the medium through which the group speaking that particular language expresses its culture. A cursory glance at world history will prove that language has not only been the biggest unifying human force, but it has been the largest bone of contention as well. To make it easier to have global collaborations, it is essential to have one connecting language. Let us take an example to understand this. Internationally, English has been a great unifying force between countries.
Ethnicity: In a multiethnic world, ethnicity is as important as language. Often misunderstandings crop up from ethnic differences. These misunderstandings in turn hamper the communication chain. We can take a very easy example to illustrate this point. India, which has multiple ethnic identities, often goes through ethnic churnings thereby destabilizing the communication chain. This is equally true for communications that happen between two different ethnic communities from two different countries. The primary way to deal with ethnic differences is to forge a human bond that respects the differences but tries to create a unifying factor that is beneficial to all concerned.
National Identities: The concept of nationhood is a very complicated proposition. The concept of national pride at times inundates other humane considerations. We can take a very pertinent example to illustrate this point. The current military spat between India and China has created an often overzealous national consciousness in both India and China that threatens common sense. Such spats overwhelm the necessity to have communication and subsequent collaborations. From time immemorial, the group consciousness associated with nationhood has been the reason for multiple wars. The Nazi dispensation in Germany used ultra-national pride to trample human rights and hence make communication secondary. The best way to make way through this negative national consciousness is to develop the penchant for having rational humane considerations that doesn’t bank on jingoism.
Religious Identities: History has been witness to the fact that religion has played the role of the biggest human divisive force. If we take a sneak peek into the history of humanity as a whole, we would be able to find out that religion has been the single largest cause of conflicts. Whether we talk about the crusades or we deliberate about the current religious unrests, religion has fomented the maximum trouble among fellow human beings. To tackle it, the best way is to have a personal take on religion. Human beings need to appreciate that differences in religious orientations are natural and the same should not deter people from having communication and forging collaborations.
Social Class: No wonder that social positioning and economic status of people put them into certain brackets. This artificial division again creates rifts between the haves and have-nots thereby leading to a breakage in the communication chain. All throughout the world, the existence of different social classes is a crude reality. Let us take an Indian example. As the pandemic keeps getting worse, the biggest victims have been the migrant labourers. The reason why this class has taken the toll is their economic and social status. The best way to deal with this differentiation is to reduce the gap between the social classes.
Gender: Let us now come to gender. As basic as it is, the reality remains that gender can also become an impediment for the flow of communication at times. The difference between genders across the world is very real. In India, the transgender community has to face social ostracism all the time. The communication channel in this case is broken. There is hardly any discourse on the community. The best way to deal with this stalemate is to accept that gender can’t be the basis of any discrimination. However, like many other things, it is easier said than done.
Age: Across societies, generational shifts can cause a lot of miscommunication. As the world changes, meanings and communication channels change. At times, older people can’t cope with these changes, which in turn creates an imbalance in communication. At other times, the younger generation fails to understand the frame of reference of the older people thereby creating an unnecessary rift. Mutual acceptance and sustained dialogues constitute the only way to get out of this imbroglio.

While there are multiple other factors, the ones mentioned above are the biggest factors that either propel or inhibit the flow of global communication in the current context. As communication students, it is extremely important to be aware about the factors. This is exactly where the role of institutionalized media education comes in handy. International Communication is one area that a lot of media institutions are emphasizing upon these days in order to convert the students into comprehensive media professionals.

WHITHER JOURNALISM AMID COVID-19 AND THE ROAD AHEAD

We all have been hearing about news organizations from across the spectrum cutting salaries and firing journalists. While Covid-19 has had disastrous impact on the global economy as a whole, the news industry seems to have taken the biggest hit. Organizations such as The Times of India, The Indian Express, Hindustan Times, Dainik Bhaskar and The Quint are some examples where salary cuts and retrenchments have happened. In fact, we shall be able to understand the scale of the crisis if we look at a probable number given by the Indian Newspaper Society (INS). The society, which has nearly 1,000 publishers under its umbrella, said that the industry is estimated to bear a loss of nearly $2 billion in the next six to seven months.

On the face of it though, it should appear that Covid-19 is a particularly opportune moment for news businesses as people locked down would have more time and propensity to consume news content. However, the equation is not that simple. We have to look at it a little deeper to understand the rot.

To start with, let us look at the good old print news industry – newspapers and magazines. How much do we buy a newspaper for? We buy a single issue of a newspaper for Rs. 3 at times; sometimes we buy it for Rs. 4 and the maximum that we spend on it is Rs. 5. However, all costs included, it takes at least Rs. 10 to Rs. 15 to produce a single issue of a newspaper. Therefore, where does the rest of the money come from? Obviously, it comes from advertisements. But, this is exactly where the problem lies. When the economy is so bad and people are cutting down their expenses, most of the business organizations are practically bleeding. The first thing that these organizations have done is cutting corners. When business organizations economize, the first casualty is advertising. Therefore, hardly any advertisement is coming for the newspapers and news magazines. Thus, there is no money and this is making the print news organizations to shut down in a jiffy.

In fact, experts harbour the view that the death of the print media, which was already on the death bed even before Covid-19 struck, has been quicken by the advent of the pandemic. Anto T Joseph, formerly the Managing Editor of DNA, said during a recent online conference that the growth figures of most of the renowned newspapers in India paint a very grim story.

What about the news channels then? Well, the scene is not too different there as well! News channels hardly make any profit out of subscription payments, which are miniscule. Most of the money hopelessly comes from advertisements and advertisements have been stopped by most companies now.

Now, a lot of people are mistakenly pinning their hopes on the digital media thinking that digital media would eventually rationalize the situation and many journalists would go digital. If we look at the business model though, we shall be able to find that the news portals don’t get any money from people reading the news on the portal, which is practically free. All that the portals make is from digital advertisements that have also dried up subject to the economic downturn. Additionally, the portals pay a large part of their advertising revenues to the third party distributors like Google and Facebook. Therefore, all these talk about digital transformation of the news industry is a lot of hooey.

Where does it then leave the hardworking journalists, who are not only grappling with the possibility of contacting Covid-19 in the field but also with the distinct specter of losing their employment? While journalism still might survive Covid-19, there is very little possibility that it would be able to survive any more future disaster. The industry needs to change its business model and soon. The way out is to make the news consumers understand the value of good journalism. Instead of money flowing in from the industry that makes news dependent on corporate entities, the money needs to flow from the pockets of the consumers.

While in the print industry, the costs of newspapers need to be substantially enhanced, paywalls should be the way forward in digital journalism. Most of the news platforms need to shift to the Newslaundry model, although its success can always be questioned. However, for such a thing to happen, the industry has to rally together and stand united and make sure that corporate interests do not eventually drown the call of the hour.

During the recently held #MediaNext 2020 that was organized by the Kolkata-based Adamas University, the celebrated rural journalist P. Sainath, who is also the recipient of the highly prestigious Ramon Magsaysay Award, said that popular media has reduced itself to a mere revenue stream sans any humane considerations. If we look at what Sainath iterated, we shall be able to appreciate that his statement is also indicative of the rot that popular media has created subject to its over-dependence on advertisements. It has indeed become important for news consumers to understand the simple fact that news can never be free and unbiased unless they start paying for what they are getting.

Govindraj Ethiraj, the founder of such fake news busting websites as Boom and FactChecker, endorsed the view that mainstream media has lost much of its credibility. While speaking at #MediaNext 2020, Govindraj went to the extent of saying that if an instant poll is taken vis-à-vis the credibility of news reports published by the mainstream media, most of the people would consider it inauthentic and non-credible.

As we grapple with serious credibility issues as far as the mainstream media goes, in all probabilities, the post-Covid scenario is going to throw open there different trends:

Consolidation is going to be the order of the day. A lot of news organizations will merge will each other to form giant news entities. While the dot-com bubble saw the springing up of a number of media organizations in the late nineties of the last century and the early years of the current century, the economic downturn that is going to mark the entire globe for the next two years will see the closure of many media organizations.
News media is going to see the exponential growth of subscription-based business model and will increasingly reduce its dependence on advertising revenue. This, in turn, would make journalism free and objective again. With consumers increasingly funding the news media expenditures, corporate entities will have significantly less control over editorial functions.
Last but not the least, a good number of independent news media ventures are going to spring up that would primarily function in the digital mediascape. Multimedia storytelling and convergence would become the new normal. This would transform the news consumption habits of people. Subject to an increasing internet penetration and data set to become a fundamental right, an overwhelming majority of the news consumers would consume their daily dose of news on mobile devices.

However, these are just predictions as nobody knows when the pandemic would be over and when normal life would resume. However, what can be predicted with some certainty is that the business model of news media is going to transform.

DECONSTRUCTING CINEMATOGRAPHY – WHERE TECHNOLOGY MEETS AESTHETICS

It wouldn’t be an overstatement if we were to say that the most important element of a movie is its cinematography. While we all know about the word, how many of us actually comprehend the process that goes behind it!

Deciphering Cinematography

Let us first understand as to what the meaning of the word is. While the Oxford Dictionary defines it as “the art of photography and camerawork in filmmaking”, the Cambridge Dictionary simply calls it “the art and methods of using cameras in making a movie”. Well, make no mistakes! The process is not as simple as it sounds from the given definitions.

Dr. D.A. Spencer in his seminal book ‘The Focal Dictionary of Photographic Technologies’ defined the process thus “Cinematography is the science or art of motion-picture photography by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as film stock.” In very simple words, cinematography is the process through which a movie or a film gets recorded.

While cinema has a multitude of elemental things, cinematography is something that is primordial to the making of a cinema and conveyance of a specific message. If the cinematography is not up to the standards, a movie dies a premature death. Consequently, it is important that one understands at least a bit about cinematography before moving ahead with critical discourses on cinema. The camera work records the Mise-en-scene between edits. Each shot represents many choices made by the filmmakers. Why have they made these choices? What do these choices represent? The answers to these questions are important to understand the process of cinematography.

Tone

Did the cinematographer use bright and sharp colors? Did the cinematographer use grainy and black and white footages? Are the footages hazy? Why has the cinematographer used black and white when colour was available? These are the choices that are made to convey a certain meaning. We can take the example of Steven Spielberg’s ‘Schindler’s List’ (1993). While the entire movie was shot in black and white, there was one scene where a child is shown in red. This was done to show a transition, probably a transition in the mindset of the protagonist Oscar Schindler. This couldn’t have been done had a colour monotone been used throughout the movie.

Film Speed

Does the film showcase slow or fast motion? Has the film speed been reversed? Again, these are questions that are left to the discretion of the director. These are decisions that are taken to convey unambiguous meanings. In order to understand this aspect, examples could be taken of the films made by Guy Ritchie. Most of his movies are characterized by extremely fast motions. Again, this is done to create a sense of immediacy and speed.

Camera Angle

Camera angle is the angle at which the camera is pointed at the subject. When it is shot from below, it is called a low angle shot. When it is shot from above, the resultant shot is called a high angle shot. If the shot is taken from the height of the subject, it is called an eye-level shot. If we look at Stanley Kubrick’s ‘The Shining’ (1980), we can easily see how unique camera angles were used to create an all-encompassing sense of claustrophobia and melancholia.

Tracking, Panning and Tilt

For the sake of shooting, a camera is moved on multiple parameters. The movement of the camera sideways or in and out is called tracking. The movement of the camera horizontally is called panning. Tilting the camera translates to swinging the camera vertically. We do see in multiple movies that the camera follows the characters thereby establishing a rapport. In other words, we follow the story with the characters.

Angle of View

The angle of view is the angle of the shot, which is created by the lens. This also significantly alters the meaning of a movie. Ingmar Bergman used this concept extensively in many movies.

Focus

Focus means the sharpness with which a certain subject is hot. Shallow focus uses sharp focus on the characters or things in one area of the shot and blurred focus on the rest. Deep focus brings out the essential details in all the areas of the shot. These are specific directions that are used to communicate certain meanings. This tool is primarily used to filter out information that the director doesn’t want to divulge at a given point in the movie.

Shot Distance

Shot distance is the distance of the subject from the camera. Again, this is a creative decision that the director takes based on the requirements of the movie. A movie will have a combination of various shot distances. At times, the ambience is given more importance than the characters on the screen and on other occasions, the character is given more importance than the ambience.

Frame

Frame constitutes the border that contains the image. The frame can be open where the characters move in and out. The frame can be moving where there are multiple camera movements including using focus, tracking and panning. The frame can also be canted that features odd angles and unbalanced shot compositions. Framing is probably the most important creative decision that a director takes. The meaning of a movie comes out of its frames.

Shot Composition

Shot composition is the relation of the elements of Mise-en-scene to the frame. Small frames with close-up shots can create a sense of claustrophobia, which is again enhanced by the set and lighting. The set can also be used to frame the shot in other ways. The same thing can be done with the characters as well. These shots are often unbalanced. For further understanding of the subject, a person should also look for shots that are perfectly symmetrical in nature. Most of the movies shot by Stanley Kubrick have unbalanced compositions and asymmetrical characters.

Importance of Education in Becoming a Cinematographer

Cinematography, albeit being an inspirational art form, needs a lot of training to master. Some of the subtle intricacies of cinematography can be learnt only at a film or a media school. In addition, it requires years of practice to be an effective and skillful cinematographer.

FEATURE WRITING: AN ESSENTIAL JOURNALISTIC CRAFT

We often use news stories and feature stories interchangeably as if they mean the same thing. The truth couldn’t be any farther. Feature stories or features, as they are more commonly called, are intrinsically different from news stories. While the line at times might become blurred, the differences sustain by and large under the general circumstances. Having said that, it is rather difficult to put the difference in specific terms.

What Is a Feature Story?

To begin with, Oxford Dictionary defines a feature article as “a newspaper or magazine article that deals in depth with a particular topic.” Cambridge Dictionary is a little more encompassing when it calls a feature article as, “a special article in a newspaper or magazine, or a part of a television or radio broadcast that deals with a particular subject.” In very simple parlance, feature stories emphasize on people, places and issues that affect the lives of readers.

Let us take a very simple example. A story that narrates the plight of the homeless people in Mumbai can be considered to be a feature story. While it is as important as a news story, it isn’t governed by the immediacy factor. Notwithstanding, a news event can also inspire a feature story. While the news story will focus on the facts and figures and reveal the 5Ws and 1H, the feature story will adopt a specific angle and go deep into it.

A feature story is not really a hard piece of news and is distinguished by the way it is written. In fact, feature stories should be unique in their style of reporting and should have a different style of writing and expression. An apt example could be the anchor piece in a newspaper, which is invariably a feature story.

It is another thing though that news writers follow the inverted pyramid structure while feature writers go by the upright pyramid structure. To be more precise, a feature must essentially conform to the three-act structure of storytelling wherein the narrative is divided into three distinct segments – the setup, the confrontation and the resolution.

The APPLAUSE Formula

According to a popular theory, a feature story must subscribe to the APPLAUSE Formula, where each letter of the word APPLAUSE stands for the following values:

A Appeal
P Plain Facts
P Personalities
L Logic
A Action
U Universal/ Unique
S Significance
E Energy/ Enthusiasm

Let us now try to comprehend the significance of each of the words used above:

Appeal: A feature must evoke interest. If it doesn’t, it can’t ever become a feature story. At some level and somewhere, it must appeal to the senses of the readers. The Syrian Refugee Crisis appeals to the emotive chord of the readers and hence it is potential feature material for most of the news organizations.

Plain Facts: Facts are stranger than fiction and so goes the adage. If we are to believe this, it becomes obvious that facts sell more than fictions do. A feature report must essentially deal with facts for it to become acceptable. A reported must ensure that the feature has enough plain facts.

Personalities: Readers like celebrities. If a feature narrates the personal story of an individual who is important enough, readers will lap it up. An interview or a biographical piece can be very interesting depending on who it deals with. We can take the example of Sachin Tendulkar’s interview published in any newspaper or a news magazine. Copies of the concerned newspaper or news magazine will automatically be sold more.

Logic: Obviously, a feature story has to conform to logical considerations. If it isn’t dictated by a natural flow of facts, no one will buy the argument inherent in the story. The story has to move from one part of the subject it is dealing with to the other part seamlessly. Let us take an example. If a story talks about the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant, it has to start from how it was commissioned and flow seamlessly into an account of the protests that happened. However, if the story deliberates only on the protests without taking into consideration the background, the story will remain logically incomplete.

Action: A feature should ideally incite people into action. Only then, it fulfills its objective. What is journalism if it doesn’t spur people into doing something? The inherent purpose of journalism is to bring about a positive change and a feature is a distinct tool to do just that.

Universal/ Unique: A feature should have a decidedly universal orientation. It needs to be palatable and useful to all and sundry. It can’t necessarily target a certain section of readers alone. At the same time, the feature can do extremely well if it deals with something that is unique and essentially different.

Significance: The feature has to ideally deal with a subject matter that has impact on people’s lives. In some way or the other, the feature should have some relevance in the daily lives of people. Let us take an example. The Goods and Services Tax (GST) that was imposed on the 1^st of July, 2017 has a direct repercussion on the economic lives of Indian citizens.

Energy/ Enthusiasm: A feature should be emphatic in its approach. It should be convinced about its own subject matter. In other words, a feature story needs to be energetic and enthusiastic in nature.

In The Universal Journalist, an iconic textbook on journalism, the British journalist David Randall argues for the following different types of feature stories:

Colour Piece: A feature story that essentially tries to enlighten readers on a particular theme or subject.

Fly on the Wall: A feature story that is conceived and narrated unobtrusively and mostly without the explicit permission of the subjects.

Behind the Scenes: A feature story that shifts its focus from the principal event to the background and narrates an interesting tale.

In Disguise: A feature story that is told while the storyteller is a part of the event.

Interview: A feature story that develops itself around questions asked to a respondent, who is usually in a place of prominence.

Profile: A feature story that is based on the exploits of a particular eminent person with or without his/ her interview.

How-To: A feature story that is dependent on research and helps readers in solving a problem or deciphering a scenario.

Fact Box/ Chronology: A feature story that provides plain and simple facts mostly in a chronological order.

Backgrounder/ A History of: A feature story that provides detailed information.

Full Texts: A feature story that is nothing but extracts from a book or transcripts of an interview.

Testimony: A feature story that is the first-person account of an individual.

Analysis: A feature story that scholarly analyzes an event.

Vox Pop/ Expert Roundup: A feature story that accumulates opinions from the general citizenry and thought leaders concerning a subject.

Opinion Poll: A feature story that conducts a research of opinions and presents a generalized summary of the accumulated opinions.

Review: A feature story that reviews a work of art and presents a generalized opinion.

While news items are extremely important, feature stories play the extremely critical role of building opinions and inciting actions. Features are extensively used for the purpose for advocacy as well.

Feature writing is a skill that is acquired over a period of time. Proper training modules are required to turn a naturally gifted writer into a feature writer. Only a professional and comprehensive course on journalism can do that. Just in case someone wants to take up feature writing as a conscious career choice, it is advisable that he/ she takes admission in a media school and convert his/ her passion into profession.

COPYWRITING ESSENTIALS – YOUR TICKET TO BECOME AN ADVERTISER

What Exactly Is Copywriting?

What exactly is copywriting? If we are to deconstruct the term, we shall find that it is one of the most creative writing genres. The Oxford Dictionary describes a copywriter as “A person who writes the text of advertisements or publicity material.” The Cambridge Dictionary, however, is a little restrictive when it defines a copywriter as “someone who writes the words for advertisements.”

The process is not that simple though. In addition to being an accomplished writer, the copywriter needs to have a unique vision that can make the advertisement catchy and attractive. To put it in very simple terms, copywriting involves the creation of text for promotional materials. Copywriters craft the written materials for advertisements, billboards, brochures, catalogs, websites, emails and multiple other platforms. The text that is created in the process is known as copy.

How Does Copywriting Help?

It needs to be understood here copywriting primarily deals with inciting the audience into buying a service or a product or an idea. While editorial writing involves the creation of interest, copywriting focuses on engaging the target audience. It wouldn’t be injustice done if we were to say that a copywriter is often called a ‘salesman in print’.

When a copywriter writes a copy, there are certain approaches that are adopted to draw the attention of the prospective consumers. It is essentially something that caters to either the customers’ needs or wants or interests. These factors are collectively known as advertising appeals. The seven primary appeals could be given in the form of pointers given below:

Humour Appeal: In this case, the copywriter tries to connect with the funny bones of the customers to create the necessary impact. The idea is to create a favourable impact on the prospective customers. The ingrained humour in the copy might make the customer remember the concerned product or the idea or the service. Eventually, this might result in enhanced sales. We can take the example of an advertisement for Bose Headphone which shows that a person is so engrossed listening to music through his earphone while boating that he is not aware that he is approaching a water gorge. Almost an impossible proposition, it does incite laughter.
Music Appeal: In this case, the copywriter inserts music between words to soothe the customers and bring them to action. Music is one of the primordial elements that attract human beings. It has been proven by multiple research studies that the possibility of brand retention when music is used is stronger than the possibility of brand retention when music is not used. Thus, an effective copy intelligently uses the services of music along with words. As a distinct example, we can cite an Amul advertisement that talks about the multiple benefits of drinking milk. The accompanying song and lyrics became extremely popular. The popularity can be gauged by the fact that the song almost turned into a national anthem.
Scarcity Appeal: Widely used, copywriters often point at the scarcity of something and invite the customers to take action so that they ‘don’t miss out on something’. There is a primordial human instinct that propels customers to scamper for something that is rare. Scarcity appeal cleverly uses this psychological trait to sell an idea or a service or an idea. We can cite the examples of discount advertisements to drive home the point. Most of such advertisements come with the disclaimer that the offers are applicable only for limited time periods. This spurs the customers to flock the respective brand stores to claim the benefits before the stocks end.
Rational Appeal: A rather popular way of writing a copy, the copywriter in this case makes his presentation based on valid logic and rational facts. It is the most common appeal used in advertising copies. This harps on the inevitability quotient and convinces the customers on genuine factors. In order to get a clear understanding of this strategy, we can take the example of Domino’s Pizza publicizing a change in its pizza crusts. It purely talks about how the new crust is better than the earlier one and why customers should now check it out. Customers who like straight talk get influenced by such advertisements.
Emotional Appeal: At times, the copywriter might as well tickle the emotions of the prospective customers. This strategy works more often than not. Human beings are emotional by nature. There is an increased possibility of convincing a prospective customer if emotions are used with a correct sense of timing. To exemplify this appeal, we can cite some outstanding advertisements by British Airways. One of such advertisements talks about the evolving relationship between a British female flight attendant and an elderly Indian lady. These advertisements explore the brighter side of humanity and incite the customers to take positive steps.
Sexual Appeal: Sex indeed sells! An enhanced sexual orientation to the copy often attracts customers to the extent that they start taking actions. Globally, the usage of sexual stimulus has incited customers to come and buy or use a given service or a product or an idea. Gillette, a men’s safety razors brand, has used the concept of sex multiple times to drive their point home. In fact, most of these advertisements harp on the fact that men have become more handsome after using Gillette razors. Across multiple countries, advertising strategists have used the concept of sex to sell.
Fear Appeal: Fear appeal is something that a copywriter creates in order to incite a real or a perceived threat of not using a product or a service or an idea. Again, fear is one of the most intrinsic human tendencies. If the same could be elicited using an advertising copy, there is nothing like it. A lot of advertising campaigns across the globe have made use of fear extensively. A lot of the insurance companies use this concept to sell insurance products. Medical insurance products are sold mostly by using inciting fear amongst the prospective customers.

However, it isn’t enough just being good with words in order to be a successful copywriter. Not only should one be excellent with words, his/ her sense of timing and placement must also be impeccable. However, there are certain basic strategies, which if followed, could go a long way in ensuring that one becomes a crafty copywriter. Let us look at the strategies one by one:

The copywriter must know his/ her customers. Before starting with a copy, the copywriter has to ensure that he/ she has conducted a substantial amount of research to have found out what the customers want and aspire.
The copywriter should not ever make any content error. In copywriting, any error is considered to be unpardonable.
The copywriter must give his/ her customers enough reasons to act the way he/ she wants them to.
The copywriter has to ensure that he/ she doesn’t sound self-indulgent because if he/ she does, he/ she is in for trouble for sure.
The copywriter should not ever go for the marketing bluffs or else he/ she stands to lose his/ her credibility.

Having said whatever we did, the art of copywriting can’t really be put in a caged form. In order to be a copywriter, one needs to innovate constantly and come up with out-of-the-box ideas. However, if one has the requisite talent, it can always be professionally honed at a media school. The rest, as they say, depends on will and determination.

A BEGINNER’S GUIDE TO SCREENWRITING – THE ALL-IMPORTANT CINEMATIC CRAFT

One of the primordial elements of filmmaking is conceiving it and subsequently documenting it. Before a film is produced, the detailed idea needs to be penned down in a piece of paper. This paper is known as a script or a screenplay and can be considered to be the blueprint of the movie. Before delving into the details, let us first understand as to what screenwriting, also referred to as scriptwriting, is all about. We shall keep our discourse limited to the medium of films alone as screenwriting is equally applicable for television and video games.

What Is Screenwriting?

Screenwriting is the process of writing the text for a movie. In simple parlance, the art of writing screenplays is known as screenwriting. While the Oxford Dictionary describes a screenplay as “the script of a film, including acting instructions and scene directions”, the Cambridge Dictionary describes it as “the text for a film, including the words to be spoken by the actors and instructions for the cameras”.

The screenwriters are the one who are primarily responsible for conceiving the movie in totality before the film is made. The creative aspect of filmmaking is greatly influenced by the screenwriters. Screenplays can be original when the screenwriter concocts the story and plot for a given movie. Screenplays can also be adapted when another piece of literature becomes the basis on which the film is conceived.

The Importance of Screenwriting

The meaning of a movie largely depends on how the screenplay is written and how the same is executed by the director. It is essential to understand here that the same person can be the director and the scriptwriter. While trying to deconstruct a movie into its constituent elements, it is very important to give the plot and narrative their due recognition.

While the other technical elements are extremely important, the preeminence of screenplay remains of paramount importance. In order to understand this concept, let us look at a movie like ‘The Apartment’ (1960) by Billy Wilder. The script for this movie was also written by Wilder. While the movie has all the other technical elements, it became a classic because of its excellent script. The plot is simple and the narrative is straightforward. Notwithstanding, the movie leaves an indelible mark on our psyche. As an integral ingredient of understanding cinema, the script of a film should be looked into carefully.

A screenplay can adopt a number of forms based on the output. For the moment, we shall restrict our discourse to films alone. The principal forms concerning films include:

Feature Films: This type of screenplay is submitted to a major studio after it is approved. It takes a definite format depending on what the studio wants it to be. Generally, well-known screenwriters prepare such scripts. Most of the screenplays that we talk about belong to this category. Unfortunately, the leeway for inserting originality in this type of scripts is minimal as the requirements are spelt out before the writing process begins.
Spec Script: A spec script or a speculative screenplay is usually a non-commissioned project that the writers sell to the open market. The format is usually decided by the concerned writer. There have been multiple spec scripts that have been later converted into complete feature films. Generally, such spec scripts are converted to feature film scripts just in case any of the bigger studios decide to. Spec scripts are way more original than commissioned scripts for obvious reasons.
Documentaries: The screenplays for documentaries have a lot of voice-overs and follow a two-column format. Subject to the fact that a documentary can’t be planned to the last detail, the screenplay might undergo a lot of changes. Although a lot of documentary filmmakers completely discount the importance of scripts in making documentaries, the fact remains that a tentative schedule does help the conversion of ideas into specific actions.
Telefilms: Telefilms also constitute a specific form of films in the current era. Consequently, there is a definite way of writing scripts for telefilms as well.

All said and done though, screenwriting is evolving with each passing day and the methods to decipher a screenplay are also evolving. One needs to be constantly on the lookout to keep in tune with the changing times.

Importance of Training and Education in Becoming a Screenwriter

Screenwriting, though, is an acquired skill and it needs training and skilling. It literally needs hours and hours of practice. As one should understand, one can’t become a screenwriter overnight. This is exactly where an educational institute comes handy. You might be a talented writer and you might have a flair for telling cinematic stories. However, the same doesn’t automatically make you an accomplished screenwriter. Screenwriting is contingent on a number of factors that can be learnt only at a media or a film school.

Importance of Networking in Screenwriting

In addition to the training requirements, there is another seemingly dirty word that determines an aspiring screenwriter’s eventual success graph. That word is nothing but networking. Being well-connected and having the people skills are distinct advantages that can take a writer long way in being a seasoned screenwriter. We might totally believe in the importance of talent. However, the fact remains that references are absolutely essential for the producer or the director (whatever the case may be) to listen to your script.

MOBILE JOURNALISM OR MOJO – THE NEXT BIG THING IN THE WORLD OF NEWS

The ubiquitous smartphone has taken the world by a storm. Everything is within the confines of our fingertips. While the novel device has had some sort of an impact on all the facets of our professional life, the one sector that has been revolutionized by its advent has been media and entertainment. The way information is gathered, processed and consumed has seen a sea change. Today, a smartphone can be considered to be an effective combination of a personal computer, a television, a radio set and a newspaper.

Consequently, journalism has metamorphosed into a new avatar. There has been a transformation in the way news stories are produced and consumed. Gone are the days when television journalists would roam about in an Outside Broadcast (OB) van everywhere and carry huge broadcast equipment wherever they went. For print journalists as well, the usage of DSLR cameras is on the wane. Radio journalists no longer carry inconveniently big microphones anymore. A journalist now just carries a smartphone in his pocket and everything is taken care of.

What Is Mobile Journalism?

In the given context, we shall talk about a new genre of journalism that is gaining traction with each passing day. It is called Mobile Journalism or MoJo. Now, the obvious question arises. How would one define MoJo? MoJo is nothing but a format of digital journalistic storytelling that exclusively uses mobile phones. The story can take any form – audio, video, text, graphics, animation or a combination of all of these. Primarily, the product that is created is also consumed with the help of a smartphone. However, this is not a necessary pre-condition. At times, the result of MoJo can be printed on a newspaper or broadcast on a television or radio channel or streamed as a podcast or published on a web portal. All these products may or may not be consumed on a mobile phone. What distinguishes MoJo though is the process of collection and production of news, which is done with the help of a mobile phone or a smartphone to be precise.

A number of news organizations across the globe are turning to mobile journalism as it entails a number of distinct benefits. Let us take a look into the obvious benefits of mobile journalism:

It Is Decidedly Cheap: All you need to have in order to practice mobile journalism is a good smartphone and some basic associated equipment such as a gimbal, a lapel microphone, a tripod and a portable mobile charger. Gone are the days when a large sum of money had to be spent on expensive journalistic gazettes such as cameras, microphones and the likes. By default, MoJo is minimalistic.
It Is Obviously Convenient: You can immediately start shooting or recording even when there is a breaking news situation. On multiple occasions, reporters have missed the most important part of a story subject to the rigours of setting up the equipment. The ultra convenient smartphone can be taken out of the pocket in a jiffy and shooting or recording can be started immediately. Also earlier, there was the obvious disadvantage of having to move the entire setup to another location just in case two different locations were needed to be covered for a story. The same can be done seamlessly through MoJo these days.
It Is Discreet: At times, traditional journalistic equipment could be on our faces. There is a possibility that the subject might feel a little intimidated when a huge camera along with a microphone is thrust onto his/ her face. MoJo makes journalism discreet and shooting or recording can be started without raising an eyebrow. For shooting investigative stories, MoJo is much more convenient than the traditional form of journalism.
MoJo Has Democratized the Craft of Journalism: Earlier, there was an entry barrier to journalism and not everyone could become a journalist. It was considered to be the fiefdom of the intellectual elite. With the advent of Social Media and MoJo, anybody and everybody can become a journalist. This has ushered in democratization to the craft. Now, we can have a school student beaming an important news story from say the interiors of Arunachal Pradesh and he/ she would have a dedicated audience from across the globe regardless of geographical barriers.
MoJo Requires Considerably Less Infrastructure and Human Resources: As the world is going through a severe economic downturn, a number of organizations have taken recourse to austerity measures. Given the situation, it is anybody’s guess that the news organizations are also passing through a difficult time. Consequently, there is a decided focus on optimization of resources. MoJo, thus, fits right in. A number of news organizations, in fact, in India and abroad have completely turned to Mobile Journalism. A premier example in India is NDTV, which has gone mobile from the later part of 2017.

Notwithstanding, the necessity of proper education is a sine-qua-non for aspiring mobile journalists. They need to know how to craft their stories and attract audiences. No matter what the platform is, the fundamental journalistic principles remain the same. These principles can only be learnt through a stint at a good media school. With fake news, paid news and post truth casting aspersions on the credibility of news, ethical considerations have become paramount. In the face of it, a solid educational base could be considered to be the most important thing in distinguishing a good journalist from the rest.

THERE IS A FILM APPRECIATOR IN EACH OF US

Nancy H. Kleinbaum, the iconic American writer, once said, “We don’t read and write poetry because it’s cute. We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race.” Indeed so! Imagine humanity sans poetry. Imagine a life when your deepest feelings are not resonated by poems, when your darkest desires are not expressed through tepid poetry. Life would be so monotonous, so dull and so darkly emotionless.

Now, let us extrapolate Nancy’s thought to the remarkable field of cinema and it would make perfect sense. We don’t watch cinema because it is cute. We watch cinema because we are members of the human race. The celebrated French filmmaker Jean-Luc Godard, one of the pioneers of the experimental French New Wave, couldn’t have been truer when he said, “Cinema is the most beautiful fraud in the world.”

This fraud keeps us alive and makes us tick. This is true in so many levels in the contemporary world. A relatively newer art form, cinema embraces all the other art forms for its own expression and this is exactly where it becomes so unique. Indeed, as members of the human race, we can’t but appreciate cinema not just as a storytelling platform, but as a manifestation of humanity in itself.

What Is Film Appreciation?

There is an oft-repeated term called ‘Film Criticism’. This term is problematic on so many different levels. It somehow suggests that we see a movie to criticize it, to find faults with its fundamental premise. Hence, the term ‘Film Appreciation’ is much more acceptable – much more democratic, so to say.

Now the obvious question arises. What is Film Appreciation and who are these Film Appreciators? Well, the first question is rather simple to answer. Film Appreciation is the process of analyzing the various elements of cinema and evaluating the same using some standard benchmarks. The answer to the second question is a bit tricky. There are people who appreciate cinema professionally. These are people, who write and speak on specific movies in order to give the prospective audience a clear idea about what the movie qualitatively stipulate. On the other hand, each one of us, who watch and admire cinema are film appreciators in some form or the other.

While cinema is a creative art and there can’t be any set parameters to analyze it, it makes us better film appreciators if we start understanding some of cinema’s ingrained elements. This process makes watching cinema all the more enjoyable and meaningful. Cinema is a chronicler of contemporary history. Thus, it doesn’t hurt if we analyze movies against the backdrop of time.

Now, let us take a sneak peek into those elements that we need to understand in order to appreciate cinema in a more fruitful way:

Theme: To put it in simple words, theme is the fundamental premise on which a given movie is based. Some examples of themes could be romance, power, control and the likes. Let us take an example to understand the concept of theme a little more clearly. If we take up Guillermo del Toro’s Spanish masterpiece ‘Pan’s Labyrinth’ (2006), the theme would be death. The movie is all about the infallibility of death.
Message: While all movies do not necessarily have a central message, there are instances when the filmmaker wants to convey something to his audiences. There are other times when a film is left to the imagination of the audiences. If we take the example of Rajkumar Hirani’s ‘3 Idiots’ (2009), the central message would be the redundancy of streamlined and process-oriented education, one that kills the creative sparks among students.
Metaphor: A metaphor is a literary figure of speech. These are commonly used in cinema to enhance the experience. A metaphor is an element that means something different from their literal meaning. Metaphors acquire fresh dimensions when used in cinema. James Cameron’s blockbuster movie ‘Avatar’ (2009) could be considered to be a metaphor for the exploitation of indigenous people all over the world.
Subtext: A movie creates multiple meanings and conveys numerous messages. Some of the meanings and messages are intended and some are not so. Meanings and messages that are conveyed beneath the visible surface of a movie are known as subtexts. We can take the example of Satyajit Ray’s timeless classic ‘Pather Panchali’ (1955). The death of Durga could be a subtext for the deplorable condition of women in the Indian society.
Motivation: There can be several elements in a movie. At times, the presence of some of the elements is justified in the movie itself. This justification could be construed to be motivation. We can take the example of Ritwik Ghatak’s masterpiece ‘Meghe Dhaka Tara’ (1960). In the movie, there is a scene where there is a juxtaposition of classical music with the sound of a train. This is representative of troubles that might befall in the protagonist’s life.
Motif: When an element is repeated in a movie in order to create a symbolic meaning, a motif is created. We can have a motif in the form of a dialogue or a piece of music or a technical element or an object. Let us take the example of Sam Mendes’ critically acclaimed movie ‘American Beauty’. Here, rose is a motif that represents lust.
Point of View: At the end of a day, a movie is also about a certain perspective or a point of view. Is the movie neutral? Is the movie objective? Is the movie biased? Whose point of view does the movie represent? The answers to these questions determine the point of view of a movie. We can take an effective example here. John Ford’s ‘The Searchers’ (1956) is essentially told from the point of view of the European settlers in America.

While the above mentioned elements are critical to the deconstruction of a movie, there are other elements as well that require critical examination. However, we can reasonably make sense out of movie if the mentioned elements are dissected.

Let us all become active movie viewers rather than being passive consumers of cinema. Not only will it enhance our creative cognition, it will also make us better human beings.