Broadcast Journalism

Objectives of UGC Sponsored 3 Year B.Voc in Broadcast Journalism Course

Broadcast journalists deliver the news to the public in a variety of formats, including Radio, Television, and the Internet. They are most reliable sources for the events that shape common man’s lives and world. A broadcast journalism career can put you in the thick of changing and evolving world events, including politics, the environment, science, industry, agriculture, health, education, human interest stories,  social unrest, or the ups and downs in the nation’s, and the world’s economy.Broadcast Journalists work to bring the news to the mass audience in a variety of media, including newspapers and magazines, radio, and the Internet.  As the mediums for reporting the news evolves, the skill set that a broadcast journalist has must evolve with it.  To be able to relate not only to the story, but to communicate the human interest involved is critical.A good broadcast journalist not only has the necessary technical skills, but the interest and curiosity to learn about the world around them.  Broadcast Journalism courses that you will take while you pursue your education should build on that hunger to learn while at the same time teaching you the fundamentals of the trade.

THRUST AREA OF THE COURSE:

Obtaining a 3 year B.Vocdegree in Broadcast Journalism can help prepare you to enter the workforce and make a difference in the lives of your audience.For students looking to pursue a career in Journalism, this UGC Sponsored B.Voccourse is the first stepping stone. B.Voc in Broadcast Journalism affiliated under West Bengal State University focuses majorly on news reporting done through broadcast channels like television, radio or online webcasts. The course concentrates on preparing candidates to work in the media sector, inculcating the skills necessary for broadcast journalism. This degree course embarks through an understanding of the background and current practices of journalism. Candidates are taught how to face the camera, anchor, present varied programmes and conduct discussions. Another important aspect is to train students on Television Journalism in detail and develop their abilities to excel in journalism-related job profiles in TV Channels or radio broadcasting. Other highlights of the B.Voc in Broadcast Journalism include latest digital media technologies used for online journalism.

Core Broadcast Journalism Course under CBCS affiliated to west Bengal state university:

To earn a 3 year B.Voc Degree in BroadcastJournalism, classes will typically cover the following subjects:

• Introduction to Communication
• Basics of Journalism Practice
• Reporting and Editing for Print
• Introduction to Broadcast Media
• Preparing Broadcast News
• Field Reporting and Types of News
• Advertising and Public Relations
• Anchoring and Presentation
• Techniques of Audio Visual Media
• Media Ethics and the law
• Camera Techniques and Sound Capturing
• Broadcast Journalism through World Wide Web
• Pre and Post Production of Broadcast Journalism

• The Evolution of Production Process and Work Flow Re-engineering

Broadcast Journalism Electives:

 In addition to the core courseoffered by Derozio Memorial College, you can choose electives that appeal directly to your area of interest.  In addition, these classes transfer nicely to other niches within journalism, including photojournalism, investigative journalism, and sports journalism, to name a few.  Elective courses include:

• Still Photography
• Video Production
• VFX or Graphic Design
• Animation Basics
• Online Journalism
• Advertising in Electronic Media

Scopeof B.Voc in Broadcast Journalism:

The course is offered in both English and Bengali languages, increasing the scope for interested candidates. Placements are made depending on the language opted for pursuing the course. 100%Placement Assistance are provided for the eligible aspiring candidates.Keeping in mind the exponentially growing broadcasting industry, the course has a wide scope for students who want to get into the leading media houses of the country.

B.Voc in Broadcast Journalism Career and job prospects:

Owing to the growing demand for broadcast journalists who know the ins and outs of online media, the career opportunities for B.Voc in broadcast journalism are ample. The demand for skilled personnel is high in the market, and big media houses are looking for talented journalists from across the country.Students pursuing and completing their 3 Year B.Voc Degree in  Broadcast Journalism course can expect a lot of opportunities opening up as big media houses recruit the pass outs for various job profiles.

Reasons to study Broadcast Journalism at DeROZIO MEMORIAL COLLEGE(DMC):

• Dedicated facilities

Develop your practical skills in the departmentof Journalism and our Creative Technology Studios; which feature broadcast-standard radio-TV production studios, and film studios equipped with multi-cameras and green screen facilities.

• Work placement opportunities

Gain industry experience and understand professional practice by undertaking an optional work placement.

• Academic expertise

Our experienced broadcast professionals and academic experts will teach you to become an effective, professionally qualified broadcast journalist.

Derozio Memorial College, a Government aided college of North 24 Parganas, West Bengal not only pursues academic excellence but also motivates and empowers its students to be life-long learners, critical thinkers and productive members of an ever changing global society. In the year 2015, the college was selected for UGC sponsored Community College Scheme and B.Voc Degree Programme. Through the Community College Scheme, we are trying to develop our students in all possible dimensions – intellectual, physical, social, moral and economical.

To fulfill this target, as a Community College, we have introduced several courses for the betterment of local community of Rajarhat-Gopalpur and its surrounding areas.

    Photography & Video Production

    Web Designing & Development

The motto of Derozio Memorial Community College is “Education for Employment through Skills Formation”. The educational activities are designed in line with the needs and demands of the local community. More specifically, the main objective of this College is “to offer job-oriented courses based on the perceived community demand for specific manpower”. In short, Community College is “for” the Community and “of” the Community. The College performs four major functions namely, teaching, training, research and extension. It attempts to create a model of employment oriented education with adequate mutual collaboration and cooperation of members from various commercial, government and academic institutions and organizations like Nikon, Canon, SONY, Numerico Industries, IdeamWebz, India Blooms News Service etc. West Bengal State University also extends their hands. They give us affiliation to conduct the examination after completion of the training programmes. Both the courses are certified by the West Bengal State University. Under the Community College Scheme, we conduct various guest lectures, training sessions, workshops on regular basis by industry experts and prominent faculties. Canon and Nikon with their high professional mentors regularly arrange Specialized Photography Workshop and Photo-Walks. This Photography and Video Production course is meant for those who wish to become professional photographers and Video makers or take-up photography or Videography very seriously. While this course is not a specialization course, it provides the students an orientation to professional photography and video production. Most importantly, the course enables one to achieve a thorough and a clear understanding of photography fundamentals, camera handling, video editing, sound editing, graphic design and basics of animation as well as acquire a strong artistic and technical competence in the various complex aspects of photography and video production. With such strong foundations in photography and video production, it empowers a student to become a professional much quicker than the rest. It has been proved that the students of Community College scheme in both the trade make a notable mark in their career when we see that our students are engaged in different jobs in various news channels, news portals, online digital marketing organization and website designing company after completion of the courses.

We are also trying to improve the living standards of the community of RajarhatGopalpur and its surroundings. B.Voc Degree Program is a programme which is affiliated to West Bengal State University, combines practical training in two exclusive streams with a solid academic base and i.e.-

    Broadcast Journalism (B.Voc in Broadcast Journalism)

    Printing and Book Publishing (B.Voc in Printing and Book Publishing)

Students are imparted the skills that need to work in a broadcast newsroom, along with media law, politics, and an understanding of the role of media in a democratic country like India. We are trying our best to inculcate in the students a degree of sensitivity and empathy that will enable them to reach out to the world and provide effectual service by generating resources without overtly depending on financial inputs from the Government. This year is very crucial year for us because first batch of B.Voc Degree Programme will complete their 3 year B.Voc degree which is affiliated to West Bengal State University. But we are very happy to inform you that the students of Broadcast Journalism has already created an opportunity to intern in different media like 24 Ghanta, Bangla Times etc. and the students of Printing and Book Publishing already has engaged themselves in different Govt. and Non-Govt. organization of printing industry. Soon we will introduce a 24×7 news-portal namely ‘Derozian Times’ for the students of Journalism and Mass Communication and B.Voc in Broadcast Journalism.

We have introduced “Earn while you learn” scheme exclusively for the students of Community College and B.Voc Degree programme. The initiative has a positive impact. On the one hand, students are earning some extra pocket money while on the other, they are getting work experience and hands-on training while studying, something that is missing in our education system. So students pitch in with tasks such as I-Card making, data entry, maintaining of records, library management etc. Each working student is paid for every Identity Card production.

Now it is the time for advancement and the time for a new dream. It has been a long cherished dream of Journalism and Mass Communication Department of Derozio Memorial College to conceive and bring forth, a Communication Resource centre, which, through vocational education and training, will pave the way for sustainable economic development in the rural sector of Rajarhat-Gopalpur area in the state of West Bengal and create the resources for an archive of digital India. We have already launched “Know your Neighbours” scheme exclusively for the students of Journalism and Mass Communication and B.Voc Degree Programme to provide information on the college’s proactive work to reduce students’ negative impact and promote positive behaviour in local communities and to highlight any emerging trends and issues affecting local communities. The Communication Resource Centre will certainly secure a bond between the common man and the educational/scientific institution by implementing research findings in the fields of agriculture, horticulture, apiculture and fisheries. Documentaries have been made in local language on the process of cultivation, fisheries, bio-diversity preservation, water treatment, solid waste management, energy efficiency, tree plantations, marketing their products.

In this regard, after setting up primary infrastructure (Smart A.C Class Room with ICT facility, Studio for Video shooting and Dubbing, Editing Console, High end Cameras, Drone Camera, Still Digital Cameras, Light set up, Web streaming Facility like Any cast, Apple TV etc.) we are looking for fund generation from different sources. Cultural development is very important for fostering learning process. So we have also taken initiatives for nurturing the cultural values among the students of Community College and B.Voc Degree Programme. Students are indulged in short film making, drama scripting, dance drama making, background music arranging, art and handcrafting, performing arts, low cost set designing and painting. The students of Community College Scheme and B.Voc Degree Programme have already arranged a day long cultural Programme ‘Mon-Uran’ to commemorate Bengali New Year and make the programme successful with their cultural skill, talent and perfection. To make our dreams true in reality, we are all together trying to achieve the excellence in the concerned area and we are determine to serve the nation and as well as for the humanity better.

ACHIEVEMENT OF B.VOC & COMMUNITY COLLEGE

1) Students of Community College Scheme and B.Voc Degree Programme participated in the workshop organized by Nikon, Canon and Numerico and certificates were given.

2) Educational tour was organized in Purulia and a documentary was made on the handicraft work of Chorida villagers.

3) World Photography Day was celebrated every year by the students along with the renowned Photographers

4) Most students of the Community College and B.Voc got service in various sector after completing the courses.

5) First batch of the B.Voc has already participated in the campus interview of ETV-Bharat.

Why you choosing Broadcast Journalism?

Journalism has an inevitable impact in our lives. Be it broadcast journalism, print or the web, media has always brought the world to our living rooms. Recently in an advertisement on Television which stated that, “In this age of technology, it is absolutely criminal to say you are lost!” Journalism has that effect on man; can they ever be lost with the media buzz around them. Broadcast Journalism in particular changes the whole scenario of Journalism World. So, what exactly is broadcast Journalism? Simply described, broadcast journalism is all about collecting information and disseminating the facts and figures to the public via television, radio and Internet. Journalists present the news in a manner that is useful, informative and thought-provoking. When we speak of the term journalist, you could be a reporter working on the field or a sub editor, “subbing” a reporter’s copies. That’s why you should have knowledge on the hierarchies in journalism. But in India, scarcity of skilled persons in the field is very much observed. The students go the colleges, universities and institutes and study journalism but gain very little in terms of real experience when the discipline itself is only practical oriented. So there is a huge gap between the skill required to work in the industry and the skill required for actual work in the industry. Lack of experienced and sound knowledge of employees is not available in our Broadcast Journalism industry, especially in West Bengal both quantitative and qualitative wise based on our analyzing in this field.  The skill gaps are also revealed in the study of Media and Entertainment Skill Council (MESC) which was published in February, 2014 and a report of National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) about the Human Resource and skill requirements in the Media and Entertainment Industry Sector (2022). NSDC engaged IMaCS (ICRA Management Consulting Services Limited) to prepare this report, which is based on independent research and analysis done by IMaCS. The Indian Media and Entertainment industry, with a size of Rs. 584 billion and a Compounded Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 15% between 2005 and 2008, is one of the fastest growing sectors in the country. The key drivers of the growth of Indian Media and Entertainment industry have been the rising spend on entertainment by the growing Indian middle class, regulatory initiatives, increased corporate investments and integration of existing players across the value chain. In addition to the expected increase in spend of the Indian middle class towards entertainment, the rising global interest in Indian content is also expected to fuel growth in this industry. Also, technological advances and liberal government policies favouring foreign direct investment (FDI) continue to aid expansion.The Media and Entertainment industry comprises of the following segments:

• Television
• Print
• Films
• Radio
• Music
• Animation
• Advertising – Internet and Outdoor.

Increase in number of television channels and niche segments:

The number of televisionchannels in India has been on the rise. There were about 120 channels available in 2003,which has now grown to over 450. Increasing number of channels increases the demand forcontent. Niche segments such as news channels, lifestyle, kids, reality shows, and spiritualshows are on the rise. Thus, the viewer now has greater choice in mass entertainment andniche segments.

The animation segment in India is in its early growth stage and is poised for growth in the future. The segment is currently a small contributor to the size of the Indian M&E sector and currently accounts for only about 3% of the size of the sector. Animation is used in television, films and on-screen visual effects. The most popularly used animation technologies are 2D animation, clay animation and 3D animation. Although most of the animation in India is 2D, 3D animation space is expected to become popular in the future. The quality of visual effects done in the Indian market is still very low as compared to the West. Although there are over 200 animation companies and about 40 specialised VFX companies in India, there are only a handful which do quality work. The key revenue streams in the animation segment are entertainment (through television, fully animated movies, visual effects – VFX and home entertainment – direct to DVD), e-education and web designing. The entertainment animation section contributes to around 70% to the total animation industry. TV animation, the largest user of animation in India, is considered to be the most basic form of animation from which most of the companies start and evolve to other forms like VFX and fully animated movies. Growth in the usage of animation in movies is expected to fuel the visual effects usage in future. Apart from Crest Animation Studios, no other Indian player has capabilities to develop high-end 3D fully animated movies. Though India has the cost advantage, significant shortage of talent is hampering the growth of the industry.

The Media and Entertainment sector has seen a number of media conglomerates who are active across various media categories from films, print to radio. The Indian players in segments like animation and internet are very small as the segment is still in its nascent stage in India. A large portfolio has offered these conglomerates considerable advantage in gaining customers and advertisement revenues.

But still there are many skill requirements and skill gaps observed by National Skill Development Corporation and Media and Entertainment Skill Council in their detailed study.

Skill Requirements and Skill Gaps Common to Film and Television segment:

Skill Requirements and Skill Gaps Common to Radio:

In addition to the above, the following are skills required in the News section of Television, Radio and Online Journalism:

Workforce Demand in Indian Television Sector (Quantitative)

The workforce demand for television is currently estimated at approximately 1, 45,000 people (Full Time Equivalent or FTE). This number includes the in-house workforce employed by broadcasters (650 channels) as well as the workforce required to produce fresh programming which is generally outsourced to production houses. Work contracted to production houses is typically project based and follows a utilization pattern similar to the film sector (i.e. an individual may work less than 1 FTE). It is also important to note that since production skill sets for film and television are similar, there is significant overlap and several occupations are best viewed as a combined resource pool for both segments.

The demand for the television segment is expected to grow by 18% year-on-year to reach 2, 80,000 people by 2017. The growth in employment is primarily attributed to the digitization of television distribution and expected increase in the number of channels.

Skill Gaps in Indian Television Sector (Qualitative)

Overall the industry indicated that there was a shortage of standardized courses and training programmes- especially in technical roles such as camera persons, graphics designers, visual editors, camera attendants, sound recordists, sound assistants, sound editors, system engineers and other engineering profiles.

Radio

The size of the radio industry is estimated at INR 14 billion in 2013 and to expect to grow at a CAGR of 18% to reach INR 27.4 billion by 2017. The radio industry is currently comprised of:

• 248 Private FM Stations across 86 cities.
• 376 radio stations operated by All India Radio (AIR).

Radio companies can be broadly classified into the following four categories:

• National Players i.e. Players with presence in greater than 30 cities e.g. Big FM, Radio Mirchi etc.
• Metro-focused i.e. Players with presence in the key metropolitan cities of the country e.g. Fever FM, Radio One etc.
• Regional players i.e. Players present in regional clusters across the country e.g. Friends FM, Amar 106.2 Fm etc.
• Standalone channels i.e. Players with presence in 1-5 markets e.g. Red FM, Hit 95 Fm, Oye FM etc.

The FM radio industry in India is on the brink of a phenomenal change with the Union cabinet clearing the policy guidelines for auction of phase III FM licenses in the country. Phase III auctions are expected to add 807stations across 283 cities taking the total number of FM radio stations to 1052 across 302 cities in the country. Some of the other recent industry trends include:

• Growing acceptance of radio as a medium and an increase in the number of advertisers.
• Improvement in inventory utilization and increase in advertisement rates for select stations.
• Addition of new sources of revenue including activation, events, internet radio etc.
• Change in regulation including amendments to the Copyright Act, set-up of self regulation mechanisms by AROI and spectrum and royalty fee waiver for community Radio operators.

Workforce Demand in Radio Sector (Quantitative)

The key stages in the Radio value chain include production/content creation and broadcasting. For the purpose of the study and from the perspective of skill development, both these aspects of content production and broadcasting are covered. An estimated 23,000 people are currently employed in the Radio Industry, including 17,800 employees of All India Radio. This number is expected to grow by 7% year-on-year to reach 30,000 people by 2017. The growth in employment is attributed to the phase III auction of licenses of radio frequencies, which is expected to generate significant employment across the country.

Since, the industry will require a huge workforce to “operationalize” the new stations, it is expected that there will be a demand-supply mismatch in the initial years. This would mean that new stations commence operations on a staggered basis over the next 4-5 years, and not all at once.

Skill Gaps in Radio Sector (Qualitative)

Job roles/occupations where there is a dearth of trained manpower (and corresponding areas of improvement) as highlighted by the industry are already stated.  The industry believes that the skill gaps are largely due to a dearth in educational institutes offering programs for Radio- leading to limited sources for recruitment. As a result, the industry needs to hire graduates and train them in-house or rely on alternative sources of hiring e.g. walk-in-interviews, theatre etc. This issue is only expected to escalate once the phase III licenses are auctioned across India. In addition, with the launch of new stations in 283 cities across the country, there is expected to be a huge demand for people proficient in regional languages for which regional dialect and diction training may also be required.

Currently, the industry relies on on-the-job training to compensate for the lack of training courses. External trainers from abroad are also commissioned to train people on creative thinking and writing skills and show conceptualization. Trainers are often hired to train sound engineers, technicians, talkers, programme producers, researchers and sound editors. Resources are also trained in-house on handling radio transmission equipment and software.

Online Journalism:

The size of the online digital industry is estimated at INR 20 billion in 2013 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 20% to reach INR 42 billion in 2017. The overall new digital online media industry comprises of the entire gamut of technology companies e.g. international players like Google, Facebook, MSN, Yahoo, Monster.com, as well as domestic players like Rediff and Info Edge. Existing media companies are also utilized the new digital media for their exclusive news presentation e.g. Times Internet (Bennett, Colemen and Co.), Web 18 (Network 18), MMI Online (DainikJagran), NDTV Convergence (NDTV Limited), Firefly e-ventures (Hindustan Times) etc. The following key trends characterize the rapid growth of the digital media segment in India:

• As a result of an increase in broadband penetration and availability of faster internet speeds, India is now one of the fastest growing online markets- with a growth of 41% in unique visitors between 2011 1nd 2012. In terms of penetration, India’s online community comprises of 124 million internet users.
• Consumption of news on mobile/online platforms has seen a growth of 54% between 2011 and 2012 (from 32.6 million to 50.2 million unique visitors).International audiences make up for a substantial category of visitors (between 20-50% of the total number) on news websites, especially for regional publications.

The key activities undertaken by digital online media companies include creation of content and publishing it to the online platform. Delivery and storage of content is typically handled by specialized technology service providers.

Workforce Demand in Digital Media Sector (Quantitative)

The overall employment in the digital media industry is currently estimated at 45,000-50,000 people. The total estimated employment in digital media companies over a five year period will reach at the growth rate of 32%.

Skill Gaps in Digital Online Media Sector (Qualitative)

Job roles/occupations where there is a dearth of trained manpower (and corresponding areas of improvement) as highlighted by the industry:

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