Staff Reporter

Islamabad—To improve the ethical standards of journalism in Pakistan, more collaboration and interaction between academia and media industry needs to be created. This would enable institutionalisation of new knowledge generation at academia and better use of research at the media industry level; this was the consensus of the fifth interactive session held at the National University of Modern Languages (NUML), Islamabad Thursday.

Industry experts, senior journalists, media professionals and academicians attended the seminar along with a large number of students, scholars and faculty from the journalism and media sciences departments. Pakistan ranks at 98 among 140 countries in the world on academia-industry collaboration measured by the Global Competitiveness Report 2015-2016 of the World Economic Forum.

The participants concluded that strong academia and media industry collaboration is the only way to improve the ethical standards for the media industry. The seminar discussed the need for connecting academia and industry, especially in the media sector. The interface had representation from both industry and academia on one platform to formally share ideas, to improve job security for fresh graduates and be a part of the knowledge-based media industry, while ensuring media ethics in principle and practice both. Speaking on the occasion, Prof. Dr. Anwar Nasim, President Pakistan Academy of Sciences said, “Individuals can play key role in socio-economic development of any nation, these are abbreviated as Non-Governmental Individuals (NGIs)”.
He further said, “The youth of the country must decide what they want to thrive in; they should then ensure that their maximum potential is utilized so they can make their mark on the society and their respective field both in their personal and professional lives.” Universities must adopt new approaches to create value for the society by creating workforce with new skills, which can launch responsible businesses according to the new demands and dynamics of the fourth industrial revolution, said Gulfam Baghoor, Manager Business Incubation of the NUML University. Puruesh Chaudhary, Founder and President Agahi, speaking as a panelists said, “The industry needs to go back to school, it is not only important to explore newer growth opportunities but also to connect with academia to bridge the knowledge-skill gap in the 21st century.”

Moderating the session, Amna Sabahat, Program Manager for Promoting Ethical Journalism for Mishal said that securing a good job depends on high skill-sets, innovative thinking and hard work. She further added, “at the same time the students need to explore job market even before completing their education”. “Pakistan needs to create more than 150,000 jobs every month. Pakistan’s demographics do not support a job seeking approach for everyone. The youth needs to explore entrepreneurial experiences to create a secure and prosperous future”, she added Akram Malik, Director News, APP said, “The courses being taught in the universities should have more concentration on the practical side of various aspects of journalism by introducing practical experience for their students in Print and Electronic Media.” Speaking on the occasion, Amir Jahangir, Chief Executive Officer of Mishal Pakistan said, “In the times of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, the demand for professionalism and ethical business practicing are key to ensure job security. Embracing new and emerging technological knowledge improves not only the quality of work you can deliver but also empowers the young generation to select your future employer of your own choice as well.”

Mishal and the National University of Modern Languages are jointly establishing the National Academy for Corporate Social Responsibility (NACSR) as well. The NACSR is aimed to create new frameworks and mechanisms for the industry to play an active role in the socio-economic development of the country, while creating new jobs in the knowledge-based economy. Established in 2003, Mishal has been engaged with some of the most dynamic organizations, including media enterprises and global development agencies helping them develop their communication strategies and solutions for better understanding and creating synergies with their concerned stakeholders.