Sturdy Digital Media is a Need amid the Pandemic
A powerful and independent press is widely appreciated across the world. It is an essential part of a functioning democracy. Amid coronavirus pandemic the sturdy and honest press keep citizens informed. It is the responsibility of the media whether it is digital or print to publish the real news. It also acts as a bulwark against the rumours, half-truths, and propaganda that are quite common on digital platforms.
It has been approximately 10 weeks since the COVID-19 outbreak was first reported. The constant storm of new information, new cases and new advice is a real challenge to keep up with. From the journalist perspective, it not only makes the story difficult to keep up with but also gives the peer pressure to sound unique too.
A news piece that we read one day could be entirely out-of-date in the next 24 hours. As more information emerged over the past weeks, it has been suggested that these updates have made it hard to build trust among the audience.
Webinar for Journalist
In a webinar hosted by representatives from the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (Geneva, Switzerland), BBC Media Action (London, UK), Internews (CA, USA) and WHO it was said that journalists and media organizations should perform their best to keep up-to-date with the outbreak. The information should be collected using a reliable source from respective health departments and WHO. Before publishing any news, they should check both fact and authenticity of the information to remain a trusted source.
The constantly growing cases of the pandemic poses a question whether numbers still matter? The exact information of the count is for the interest of the public. The measures and ideas countries are following across the world to respond to the pandemic is a piece of practical and actionable information.
People rely on e-papers amid lockdown
According to a survey, amid lockdown people have been relying on e-papers to keep themselves updated. The survey includes students, government and private employees, businessmen, professionals and home-makers.
Presence of Fake news
People nowadays are aware of the fact that lots of fake news are prevailing in digital media. But a disproportionately large number still said they get their information mostly from it.
On fake news, opinions of the people are equally divided. At a time when a large number of population is consuming mass media content, it becomes the responsibility of the media to understand the user’s perceptions.
It has been observed that amid lockdown the use of the digital news ramped up by 5.8% and television viewership ramped up by a little over 8%.
Digital media over print media
The digital media took over the print media long ago. The print media delivers news the next day whereas the digital media provides a quick read of events happening in real time. It has been observed that amid lockdown the use of the digital news ramped up by 5.8% and television viewership ramped up by a little over 8%.
One must realise that a piece of fake news can cost a lot across the world.