Journalism & Media

Proposed Media Policy: Bad Timing

The Ministry of Information and Communication (MoIC) has thrown out a draft of Media Policy 2012 urging stakeholders to send feedback that it said will be incorporated before finalizing it. A Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) has published front-page advertisements urging all concerned organization and people to send the feedback to their email. The NGO also held three consultation meetings, including one in Kathmandu, to discuss the proposed media policy.

The proposed policy is prepared by a committee headed by MoIC joint secretary under a project funded by Japan International Co-operation Agency (JICA). The ‘Project for Promoting Peace Building and Democratization through the Capacity Development of the Media Sector in Nepal’ (or Media for Peace Project) aims to achieve two targets: first, functioning of Radio Nepal as a public service broadcasting (PSB) and second, revision of media policy, acts, regulations and guidelines. Continue reading…

January 28, 2012 by Journalism & Media Mainstream Media

The Ebbing Himal (news magazine)

Yesterday, I tweeted about new layout design of Himal Khabarpatrika – a fortnightly news magazine published by Kanak Mani Dixit (@kanakmanidixit) for Himalmedia Private Limited. The tweet was a summary of a small text placed in the magazine’s new issue saying that the particular issue onward the magazine has changed the size and layout.

http://twitter.com/#!/UjjwalAcharya/status/158576069035835392

I put a second line myself saying that the market has gone down for the magazine. It was my experience based more or less on my interpretation of some of the answers by Dixit in an in-house discussion published in its 300th issue (Deshko Mag – Nepali text).  Continue reading…

January 16, 2012 by Journalism & Media Mainstream Media

Kathmandu Statement on Internet & FoE

Kathmandu Statement is the outcome of the South Asian Meeting on the Internet and Freedom of Expression, held in Kathmandu from November 2 to 4, 2011.

The meeting was organized by the Internet Democracy Project, in collaboration with Point of View (India), the Centre for Policy Alternatives (Sri Lanka) and Global Partners and Associates (UK) and was participated by a select group of Internet and FoE activists of the region and UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression, Frank La Rue. Continue reading…

December 9, 2011 by Journalism & Media Mainstream Media Online Journalism

Writing Responsibly on Internet

Internet has been the most revolutionary convergence of communication tools. The greatest beneficial aspect of the internet as a communication tool has been the possibility for each and every person with internet access to communicate globally. Communicating to the world has never been as easy as it is now. Loads of services, also collectively known as social media, such as blogs, microblogs, photo/video sharing and social networking allow users to publish information and/or comments on available information so easily that time and again users tend to forget the bigger impact that those information or comments may have. Continue reading…

November 13, 2011 by Blogs & Blogging Journalism & Media Social Media

Good journalism is good for journalism

Distribution channel will change in future and we have no control over what people will use. They may use something we don’t know today. At the publishing house, we have to specialize on producing good stories.

When I was in Hamburg, Germany to attend the first of three phases of the Journalism in Digital World at the International Academy of Journalism – Intajour, one of the big question amongst the fellows there was ‘how the upcoming technology going to change journalism.’

The advent of the Internet followed by the development of mobile devices- such as smartphones, e-readers and tablets – which people increasingly use to read the news has to change journalism someway, many of us believed. For a media house, and journalists the possible further development of new platforms poses a big opportunity (to become early adopter of profitable venture among upcoming developments) and a threat (how to remodel journalism to perfectly harness the capability of the platform). Continue reading…

November 7, 2011 by Blogs & Blogging Journalism & Media Mainstream Media Online Journalism Social Media

Internet Intermediaries & Freedom of Expression

(This post is a result of my participation in the South Asia Meeting on the Freedom of Expression and the Internet in Kathmandu, 2-4 November. This is my personal opinion but I owe to participants of the meeting whose comments may have helped me to shape this.)

By Internet intermediaries, I mean those companies or people who has a role in providing internet services to the people including, but not limited to, Internet Service Providers (ISPs), webhosts, web service providers, website owners, and also cyber cafes and telecommunication companies. Continue reading…

November 5, 2011 by Journalism & Media Social Media Wow! Web

Nepali journalism around Anuja scandal

Nepali journalism should learn lessons from Anuja scandal and move forward, rather than ridiculing a group of newspapers (or counter-attacking those who choose to ridicule) because this is the state of Nepali journalism – not only of a reporter or a newspaper

The Story

Nepal’s top national daily Kantipur and it’s sister publication The Kathmandu Post published a news report on its frontpage anchor position about Anuja Baniya who returned 9.1 million rupees and a diamond necklace to the owner after finding them abandoned in a public bus. President Dr Ram Baran Yadav himself called her to thank her – a news that was carried by almost all newspapers with backgrounder as published by Kantipur.

Soon after, there were news that stated police is investigating. The news turned out to be fake one and Kantipur did a praiseworthy job by publishing apology on frontpage stating that the story was untrue as the characters misled then. Continue reading…

April 28, 2011 by Journalism & Media Mainstream Media

Questioning Kantipur’s SMS feedback approach

Kantipur Publications this week began a service for readers of the print newspapers – both Kantipur and The Kathmandu Post to send their feedback on opinion pieces and editorial via SMS. It’s a noble innovation and the publications should be praised for it.

tkpsms-190x300-7236963

Rate not mentioned. Click for image.

But there are two questionable issues in the practice: First, is it ethical not to state that the feedback sent through SMS is charged at premium (not normal) texting rate? Second, when a reader pay for a feedback in assumption that it would get printed, can the publication take the money and not print them?

Every SMS sent is charged at premium rate (Rs. 3 + applicable taxes = Rs. 3.74 nett) so clearly Kantipur Publications is looking to earn through the comments and poll votes their readers send to 8080 – their special number. The rate is stated in an advertisement that Kantipur has printed.

And, what I also don’t like is that the advertisements and/or text of The Kathmandu Post does not mention that the SMS are charged at premium rates. Kantipur mentions the price in its advertisement only. Continue reading…

January 12, 2011 by Journalism & Media

Future of news-on-papers

Will newspapers still be called newspapers if they are not printed on paper? Or will it simply be called something like online news site or news-in-hands or news onscreen?

It is kind of absurd in the Nepali context to think that newspapers are facing a big challenge from technological advancement in the digital form, especially at a time when newspapers are actually growing in numbers and overall circulation. According to an internationally-acclaimed prediction, Nepal is among the last nations from where newspapers would disappear, some 40 to 50 years from now. Continue reading…

December 29, 2010 by Blogs & Blogging Journalism & Media Mainstream Media Online Journalism

Categories

Archives

Follow me on Twitter