Journalism

In simpler words, Journalism is the production and distribution of reports on current events based on facts and supported with proof or evidence. The word journalism applies to the occupation, as well as collaborative media who gather and publish information based on facts and supported with proof or evidence.  It is a long process that includes various tasks such as collecting the information from various sources, preparing it accordingly, and reporting it through different media platforms like newspapers, radio, blogs, social media, television, magazines etc-etc. Journalism is the product of modern history. It has been changed over time to time, from Medieval scribes recording war and taxes to paid pamphleteers at shop waging political battles to mass-market newspapers that use new tech like trains and telephones to gather and spread the news as well as the information’s to the people from door to door.

History of Journalism

The history of journalism spans the growth of technology and trade, marked by the advent of specialized techniques for gathering and disseminating information on a regular basis that has caused, as one history of journalism surmises, the steady increase of “the scope of news available to us and the speed with which it is transmitted. Before the printing press was invented, word of mouth was the primary source of news. Returning merchants, sailors and travelers brought news back to the mainland, and this was then picked up by peddlers and travelling players and spread from town to town. The first newspaper in India is credited to James Augustus Hickey, who launched The Bengal Gazette, also the Calcutta General Advertiser, in 1780. The paper lasted just two years before being seized by the British administration in 1782 for its outspoken criticism of the Raj. Over the years, journalism has evolved drastically and it changes over time with the latest technologies and innovations to reach a larger audience and meet their needs. To explain present-day Journalism in one word is ‘Handy’. Due to the rise of digitalization, people can easily access the news from various forms of print and electronic media like podcasts, televisions, newspapers, radio, social media, magazines, websites, blogs, and so on.

Forms of Journalism

Journalism is divided into different forms based on the medium such as –

• Print Journalism – Delivering news in the form of printing such as magazines, newspapers, books, pamphlets, etc. is called print journalism. This is the oldest and widely spread journalism. People can easily access it at very low costs. The rise of other forms of journalism has a huge impact on print journalism. Newspapers, magazines, books, flyers, academic journals are the example of print journalism.
• Online Journalism – Delivering news through internet platforms such as websites, apps, blogs, social media, etc. is called online journalism. This is the latest and advanced form of journalism. It can be accessed from the tip of your fingers. Due to its easy availability and accessibility, online journalism has became popular within a short span of time.
• Broadcast Journalism – Delivering news through radio and television is called broadcast journalism. This is the most comfortable and popular form of journalism. The reason why it became more popular than print journalism is because of its visual-audio experience. It engages the audience and glues them to televisions and radios. It has higher budgets and resources compared to the other forms of journalism.

Types of Journalism

• Opinion Journalism-Opinion journalism is journalism that makes no claim of objectivity. Although distinguished from advocacy journalism in several ways, both forms feature a subjective viewpoint, usually with some social or political purpose. Common examples include newspaper columns, editorials, op-eds, editorial cartoons.
  
• Investigative Journalism– Investigative journalism is a form of journalism in which reporters deeply investigate a single topic of interest. An investigative journalist may spend months or years researching and preparing a report.
  
• Business Journalism– Business journalism is the part of journalism that tracks, records, analyzes and interprets the business, economic and financial activities and changes that take place in societies.
  
• Entertainment Journalism-Entertainment journalism is any form of journalism that focuses on popular culture and the entertainment business and its products. Like fashion journalism, entertainment journalism covers industry-specific news while targeting general audiences beyond those working in the industry itself. Common forms include lifestyle, television and film, theater music, video game, and celebrity coverage.
  
• Sports Journalism– Sports journalism is a form of writing that reports on matters pertaining to sporting topics and competitions. Sports journalism started in the early 1800s when it was targeted to the social elite and transitioned into an integral part of the news business with newspapers having dedicated sports sections.
  
• Watchdog Journalism– Watchdog journalism is a form of investigative journalism where journalists, authors or publishers of a news publication fact-check and interview public figures to increase accountability. Watchdog journalism usually takes on a form of beat reporting about specific aspects and issues.
  
• Political Journalism– Political journalism is a broad branch of journalism that includes coverage of all aspects of politics and political science, although the term usually refers specifically to coverage of civil governments and political power.
  
• Lifestyle Journalism– Lifestyle journalism is an umbrella term for more specialized beats of journalism such as travel journalism, fashion journalism, or food journalism
  
• Arts Journalism– Arts journalism is a branch of journalism concerned with the reporting and discussion of the arts including, but not limited to, the visual arts, film, literature, music, theater, and architecture.

Who is a Journalist ?

A journalist is a person who investigates, collects, and presents information as a news story. This can be presented through newspapers, magazines, radio, television and the internet. Journalists are relied upon to present news in a well-rounded, objective manner. Journalists have distinct personalities. They tend to be artistic individuals, which means they’re creative, intuitive, sensitive, articulate, and expressive. They are unstructured, original, nonconforming, and innovative. Some of them are also enterprising, meaning they’re adventurous, ambitious, assertive, extroverted, energetic, enthusiastic, confident, and optimistic. The most important and the most needed skills to become a journalist are having alertness, command over language, good communication skill, can differentiate between facts and fiction and lastly working in a team. Therefore, A Good Journalist must provide good and accurate content to the people. Thus by providing accurate information will help people to understand the greater truths beyond the facts.

The trend towards media convergence in recent times means that media, technology and mobile communications have become increasingly intertwined. The future of journalism could see the emergence of more and more personalized content, intelligent algorithms and robot journalists – as well as the opportunity to ‘experience’ that news thanks to immersive VR and AR technologies