It is that time of the year again. i trudge down to Kalina and correct papers. The students who finish this course go on to become journalists .. and they come up with some gems. .
The University is still in the last century. Rows of table and plastic chairs, high ceilings and background chatter. It feels more like an assembly line – at some NGO making papads – than the University 🙂
The monotony of correction is broken by some gems from students 🙂 gems that i meticulously note down and reproduce here…. The winner is:
On CNN’s success – Ronald Reagan was to travel in space through the Space Shuttle Challenger. There were however, rumours of his assassination !!
The runner up is
CNN effect – CNN coverage of second world war was very good. Because of this people didn’t go out shopping.
a) on community radio – In the US and Canada, Community Radio is also called Pirate Radio 🙂 This wasn’t one student but a whole bunch of them … leading me to wonder if this is what they were taught ….
b) In India, Community Radio is used by a Community to make the community work
c) DD is functioned by a satellite called Aryabhatta
d) If any minister has died, the death ceremony is shown very nicely on Doordarshan
e) During Vijay Diwas of Kargil war the PM visits at the Delhi and gives obituary to our Jawarns and this is telecasted very nicely
f) FM is community radio with commercial radio
g) Ted Turner had started CNN with the thinking that conflict is news and news is conflic
h) This is to raise the value of TRP in society – on news sensationalism .
i) Rakhee Sawant and Mika kissing, increased the level of vulgarity in society
j) During Vietnam war every news channel telecasted it 24/7
k) On the Press Registration Act – an example – to illustrate registering name. Sachin P thinks of the name “kyonki saas bhi kabhi bahu thi. But that name Ekta Kapoor want for herself. Therefore she request to Sachin about to give her the name. He gave her. She broadcast the serial in that name……”
seriously !!
that’s all for now. keep watching for the next edition of gems from students
Funny 🙂
‘Astonishing writings from journalsim students’.You msut be joking here.I could not believe you for first time.But if it is true than God save our country….
@Gargi,The students sgould be given assignment to read your blog and know about our country.
@all ,You will reap what you have bowed.Here, ‘You’ is not directed towards any individual but towards whole generation of parents and teachers. When people cannot read anything except SMS, then who will have time to read newspaper. We have become gossip readers of film magazines and IPL fans. No one knows about grey issues faced by our agriculture sector or naxal problems.
true 🙂 but, there are times that i think that i should give them extra marks for entertaining me 🙂
@yayaver – it is true… and it is sad…
but, you cannot just blame the students. the system has failed to equip them with either reasoning, language or logic skills…. this is the effect of putting a premium on mediocrity over the last 60 years….
the system has to change to produce excellence !
@gargi, The education in India is producing persons with degree and null knowledge.Universities do not give information about the real world out there. In the era of internet ,universities are stuck on very tight academics coarse producing replica of non thinkers. I am also engineer of farzee cateogary with a weak technical knowledge. But I am more good in knowing ground realities of India. I was also unknown of may facts but newspaper (not DNA,TOI or Midday only The Hindu) give me information about my country. When youth do not associate their identity within social amd cultural fabric of their country , nothing is going to change.Person from UP do not know about Vijay Tendulkar and person from Tamilnadu do not know about Amrita Preetam. We take food for stomach only but Food for thought is lacking.
I think that you are in Mumbai only.Your students can get educate when you ask them to dug the history of different part of their city only. You can give them assignment to search them about their native place of ancestors or to know about 3 good literature books with writer from each state of India.Or replace books with regional cinema.
I have talk to many young people of my age about politics after 1947.First ,they blame gandhi and nehru for partition and consider all politician fithy.They have no idea of ‘Samporan Kranti’ movement by Jayaprakash Narayan and Ram manohar Lohia. They will die to see MTV Roadies or splitsvilla but do not have heard name of Carnatic or Hindustani classic music. The most sorry part is that most of our generation even do not want to learn.They want to do things cool ,not understanding anything great grows gradually only…
Sorry for writing so much crap here, but I am much agigated by the unawareness spread in most educated class in the era of wikipedia and google
“It feels more like an assembly line – at some NGO making papads – than the University”
Yup, that’s precisely what it is. We create followers not independent thinkers.
– Cynic!
Many of these guys will still manage to pass, right? And, will be unleashed upon us shortly as earnest, excitable/ hoarse from excitement TV journalists.
50+ channels.. that number growing everyday. They employ your students! You are merely an instrument in a great cause!
Thanks for this great stress-buster; I needed it today!
I don’t know whether to laugh about the replies…or feel sorry that I chose to do this course…
And these people go on to become journalists?! No wonder watching a news channel often makes me want to bang my head against a wall!
unfortunately, yes.
i have been telling people at the university that there needs to be more content focus, and more language focus.
the semester system crams in data with no understanding – and journalists need to understand India !
unfortunately, yes.
i have been telling people at the university that there needs to be more content focus, and more language focus.
the semester system crams in data with no understanding – and journalists need to understand India !