Hyderabad: Hands-on learning is perhaps the best form of learning. Living up to this adage, the students of Journalism Major from Woxsen University’s School of Liberal Arts and Humanities, accompanied by their Dean, Dr Satya Prasad and faculty Prof Alison Nicole, undertook a 6-day industrial visit to major media houses in New Delhi from 26 September to 1 October.
The first stop for the students was The Indian Express group of publications. Foreign Affairs, Assistant Editor, Mr Manish Kumar Jha, briefed the students on the coverage of geo-politics and international affairs by the Express group. He went on to explain to the students the challenges faced in reporting foreign affairs and the extensive coverage the world media gave to the recently-concluded G 20 Summit held in the national capital. A brief history of the origins of the newspaper and the stellar contributions of late Sri Ramnath Goenka to Indian Express newspaper in particular and Indian journalism, in general, were also highlighted.
On the same day, students also visited the Parliament TV also known as the Sansad TV located on the Rakabgunj Gurudwara road. Cameraman, Yogesh Aggarwal, explained the day-to-day working of Sansad TV and gave the students a tour of PCR (Production Control Room). He briefed the students on how Sansad TV exclusively telecasts proceedings of both Houses of Parliament and shares its feed with the national as well s regional TV channels across the country. MPs from the ruling, as well as Opposition parties, are regularly invited to the studios as part of the talk shows organised by the channel. Students also got to witness the live recording of a talk show which was in progress in the studios.
On Day 2, our students visited the Parliament House the historic edifice which has had it’s own mesmerizing effect on them. The students walked through the corridors of the old parliament house where legendary leaders like Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Vallabhai Patel, Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar once walked through. The functioning of the Lok Sabha as well as the Rajya Sabha were explained in detail which concluded with a visit to the Central Hall of Parliament where joint sitting of both the Houses is held.
Day 3 saw our students paying a visit to renowned NDTV 24×7 news studios in Greater Kailash. The students were given an extensive tour of the entire studios which also covered the PCR as well as other recording studios. The Output editor Mr Verghese gave a detailed overview of the news programming in NDTV and the roles and responsibilities of each department in bringing the programs into the living rooms of millions of viewers across the length and breadth of this world. Eminent news anchors like Saket Upadhyay, also interacted with the students and shared their experiences on the field.
Day 4 we visited one of the oldest newspapers of India, The Hindustan Times. Managing Editor, Anup Gupta, gave us a bird’s eye view of the functioning of the HT and highlighted the role played by the Father of Nation Mahatma Gandhi as well as freedom fighter, Madanmohan Malviya, in the growth of the Hindustan Times. In keeping with the changing times, HT has also embraced the digital avatar and presently ranks among the largest circulated newspapers in India. This was followed by a tour of the editorial section comprising, the city desk, state bureau, regional desk, sports, entertainment, business and crime desks and the final stop was the copy desk.
This was followed by a visit to NewsX, one of the youngest news channels in Indian television history. Mr. Siddarth Regae, Output Editor, explained in detail the functioning of the PCR and the challenges that TV reporters face on the field particularly while covering sensitive news beats. The state-of-the-art infrastructure housed in the NewsX Studios was also very impressive.
On the concluding day of the visit, the students took time off to visit Agra’s historic Taj Mahal, which is acclaimed as one of the wonders of the world. The six-day industrial visit was indeed very productive and fruitful for the students of journalism Major from Woxsen University.
Students’ take on the visit:
Nethra Easwar, said, “One may think that this industrial visit was overwhelming, I am glad and extremely grateful for the exposure that Woxsen University, had provided”.
Navya Chowdhury: “The trip was very educational and informative. We got to experience the mechanics behind what we see on the TV screens.”
Jyeshta M: “Our journey to Dehi’s media houses was transformative, where the ink of inspiration met the paper of reality. Exploring the heart of journalism, we discovered stories beyond headlines”.
Maria K: “The industrial visit to Delhi’s various media houses was an enlightening experience and the practical learning from this trip was tremendous.”
Vedehi P.: “The opportunity to visit different media conglomerates was an unforgettable experience. It provided me a sense of understanding of the realities of the field I am going to be part of in the next few years”
