A write up about our class with Journalist Atif Tauqeer.
Written by Saroosh Numair
In the video that we watched, Sir Atif Taqueer gave us a brief description of what he currently does, and the experience that he has in the journalism industry – not necessarily pertaining to only digital media. Having studied journalism from Pakistan, England, Australia and Germany, he told us that he is working on a novel and that currently, most of his time is spent focusing on that aspect of his career. He is employed in the 3rd largest media institute in the world, Deutsche Welle, more widely known as DW news. He also told us about where he has previously worked in Pakistan, ranging from working as a sub-editor to doing voice overs for Aaj News.
After educating us on the history of DW news, he went on to talk about what all he learnt from establishing his own media platform, by the name of “Baadal”. He shared with us that although he is not as actively involved in this platform as before, back when he used to be, he noted that his channel would have a daily reach of around 1-1.5 lakh viewers. In this, he observed that in digital media specifically, when public masses are being given information, it creates a community. Within this community, there will be two separate groups of people; those who agree with the message that you aim to spread, and those who disagree with your views. These people will end up either contributing to your goal of spreading news or will do their best to negate your efforts.
Sir Atif gave us a short over view on the best way to go about news-telling and digital journalism – or rather, digital media. He told us that when sharing a piece of news, it is most important to always begin with stating the news itself, followed by a brief overview about the information involved, and concluding with the story itself. He mentioned that it is best to follow the “reverse pyramid mill structure” when intending on sharing a story. Although it is a technique traditionally used in newspapers, it works almost the same way in digital media. In doing this, you ensure that the viewer is watching or reading with their full concentration, which is a critical aspect to be aware of.
He highlighted the two differences that he observed between the old way and the new way of news sharing; the first and foremost being that nowadays, the speed in which an individual has access to fresh news is very high. The second was that in this new age of digital media, writing is not the only influential aspect, rather, there are now graphical elements that must support the text that you, as journalist, are providing.
With the technological developments that have taken place, Atif Tauqeer noted that a considerable difference is also the fact that the key role of an editor has now become obsolete. He stated that the job of an editor was to check language, credibility and to verify any information given out to the public. With the absence of this post, news can be shared in a haphazard manner and he went on to state that this has led to a new phenomenon of “fake news”.
Later on, in his lecture, he talked about how major corporations have big effects on the media. He gave the example of how the health and weapons industry, while being so financially fortunate, have a habit of bribing giant media centers to avoid sharing news that would impact them badly. This goes to show that there is a side to the media that is kept “under the covers”, so to speak.
Futhermore, he spoke about the best way to go about writing on a digital platform. He highlighted that it is crucial to keep your text or videos “compact and crispy”, as well as ensuring that you pair it with suitable graphical elements. These elements must compliment the language that you have used and at the same time, should satisfy the community that follows you, as a major portion of the responsibility of sharing your message is on them and their decision to accept not only your news, but also the style in which it was shared.
Near the end of his address to our class, he shed light on a preeminent problem in Pakistani media; the lack of freedom of expression. As a Pakistani journalist working within the country, one must always be aware of the fact that there are cultural, religious and societal “red lines” that can’t be crossed while reporting. He shared that one must always be careful to not upset political and government sentiments as national security is a big problem in the country and it infringes the safety of your life.
Atif Tauqeer is an influential journalist within Pakistan and in the hour long interactive discussion that we had with him, he educated us widely on the different components of journalism that he felt we, as students, should be aware of.
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