National Conference on Questioning Community Radio in India: Looking Back to Look Forward Date: 5-7 March 2017

Following from Prof  Dr Madhavi Reddy:

National Conference

on

Questioning Community Radio in India: Looking Back to Look Forward

Date: 5-7 March 2017

Concept Note

The movement for Community Radio in India started about two decades ago, as a response to the Supreme Court judgement of 1995, which declared the airwaves to be public property. The Government of India approved a policy allowing Community Radio Stations (CRSs) to be set up by educational institutions, in December 2002. In 2006, the policy was revised and non-governmental organisations were allowed to set up CRSs. Ever since, CRSs have become an integral part of the broadcasting system in India. On the academic front, they have emerged as an interdisciplinary area of inquiry, addressing issues of culture, politics, development, empowerment and social change.

We have now witnessed a decade-long engagement with community radios in the country.Against this backdrop, the Department of Media & Communication Studies (DMCS), SavitribaiPhule Pune University (formerly University of Pune) is organising a National Level Conference on Community Radio in India. The conference, titled, Questioning Community Radio in India: Looking Back to Look Forward, is scheduled to take place on 5-7 March 2017.

As an area of academic engagement, numerous questions regarding CRSs may be probed into, including policies, programming, participation, inclusiveness, ownership, management and effect. What are the experiences of CR stations with respect to national policies and regulations? What kind of participation do hitherto marginalised groups see in the programming and management of CRSs? What are the patterns and politics of ownership of CR stations? What kind of programming do CR stations encourage? How does technology and related training intersect with the practise of community radio? What kind of a role do CRSs play in engaging with local language, indigenous knowledge, and community culture? Are CRSs expected to play a role in promoting government policies and programmes, or do they envisage a vision of their own? The conference seeks to provide a platform for engagement with some of these questions and beyond.

This three-day conference would include a one-day pre-conference for doctoral scholars working on community radio, open to both academicians and practitioners. Each session would include theoretical and empirical research by academicians, and case studies and narratives by practitioners.

The areas of inquiry may include, but not be limited to:

·         History of CR (movement, initiatives and stations) in India

·         The Region and Community Radio

·         Agencies in Community Radio Stations

·         Ownership of Community Radio Stations

·         Participation, Audience and Impact

·         Programmatic Agendas and Engagement with Issues on Community Radio

·         Local culture and Traditional Knowledge Systems

·         Community Radio Stations for Good Governance

·         Technology and Community Radio

·         Sustainability of Community Radio Stations

Special Session on CRSs in Maharashtra

There are 17 CRSs in Maharashtra, which is the third highest number among all the states and union territories, after Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu in India. These CRSs are managed by a wide range of organisations, which include government and private educational institutions, NGOs and KVKs. A few of them are in cities like Mumbai and Pune, and a few are in remote locations in the state. They also produce a wide range of contents. To know about the nuances of CRSs in Maharashtra, the conference is dedicating a special session to it. Scholars and practitioners may present their work either in English or in Marathi in this special session.

Pre-Conference Colloquium

Community Radio has emerged as a key area of academic engagement under the larger umbrella of Development Communication, akin to SITE in 1980s, telecommunication in 1990s and ICTs in 2000s. In order to engage with ongoing research by young scholars and student researchers in the area, the one-day pre-conference colloquium would serve as the ideal platform for exchange of ideas, research work, and feedback on ongoing research projects. If found suitable, fine-tuned/presentation-ready Masters dissertations may also be considered.

The Department of Media and Communication Studies (DMCS) hopes that the three-day National Conference would provide space for critical and intellectual engagement amongst senior and young scholars, and practitioners alike. 

Publication Partner

Published by Taylor & Francis, Media Asia is a journal of the Asian Media Information and Communication Centre (AMIC), housed editorially at Hong Kong Baptist University’s Centre for Media and Communication Research. This 43-year-old journal will publish an issue on “Questioning Community Radio in India” that will include around seven best research papers and three best cases presented in the conference. These papers will go through double-blind peer reviewed process. As it is competitive, we request scholars to send their best abstracts and full papers.

Remaining papers will be published as an edited volume by an international reputed publication house.

Deadlines

6January 2017:                        Last Date of Abstract Submission

10 January 2017:         Acceptance Notification

20February 2017:        Last Date of Full Paper Submission

Registration Fee

For Masters, MPhil and PhD scholars:             `500/-

For Academicians and Practitioners in CRSs:  `1000/-

Venue

The conference will be held at the Department of Media and Communication Studies, SavitribaiPhule Pune University, Pune, Maharashtra. Pune, one of the major cities of India is well connected by road, rail and air.

Guidelines

Word limit:      Abstract (250-300 words) with 4-5 keywords

Case Study from CRSs (2000-2500 words), Paper (5000-6000 words)

Font:                Times New Roman

Font Size:         Title – 16 Bold, Heading – 14 Bold, Subheading – 12 Bold,

Sub-subheading – 12 Bold Italic, Body – 12, Footnote – 10

Line Gap:         1.5,                  Reference:       APA Style,       Indexing:         1 inch

For full paper (especially who are desiring to publish in Media Asia), may find instructions for authors here: http://www.tandfonline.com/action/authorSubmission?journalCode=rmea20&page=instructions

Conference Coordinator

BiduBhusan Dash, PhD

Assistant Professor, Department of Media & Communication Studies

SavitribaiPhule Pune University, Ganeshkhind, Pune – 411007

Maharashtra, India. Cell No: +91-7830666700, Email: comdevdmcs@gmail.com

(Dr Madhavi Reddy)

Professor and Head

Department of Media & Communication Studies

SavitribaiPhulePune University

Conference on ‘MEDIA AND SOCIAL CHANGE’ at Jalgaon, Maharashtra

Following from Prof. Vinod Nitale:

National Conference on
     

‘MEDIA AND SOCIAL CHANGE’

30^th and 31^st January   2017

Organized by

Department of Mass Communication and Journalism

Faculty of Arts and Humanities

Moolji Jaitha College, Jalgaon

Venue

Conference Hall, College Campus,

Moolji Jaitha College, Jalgaon

Jilha Petha, Jalgaon – 425002 (M.S.)

 About the KCE Society:

            Khandesh College Education Society's (KCE Society) is celebrating its diamond jubilee year. We who have the good fortune to further the works of great scholars and pioneer educationist who established KCE society in 1944 see the efforts of its faculty, staff and students reflecting advances in knowledge, public policy and all of the accomplishments, large and small that make up the rich tapestry of an educated life. We have much to celebrate, and a grand legacy to protect. The KCE Society has as its mission, the attainment of international distinction in education, scholarship, and public service. As the leading educational institution of Khandesh Region, KCE Society combines a responsibility for the advancement and dissemination of knowledge. It offers an extensive range of academic programs at primary, secondary & Higher secondary levels, apart from a plethora of courses & programs in higher education that encompass Arts, Sciences, Commerce, Law, Education, Management, Engineering, Geo informatics, and the other professions. Today, KCE Society is an eminent educational institution in Maharashtra occupying 38 acres of land and thousands of square feet of buildings and facilities with combined strength of 7000 students.

About the College: 

 Moolji Jaitha College is the premier academic institution and senior most College in the North Maharashtra region. The college was established in 1945 by a team of dedicated social workers of the city. It is one of the oldest colleges of the District, affillated to North Maharashtra University, Jalgaon. M J College is located in 21.60 acres of absolutely serene and sprawling campus that automatically turns a student’s towards learning with full concentration, devoid of diversions. Recently the college has been NAAC accredited 'A' Grade with a CGPA Score of 3.63 College. & UGC Honored College with Potential for Excellence. It provides for instruction various under-graduate and post-graduate courses in the faculties of Science, Arts, Commerce and Management. College has a full-fledged Junior College, Senior College. College provides research facilities in all disciplines. College is proud to acclaim more than 7000 students registered for various Courses in the faculties of Science, Commerce and Arts at both Higher Secondary and College levels and a team of over 200 learned and experienced faculty members.

Department of Mass Communication and Journalism:

            The Department of Mass Communication & Journalism, established in 1997, is one of the oldest Departments in North Maharashtra University. M J College was the foremost College in Maharashtra to start Journalism Course in the College under Arts Faculty during its inception years. The Department has started the one year full-fledged post graduate Bachelor’s Degree Course (BCJ) in 1997. The Masters Degree in Journalism & Mass Communication (MCJ) was started in 1998. The Department offers a 2-year Master's Programme in Mass Communication & Journalism (Semester Pattern) for students interested in any of the following areas: Journalism, social and development communication, Advertising, Public relations, Radio, Television, Multi-media, Media management and Research. The Programme curriculum is wide-ranging and interdisciplinary and carefully balances theoretical and practical information. The curriculum will familiarize students with MCJ concepts both in theory and practice; introduce them to various streams of the MCJ discipline; provide hands-on experience on all relevant skill areas and; allow students to specialize in an area for entry-level jobs in communication and media sector. As a part of its professional emphasis, the programme will provide an opportunity to students to gain practical work experience through its internship placements in relevant organization, interact with the leading professionals of the media and communication sector and assist students in finding suitable placements and self-employment opportunities.

Aims and Objectives of the Conference:

The media plays a very constructive role in today’s society. Media play an important role in increasing of public awareness and collect the views, information and attitudes toward certain issue. Media is the most powerful tool of communication in emerging world and increased the awareness and presents the real stage of society.

The aims of this conference are to understand the responsibility of Media among society. It also shares experts view and idea about this topic. This conference also creates awareness among students of Journalism to how they work in Media with social justice.

Theme of the Conference:   “Media and Social Change”

1.      Sub-Theme –

1.      Media and Social Empowerment

2.      Social Media and Youth

3.      Women and Media

4.      Media and Social Responsibility

5.      Advertising and Social Change

6.      Corporate Social Responsibility

Call for Papers:

            Papers are invited on any of the relevant topics pertaining to the theme of conference. The said conference is an initiative to bring well-know academia, critics, scholars, teachers and students to explore the academic impulse in building of social responsible media. To create greater awareness about the topic and ideas Research Papers on the main theme and sub themes of the conference are invited from well known academician, teachers, researcher and students. Quality research paper including field studies from scholars, researches, teachers and students are invited. Selected papers will be published in an ISBN book. Department of Mass Communication and Journalism, M J College Jalgaon, shall not be responsible for any violation of copyright; the author of the respective paper shall be solely accountable for the same.

Paper Submission Guidelines:

            Research paper should be based on main or the subthemes of the conference. It should have proper research questions and should also reflect the findings. Abstract length should be between 250 to 300 words. Full Paper should not be more than 3000 words. It must be typed in Times New Roman font size 12 with 1.5 line spacing using MS-Word application in English and Unicode/ Krutidev-10 Font 14pt in single space Marathi/Hindi. The author should give his/here-mail ID, contact number and address with pin code at the end of the paper.  The research paper should be submitted to mjmedia16@gmail.com

Important dates:

Full paper with abstract submission:               5^th January 2017

Conference dates:                                           30^th to 31^st January 2017

(Note – No paper will be accepted after         5^th January 2017)

Registration Fees:

Delegates from Academic Institutions                       Rs.1000/-

Research Scholars/Students                                        Rs.700/-

Registration fees include participation in all technical sessions, conference kit, tea and lunch will be provided at the venue. Fee is payable by DD in favour of “Principal, M. J. College, Jalgaon” payable at Jalgaon (M.S.) INDIA. OR for Online payment mode - Principal, M J College, Jalgaon, Bank of Maharashtra Branch MJ College Campus, Jalgaon, Account no – 20072500294 IFSC Code        - MAHB0001161.

All the authors of paper and participator are required to pay the Registration fees.

Accommodation: Accommodation will be arranged at M. J. College, Jalgaon campus on first cum first served basis. Please inform or mention it in advance your application form.

ORGANIZING COMMITTEE

Chief Patron

Hon. Shri N. G. Bendale

Hon’ble President,

KCE society, Jalgaon

Patrons

           Dr. U. D. Kulkarni                              Hon. Shri Vidhyadhar Panat

Principal, M J College, Jalgaon                  Member, KCE society, Jalgaon

                                                                       

Prof. N. V. Bharambe

                           Vice Principal,

                      Faculty of Arts and Humanities

    

                                             Convener

                                  Prof. Vinod Nitale,

                                   Head of Department

                    Mass Communication & Journalism

                            Contact - 09860046706

                                                                Co-ordinator

Dr. Gopi Sorde- 09552576242

Prof. Dinesh Dixit,  Prof. Rajesh Yawalkar- 1

                                      

                                         Venue

     Conference Hall, College Campus,

Moolji Jaitha College, Jalgaon

Jilha Petha, Jalgaon – 425002 (M.S.)

Symbiosis Conference on Business Communication

Following from Prof. Jayashree Menon, 

We are pleased to invite you for our 7^th National Conference at English language Teaching Institute of Symbiosis (ELTIS) to be held on February 10 & 11, 2017. We have successfully conducted six national conferences that dealt with teaching of the English language skills. This year we have decided to focus on honing teachers’ skills to teach business communication. This is a topic that needs in-depth discussion as it has gained immense importance in the field of education and business. 

This year’s conference will again offer an opportunity to learn from experts, exchange knowledge and networking with peers. We would be delighted to have your presence at this conference. It would be a pleasure if you present a paper or a workshop at the conference too.

For the details of the theme and sub-themes, please visit our website http://www.eltis-symbiosis.org/national-conference.html

We also appeal to you to spread the word amongst your colleagues, friends and literary circles and invite them to actively participate in this conference.

Please Note:

Abstracts not exceeding 400 words should reach us latest by Tuesday, December 20, 2016. Decision on the acceptance of the abstracts will be conveyed to the authors by Friday, December 30, 2016.

Please e-mail us for any further assistance and go through the ELTIS website, so that you won’t miss out on any detail about our conference. Please visit:  http://www.eltis-symbiosis.org/national-conference.html

We are looking forward to your positive response at the earliest.

With warm regards,

Thank you.

Conference Committee

E

nglish Language Teaching Institute of Symbiosis (ELTIS)
Plot No-419, Model Colony, Gokhale Cross Road, Next to Atur Centre
Pune-411016, Maharashtra, India
Tel: 020-25677341/2
Cell: 9860082516

‘The Desk Wants to Know’

Mahesh Vijapurkar sent me the following nostalgia  piece:

Times journalists are fearless when they hear statements like “Trump says he’s going to sue you” or “You’re not allowed in here” or “The mayor denounced your story at his press conference.”

What will make them quail are the words: “The desk wants to know —”

That means a copy editor has found something bewildering, confusing or flat-out wrong in your story. And the copy is going nowhere until the matter is resolved.

Eileen Shanahan was a star economics reporter in the Washington bureau. She wrote with great clarity but not much flair, as she was the first to acknowledge. So she was understandably proud of herself in 1963 when she came up with a snappy lede to describe an austerity program that cut the use of limousines by federal officials.

“Some big wheels in Washington are going to have smaller wheels from now on.”

Ms. Shanahan filed her copy. It was transmitted to New York. Then the call came. The desk wanted to know. Do sedans actually have smaller wheels than limousines?

The copy desk of 1934 — not much different from the 1960s version.

THE NEW YORK TIMES

As the business day neared an end, Ms. Shanahan placed frantic calls to the public relations offices at Ford, General Motors and Chrysler. (This was so pre-Google that Larry Page and Sergey Brin weren’t even born.) The flacks couldn’t answer such an arcane question offhand. They had to call their engineering departments. Finally, after the dinner hour had come and gone, Eileen received the answer that, yes, the wheels of sedans were in fact slightly smaller than those of limousines. By then, however, it was too late. The lede had been changed, the story set.

“Some big wheels in Washington are going to have shorter wheelbases from now on.”

Eileen shared this tale with me years later to illustrate how finicky copy editors could be. But it illustrates something else. The Times didn’t want to get it wrong, even something that seemed so inconsequential.

Copy desks are our bulwark. They are integral to our news gathering.

“Copy editors, in the view of practitioners, are the people who keep written or spoken news (1) factually correct, (2) understandable, (3) to the point, (4) and grammatically fluent, when possible,” Betsy Wade, a former chief of the foreign copy desk, said. “There are dozens of other goals, for example, avoiding libel, or headlines with double meanings (‘Tampax Fills New Opening,’ in all likelihood fictional), but the core of the matter is getting the message across correctly and quickly.”

Though their work is, at its best, invisible, the imprint of copy desks on newsroom culture is enormous.

A classic copy editor’s spike. Even today, we “spike” stories.

TIMESEUM / GIFT OF SUZANNE DALEY

Desk chiefs are still called slots, recalling the days when they functioned as slots through which raw stories were sent to copy readers and edited stories were dispatched to the composing room. The slots sat inside a semicircular array of desks known then, and now, as the rim. Copy is still spiked, though it’s been a long time since paper was impaled on metal. And we still cut and paste, without the scissors or glue pots.

Copy desks have been the talk of the Times newsroom in recent days, after the most fundamental realignment in memory. As of Dec. 5, the metro, foreign-national, business and sports copy desks ceased to exist. Their work was taken over by four new groups, called the live, projects, enterprise and weeklies desks.

“Our copy desks have always reflected the organizing principles of the newsroom as a whole, so that Metro as a coverage area, for example, meant we had a metro copy desk,” Susan Wessling, the senior editor in charge of newsroom planning, wrote to the newsroom last summer. “But less and less of what we need to do is based strictly on geography or topic area. With our accelerated coverage of everything, in every form, we need desks that can operate with appropriate pace and metabolism for different types of journalism, not just different subject areas.”

Charles Knittle, formerly the slot on the foreign-national copy desk (a merger he superintended), is now co-chief of the live desk, with Peter Blair. “In addition to looking out for accuracy, and style and fairness,” Mr. Knittle said, “the copy desks have added another function, which is to try to foster a basic process literacy across all the new specialties — video, interactive design, social media, mobile and other subdivisions of digital production — in the hope that some of what Times copy editors do can take hold in these new forms.”

This transitional moment offers a chance to reflect gratefully on the role of copy editors in shaping the overall report, and in polishing words that appear under others’ bylines.

I remember struggling to find a verb that would convey how a group of Jewish refugees in World War II had — somethinged — restrictive government quotas to enter the United States. Not sidestepped. Not ignored. Not defied.

George Rood, who died in 2000, was both a copy editor and a jazz musician.

THE NEW YORK TIMES

How about “leapfrogged,” asked George Rood, a metro copy editor with a cranky demeanor and the soul of a poet. His choice was lively, direct and perfect. He provided what sparkle the story had. Though Mr. Rood died before we moved to 620 Eighth Avenue in 2007, I still feel his presence here.

“Copy editors are, finally, the people with the knowledge and the reach to span the entire arc of a story from the reporter on the ground to the staff editor moving the parts on the home page,” Mr. Knittle said. “You must know the story of the blind men and the elephant, and how each man touched a different part of the beast and exclaimed, ‘It’s a tree!’ or ‘It’s a fan!’ or ‘It’s a hose!’ The copy desk is still looking at the whole animal — making sure each story is accurate, literate and attractive — while so many others are busy feeling the elephant.”

Readers are naturally aware of mistakes that slip through. And it’s not uncommon to hear Times loyalists complain that errors have grown distressingly common, as editors perform ever more demanding jobs on ever diminishing timetables.

What’s impossible to discern, however, is how many outright errors and unfortunate nuances never see print.

“I just thanked a copy editor, for example, for observing that a story about the effect of climate change on fall foliage in Canada had used only American sources,” Mr. Knittle said. “The piece was sent back to the writer for a little more reporting, and presumably a better story for The Times’s current push into the north.”

Tom Feyer’s stylebook carries hundreds of addenda, attesting to changes in the geopolitical world.

TIMESEUM / GIFT OF TOM FEYER

Ms. Wessling recalled a Page 1 story about a man whose name was misspelled throughout until a copy editor, Jaime Swanson, checked it. She also said that the lighthearted lede of an article about a new use for technology was changed after a copy editor objected that the phrasing insulted an entire class of people.

In a compilation of catches made by the sports copy desk, John Oudens saluted his colleague Jason Bailey for spotting four errors in a single month while reviewing print page proofs between deadlines: Miomir Kecmnovic (it is Kecmanovic), Maya Dirado (it is DiRado), Kody Puderbaugh (it is Kory) and Jonathan Hankins (it is Johnathan).

“One of the biggest challenges of being a copy editor is editing the copy of the most accurate writers,” said Steve Bell, a veteran of the metro rim who now works with both metro and society news. “Everyone will get something wrong sometime, and it’s just as important, maybe more so, to catch the error of a writer who makes one mistake every two years as that of the reporter who is a mere mortal like the rest of us.”

Betsy Wade in the slot on the foreign desk rim in 1975. Ted Shabad is to her left, in short-sleeve white shirt and necktie.

THE NEW YORK TIMES

A memorable catch came on Ms. Wade’s watch. “Ted Shabad, late and great, shows us the core of the job,” she wrote.

“On the night of Aug. 2, 1964, I was in the foreign-desk slot and he was on the rim. At the last gasp, a long-awaited WX [Washington] dispatch: Conflict in the South China Sea. I dealt the dispatch to Ted, who sped to the Columbia Lippincott Gazetteer, of which he had been an editor. Returning, Ted said: ‘The fixes they give are about 30 miles inland.’

“When the Washington bureau heard this, it went back to military sources and extracted a new pair of fixes: Lat. 19.40 degrees north, Long. 106.34 east. And so, under somewhat dubious circumstances, word of the Gulf of Tonkin clash between the C. Turner Joy and the Maddox, versus the Swatow gunboats, went out to the readers.

“This is, on a global scale, an illustration of what an ex-desk head considers the everyday task of anonymous copy editors.”

I grew up at The Times on stories like that. And though I’ve made my share of really dumb mistakes, I’ve tried to keep Eileen Shanahan’s memory alive. Before filing a lede recently that described Jeannette Rankin as having broken “the stained-glass ceiling of the House of Representatives” a century ago, I made sure that the ceiling of the House chamber would have had stained glass in 1916.

Just in case the desk wanted to know.

Source:

http://mobile.nytimes.com/2016/12/15/insider/the-desk-wants-to-know.html?_r=0&referer=https://t.co/VDhv8OCGdX