Media Practitioners have been advised to leverage on the new trends and innovative journalistic skills evolving to enhance their performance, and connectivity with their audience.
Giving the advice at a three-day workshop organised by Dangote Group in collaboration with Folio Media Group for Journalists in the North-Central states of Nigeria, Fidelis Anosike said the workshop was targeted at improving reporting skills of journalists in the emerging digital world.
Mr. Anosike, Executive Director of Folio Media, Creative Academy (FMCA) disclosed that it had become pertinent for newsmen to adapt to the changing global media landscape, noting that journalists cannot afford to be left behind in the emerging media space.
According to him, the workshop which is holding at the Dangote Cement Plant, Obajana, Kogi State, will provide a platform for media practitioners to sharpen their skills in readiness for more effective service delivery.
In a course theme titled, “Convergence Journalism”, presented by a renowned journalist and former Editor of the Daily Trust (Saturday Edition), Abdulkareem Baba Aminu, participants learned much about Media Convergence, Importance of Media convergence, Skills Upgrading, Challenges of Journalism in the Convergent era, System Thinking in Journalism and shifting paradigm.
According to him, one of the main reasons for media convergence is the transition of virtually all media from the old order to digital technology, noting that the advent of the digital revolution therefore meant that all platforms of communication could be fused into a single format.
The lecturer explained that it is the reason why traditional forms of media are converging toward the Web.
He pointed out that Convergence was most notable on the Web where a news site may have stories in multiple formats, along with blogs, polling, entertainment, and fashion.
Mal. Baba Aminu emphasised the need for journalists to therefore think multimedia and plan ahead for modifying content across different platforms, insisting that
Convergence requires a new mindset for newsmen.
He advised journalists to key-in into the new trends to broaden their horizon in the new communication service, and take advantage of the opportunities it presents.
Participants who are drawn from cross-section of the media including the Print, Broadcast and Digital media expressed satisfaction with the content quality of the papers, contending that journalists can still be effective in their desired field while understanding and taking advantage of changes in the media landscape without losing the audience.
They however appreciated the Dangote Group for providing them with the platform to upgrade their skills which will in turn redefine and reposition them for more competitive engagements.
High point of the opening ceremony was a tour of some sections of the facility, through the Assembly Plant to the Power Plant.
The workshop which has other Course themes, such as, Social Media Journalism, and Public Relations and Advertising, is expected to end on Friday, July 9, 2021.