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Asia-Pacific Institute July 2018 for Broadcasting Development Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia VOLUME 17 NO.3 ISSN: 1675 - 4751 Broadcaster

3 Editorial 5 Message from Prime Minister of India 6 Inaugural 9 Plenary Session 1 11 Plenary Session 2 13 Parallel Session 1 15 Parallel Session 2 17 Parallel Session 2 19 Plenary Session 3 21 Parallel Session 4 22 Plenary Session 4 25 Plenary Session 5 27 Closing Ceremony 28 – 33 AMS View 35 SPT Meeting 36 World TV Awards 38 Gala Dinner 39 Pre-summit: Master Class on Storytelling 43 Pre-summit: AR/VR 46 Pre-summit: Media Law & Ethics 48 Pre-summit: Digital Terrestrial Television Broadcasting 51 Pre-summit: A World of Listening – Telling Our Stories 52 Pre-summit: Mobile Journalism 54 In-country Workshop 55 BroadcasAsia CommunicAsia 57 AMS Story 59 Contribution from Member 63 New Appointments contents 2 Broadcaster Editorial Making a Difference to Ensure Media’s

Success BROADCASTER VOL. 17 No. 3 – July 2018

Published 4 times a year by the Asia-Pacific Institute for Broadcasting Development he outcome of the recent Asia Media Summit 2018 in New Delhi, India is clear – a call for media practitioners to confront the many challenges for media’s success in the complex and fast changing media landscape. PUBLISHER T Chang Jin

The challenges are numerous and daunting, and to make a difference, media must EDITOR remain agile to achieve business goals and contribute towards development needs. Jose Maria G. Carlos

Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India articulates one of these challenges. In a CONTRIBUTORS message to the conference participants, the Indian leader says Asia-Pacific, which Philomena Gnanapragasam has emerged as one of the most promising regions for media business, must aim Joanne Lee “to deepen the media and democratic space”. Monica Phang Fathimath Leeza Information Minister Dr Khieu Kanharith of Cambodia shares a similar sentiment, cit- Syed Nabeel Hassan Tirmazi ing government efforts to strengthen press freedom and free expression in the country. Utpal Kanti Mandal

The region must also tap the opportunities its growing media business offers “for EDITORIAL ASSISTANT international cooperation ranging from technology partnership to sharing of suc- Suryani Malek cessful strategies for inclusive communication”, Prime Minister Modi said. OFFICE And this idea of cooperation must extend to combating poverty, gender inequality, Asia-Pacific Institute for terrorism, uneven globalisation and the ill-effects of climate change, says Informa- Broadcasting Development (AIBD) tion Minister Hassanul Haq Inu of Bangladesh. He suggests that media should PO Box 12066 highlight more success stories in dealing with these global concerns. 50766 Kuala Lumpur Malaysia Another key challenge is about telling good stories that can attract audiences, rat- Tel : (60-3) 2282-4618 Fax : (60-3) 2282-2761 ings and revenues, the focus of the two-day conference. Email : [email protected]

Website : www.aibd.org.my “Storytellers must understand audiences and be empathic with their needs and desires”, Mr Baek Sang-Hoon, Director at the Drama Production Department of the Design and layout by: Korean Broadcasting System, shares with conference participants. SP-Muda Printing Services Sdn. Bhd.

He suggests that the story or programme must be exciting, offering something dif- Printed by: ferent. “It must also have different product systems, subjects and backdrops”. Percetakan Sri Raya Sdn. Bhd No 82 & 83, Jalan KIP 9

Taman Perindustrian KIP Kepong Truth must also be behind good stories, says Mr F Sheheryar, Director General of All 52200 Kuala Lumpur India Radio, India, lamenting that “ truth in media is vanishing and sensationalism Malaysia a hotcake in the market”.

To generate good outcome, Sheheryar said good stories must be relevant, truthful The views and opinions expressed or implied and meant for the public good. herein are those of the authors and contributors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the This brings us to a call to refocus efforts towards core journalism, which Dr Lim AIBD. Ming Kuok, Advisor for Communication and Information, UNESCO Office in 3 Broadcaster

Jakarta, Indonesia, says requires young audience who wants to be empow- in the era of digitalisation that is driv- stronger emphasis on ethics jour- ered, to have a say and it’s time for me- ing this need for new ideas and causing nalism and accuracy, avoiding hate dia to respond”, he says. media companies to really think why they speech and thinking of the audience. matter, what makes them unique, and Media training as a key element for media how they can be different”, according to To get the people’s trust back, Dr Lim urg- success is not lost in the conference dis- Mr Louis Hernandez Jr., Chief Executive es practitioners to engage the audience cussions. Indian Minister H. E. Smt Smri- Officer, Black Dragon, USA. and rebuild that connection between the ti Zubin Irani of Information and Broad- producer and consumer of news. casting and Minister of Textiles reminds No doubt, these challenges demand re- participants of the challenge of attracting, sources, both human and material, as “Let them also know the role of journal- retaining, developing and deploying talent well as deep awareness of media’s tasks ism. There’s something to be said about that can produce good content. and goals and multi-dimensional coop- going to the basics”, he said. eration. They also require diverse voices Media must remain agile, particularly to ensure strategies are inclusive. He also warned against getting lost in the technology side and forgetting the core of what we are doing and telling the human side of story.

The United Nations articulates a similar call, urging media to tell stories about the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and make a real difference in improving the lives of people and building a more sustainable planet.

“We need you, the media, to tell stories of the goals and how we can achieve them. Working together will make a real difference”, Ms Amina J. Mohammed, UN Deputy Secretary-General, delivers a video message during the summit’s Inau- gural Session.

Telling good stories must also allow Asia to shape its own narrative and build its own stories of struggles and accomplishments. India’s Minister of State for Infor- mation and Broadcasting Rajyavardhan Rathore says: “For far too long, the West has shaped the stories of Asia. I think now is the time for Asia to shape its own stories, real stories, the stories of emotions, successes, struggles, but eventually the stories of human ability to conquer difficulties and move ahead”.

Reaching out to young audiences in whatever platforms is another challenge Dr Shahidul Alam, award-winning pho- tographer and Founder, Pathshala South Asia Institute, Bangladesh, mentions in his brief presentation.

“They have forced us to rethink our strategy and become relevant. There is the 4 AMS 2018 Broadcaster Message from Prime Minister of India Asia-Pacific – A Promising Region for Media Business and Broadcasting

ndia’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi says Asia Pacific has emerged as one of the most promising regions for Imedia business, especially the broadcasting sector, and offers opportunities for international cooperation ranging from technology partnership to sharing of successful strategies of inclusive communication.

“Our eventual aim shall be to deepen the media and democratic space in the region”, the Prime Minister stressed. His message was carried in the Programme Guide of the 15th Asia Media Summit (AMS) that was held in New Delhi, India from 10-12 May 2018.

The Indian leader also praised the theme “Telling our stories- Asia and more” as conveying the noble aim of the summit, of giving voice to the whole population in the region.

He also expressed the hope that the summit will unleash “a new spirit for creative collaboration, for a better and more effective media partnership in the region”, and “new initiatives for future of the media in our region”.

In his message, he welcomed participants who gathered in New Delhi for this productive Summit on this dynamic sector and its journey ahead.

The Asia Media Summit registered 395 delegates from 41 countries and regions. It featured five plenary sessions and four parallel sessions on various topics dealing with media regulations, new technologies, new business models in a multimedia environment from the perspective of storytelling.

The event also covered six pre-summit workshops on topics of storytelling- principles methods and aims, augmented reality and virtual reality, media law and ethics, digital terrestrial television broadcasting- transition strategy, a world of listening- new ways to tell our stories, and mobile journalism.

5 Broadcaster AMS 2018 Inaugural Time to Ready Laws, Ethics and Rules for Digital India

output of 2.9 percent of the country’s lamp to formally open the two-day sum- Gross National Product, with close to mit. She was joined by Mr Hasanul Haq four million people benefitting from it. Inu, Bangladeshi Minister of Informa- tion, Dr Khieu Kaanharith, Cambodian India is one of the fastest advertising Information Minister, and Mr Sam Seog markets globally, expected to reach Ko, Standing Commissioner of the Korea 10.95 billion dollars by end of 2018 Communications Commission. and the mobile industry to grow to 1.55 billion in the same year.

The government is doing much to support media, the Minister said, citing the operations of 323 FM channels, the auction of some 683 channels in 236 cities, and the growth and funding support for the community radio system, with over 200 community radio stations in operations and 100 more in the pipeline.

Mr Vineet Jain, Managing Director of the H.E. Smt Smriti Zubin Irani Times Group, India, also spoke at the s India is poised to maximise the AMS inaugural ceremony, citing chal- opportunities its vibrant media in- lenges the Indian government needs to dustry offers, including the pres- deal with, for instance, the near monop- A Dr Abbas Naseri Taheri ence of almost a billion internet users oly of telecom companies. by 2021, H.E. Smt Smriti Zubin Irani Dr Abbas Naseri Taheri, President of Minister of Information and Broadcast- “The government must discourage fur- AIBD General Conference & Advisor to ing and Minister of Textiles, India says ther merger, acquisition of telecom com- the President, IRIB, Iran, delivered a this is the time “to put laws, ethics, and panies that could drastically limit choic- message on behalf of the Asia Pacific rules into place which can balance out es of consumers”, he said. Institute for Broadcasting Development the industry”, and prevent one dominant (AIBD), main organiser of the conference. player to rule the media field. He also warned of serious economic and political implications as India’s largest Dr Naseri Taheri spoke of the perils in the In her speech to inaugurate the 15th internet businesses will be either entirely fast changing media landscape, among Asia Media Summit on 10 My 2018 or heavily owned by American and Chi- them, the undermining of the traditional in New Delhi, Minister Irani said the nese companies. and indigenous culture, particularly the country boasts of a robust media industry family as a foundation of society, and which look upon at digital world as an Amidst the spread of misinformation and how to protect cultural borders and deep- opportunity and challenge. propaganda in digital media platforms, rooted culture through good storytelling. “the government must take a proactive One of the challenges is “how do we stance in holding digital platforms ac- In meeting the challenges of modern attract, how do we retain, how do we countable for what they publish or broad- media as well as storytelling, he urged develop and then deploy talent which cast”, he added. media to look into innovative solutions brings good content from the trappings that can protect the audience as an of revenue needs and brings about a He also called on government to institute important asset of broadcast systems. He balance in media institutions”, she said. reforms in the FM radio industry to spur also called on them to better understand exponential growth. the benefits of new technologies that She cited the impact of media industry can improve public service delivery and on the economy, saying that it has an Minister Irani led the lighting of the oil media sustainability. 6 AMS 2018 Broadcaster

whistleblower, we are confident that we are in a positive path to establish a Stronger Regional free press in Cambodia, thus preventing abuse of power and news manipulation Cooperation to for political or personal gains”, he said. Deal with Global Challenges

ceremony, citing government efforts to strengthen press freedom and free expression in the country.

Mr Sam Seog Ko

Mr Sam Seog Ko, Standing Commission- er of the Korea Communications Com- mission, also delivered a message, and said Korea is prepared to contribute to the development of broadcasting in the region.

Another speaker at the inaugural cer- Minister Hassanul Haq Inu emony was Mr Shigeru Aoyagi, Direc- tor, UNESCO, New Delhi Office. He said nformation Minister Hassanul Haq media can play a critical role in bring- Inu of Bangladesh called for stronger ing about peace, prosperity, sustainable Minister Dr Khieu Kanharith Iregional cooperation among govern- planet, and partnership – guiding prin- ments and civil society groups, includ- Among its initiatives were improving ciples behind the UN-led Sustainable ing media to combat poverty, gender in- ties with 38 press associations in the Development Goals. equality, terrorism, uneven globalisation country, organising training courses for and the ill-effects of climate change, and practitioners and holding roundtable thereby bring development and peace in discussions to discuss important national the Asian region. and local issues.

Speaking during the inaugural ceremony The minister also cited several media laws of the Asia Media Summit in New Delhi, that have paved the way for the booming Minister Inu said no country, no media is of more media outfits in the country – free from the threat of terrorism and mili- more than 600 newspapers though only tancy, and therefore their united efforts 200 are reported in circulation, and 140 to fight these global challenges become radio stations. imperative. He said a new law to improve people ac- He urged media practitioners to highlight cess to information is being finalised that success stories of countries and peoples will ensure people participation in the addressing poverty, terrorism and uneven country’s social, political and economic Mr Shigeru Aoyagi globalisation among others. life. He said UNESCO supports efforts to Information Minister Dr Khieu Kanharith “With these laws plus many related protect oral traditions, and promote of Cambodia also spoke at the opening laws, like the draft bill to protect the media literacy and Asian languages. 7 Broadcaster AMS 2018 UN Cites Media’s Role in Telling Stories on Sustainable Development Goals

able development agenda. Each goal has specific targets to be achieved by 2030.

In a video message to the AMS participants, Ms Amina J. Mohammed said that media institutions are indispensable in informing people, galvanising support, holding leaders and society, and the private sector accountable.

The two-day Summit formally opened this morning with more than 300 delegates from 39 countries across the globe in attendance.

She said that media practitioners and policymakers have a crucial role in shaping the development of the Asia- Pacific region that should be inclusive, resilient, and sustainable.

he United Nations calls on media Summit (AMS) that opened in New In the spirit of global village, first to tell stories about the Sustain- Delhi, India on 10 May 2018. envisaged half a century ago by the Table Development Goals (SDGs) media theorist Marshall Mcluhan, Ms and make a real difference in improving Part of the AMS agenda is a discussion Amina J. Mohammed said “it is essential the lives of people and building a more on the state of implementation of the that we bridge the digital divide and sustainable planet. SDGs and the critical role of media in enable each woman and man, and boy addressing issues like poverty, corruption, and girl to participate meaningfully in “We need you, the media, to tell stories discrimination and terrorism. their community and beyond”. of the goals and how we can achieve them. Working together will make a real On September 25th 2015, UN-member She stressed that media plays an essen- difference”, Ms Amina J. Mohammed, countries adopted a set of goals to end tial role in “providing accurate and ob- UN Deputy Secretary-General, told over poverty, protect the planet and ensure jective reporting, and reflecting people’s 300 participants of the 15th Asia Media prosperity for all as part of a new sustain- aspirations and challenges”.

8 AMS 2018 Broadcaster Plenary Session 1 Media Have Full Rights, but they Should be Accountable

ndia’s Minister of Law & Justice and Electronics & IT Sh. Ravi IShankar Prasad stressed the critical importance of media freedom, saying media has the full rights to inform, circulate, criticize, advice and counsel.

But under the country’s Constitution, he said media’s rights are subject to reasonable restrictions, particularly if these affect public order, decency and national The Law Minister said India appreciates Another speaker at this session on media security. this media diversity that allows its people regulations was Mr Chandramauli Kumar to be informed and matured. He also said Prasad, Chairman of the Press Council “Media freedom needs an open society. that they respect social media because it of India. He stressed that media should And an open society thrives on media free- helps empower common people, but its publish what is the interest of the public dom, but media must be accountable’, language sometimes can be a cause of and not what interests the public. Shri Prasad told delegates at the Asia concern. Media Summit’s session on “Media Regu- He talked considerably about the Press lations, Policies, Ethics, Rules and Laws He warned that the Internet, one of the Council of India, saying its key duty is held in New Delhi, India on 10 May 2018. finest creations of human mind, should to maintain ethics and the standards of not become a tool of international colo- journalism. “It is not influenced by any “If laws impinge on press freedom, our nisation. consideration but by merits of the case”, courts take them seriously”, he said. he said. “It cannot remain the monopoly of a few. India is supportive of self regulation, he If Internet has to be global, it must have He recommends its press council as a added, but media must know that no linkages with local ideas and culture”, basic model for regulation of the media institution is free from accountability. he further said. in the world.

On privacy, the Law Minister said this On the misuse of data, the Law Minister Other speakers presenting their views on right is important. but it cannot be a said India will not allow the country to Media Regulation during the session in- shield by the corrupt and the terrorists. become a centre of data pilferage, and cluded Mr Hasanul Haq Inu, Minister of that data commerce through collusive Information, Bangladesh, Dr. Khieu Kan- India is home to 882 tv channels, methods cannot be used to influence harith, Minister of Information, Cambodia, 200 of which are news channels. It its electoral process. Shri Prasad said and Mr Sam Seog Ko, Standing Commis- has a diversity of platforms to include all the online companies which are in sioner, Korea Communication Commission, thousands of radio stations, newspapers the business of data commerce must Republic of Korea. The session was moder- as well as digital media. understand the nuances of accountability. ated by Dr. Venkat Iyer, Barrister, UK.

9 Broadcaster AMS 2018 Growth of Free Expression in South Korea

outh Korea is committed to the velopment of media by establishing com- continued growth of free expression prehensive promotional plan for media Sand media independence, provid- education, and expanding Community ing reasonable regulations on programme Media Center locations and viewer par- editing, improving measures to deal with ticipation programmes. online post and securing autonomy for programme reporting and production. “We are also promoting local programming by providing infrastructure, ex- Mr Sam Seog Ko, Standing Commis- panding support for programme content sioner, Communication Commission, Re- production, distribution and community public of Korea, shared the government’s radio programming”, he said. policies and directions during the Plena- ry Session on ‘Media Regulation Policies: Other programmes to support media’s Ethics, Rules and Laws’ at the 15th Asia growth, he said, are initiatives to diver- Media Summit 2018 held in New Delhi sify Korean Wave content for overseas ex- on 10 May 2018. port, and expand support for media content from individual and small/medium The Korean official said the current ad- business producers and UHD and other ministration is pursuing the healthy de- convergence-based content production. Media Policies Must Address Needs of the Time

policies must enable media to act ac- Minister Hasanul Haq Inu also pointed cording to the needs of the time”, Minis- out that the government is addressing ter Hasanul Haq Inu said. issues on maximising public access to the Internet and new media and on Speaking at this plenary session, he said protecting of citizens against cyber- “media can prove to be the most effective criminals. weapon for mass liberation from poverty, nformation Minister Hasanul Haq gender gap, terrorism and militancy”. He As Bangladesh welcomes the boom on Inu of Bangladesh says democracy also said the media can help the public ICT as well as online journalism, he said Iflourishes in an environment of free understand and cope with ICT revolution, the government is strengthening regu- media, but media must take the re- climate change and globalisation. lations through the ICT Act 2009 and sponsibility of reporting societal chal- introducing two new laws, the Digital lenges dealing with poverty, gender For media to do its job, he said that Security Act and the Broadcast Law. disparity, terrorism, ICT revolution, cli- journalism training is important, and mate change, and then globalisation. so is improving the welfare of media “So these laws are going to be enacted practitioners. In Bangladesh, he said, very soon but these laws will never “Media being the borderless tool must the government has set up the Welfare conflict with the freedom of expression address these challenges in order to Fund and raised their wages. and freedom of the media”, he said. maintain growth of his own, and our

10 AMS 2018 Broadcaster Plenary Session 2 Good Storytellers Know Their Audiences’ Needs and Desires

r Baek Sang-Hoon, Director at top prize for Best Story in a competi- the Drama Production Depart- tion organised by the Korean Chamber of Mment of the Korean Broadcast- Commerce & Industry (KCCI). ing System (KBS) which produces Kore- an dramas highly popular in Asia, identi- Descendants of the Sun, which fies several success factors for impactful chronicles the star-crossed relationship storytelling. between a soldier and a surgeon, was immensely popular both locally as well “Storytellers must understand audiences as internationally. It has been sold to and be empathic with their needs and 32 countries and translated into 32 desires”, he said. different languages. According to the report by the Export-Import Bank of The Korean Director also said the story Korea, the direct and indirect economic or programme must be exciting, offer- effects of the KBS 2TV military-romance ing something different. It must also TV series "Descendants of the Sun" are have different product system, subject estimated to hover above 1 trillion won and backdrops. “That’s the formula that ($880 million). story tellers can put their fingers on made Descendants of the Sun succeed”, the pulse of the time. That’s how they Sang-Hoon told delegates who attended In his presentation, Director Back could develop stories that appeal not just the Plenary Session on Mythology, Folk- said the film offers action scenes, gun to Korean audience,, but also to Asian lore and Contemporary Stories at the shooting, car chase, disaster, and what audience.”, he said. Asia Media Summit held in New Delhi, happens after these situations, including India on 10 May 2018. importantly a love story. The Korean Director also said that exciting stories should come from under- Sang-Hoon directed the episode “Doctors “The audience wanted to see a love story standing viewers, being on the same without Borders”, one of 16 episodes of in the disaster not the disaster itself. page with them, and being empathetic Descendants of the Sun which won the Audiences change with times. Smart with their needs and desires. Cambodia’s Information Officers Deal with Fake News

nother speaker was Dr. “… we don't have the law dealing with Khieu Kanharith, Minister of them and that's why by asking, by AInformation, Cambodia, who creating the information officer at each shared views on how his country is level i.e., national and sub national dealing with fake news on social media. levels, we can reply timely on fake news though not perfect”, he said. Admitting that Cambodia doesn’t have enough laws and regulations to address Dr. Venkat Iyer, Barrister from UK, fake news, Minister Khieu Kanharith moderated the session. said the government has appointed information officers for this purpose.

11 Broadcaster AMS 2018 What’s In It for the Audience?

In two months time, he said, “the national leave the audience in anticipation, what government responded by building a is it that they will want to find out and suspension bridge in the village. Kids see resolved? no longer have to cross the dangerous bridge going to school”. And probably the most important one:

What’s in it for the Audience? Wirewalkers… What are the big universal themes that

connect us all as humans? Think about He shared his formula for good the things we can all relate to, and that storytelling, saying he follows four steps allow the audience to put themselves in in changing and challenging the narrative the characters’ shoes. nother speaker was Mr Jason Ber- of the stories we do:

nard Santos, a Philippine writer, Other plenary session speakers were producer and director, who pre- What is the Story? A Carol Ying Yu of Phoenix Satellite Tele- sented the “Wirewalkers”, an award win- What is the issue, or the content that this vision, HongKong, China, K.G. Suresh, ning documentary which employs virtual story is going to be dealing with? Director General of IIMC, India, Malini reality as part of the story. Awasthi, popular folk artist in India, and Whose Story is it? Salmah Bin Ibrahim, IPPTAR Director, “We tell the story to students, teachers, Who is the character, or characters, that Malaysia. Ms Poonam Sharma, Director, parents and government officials using will lead and guide your story? What’s Media Guru, Singapore served as session 360 degree footage of the river where driving them emotionally? moderator. kids from Iligan City in southern Phil- ippines cross the steel cable to go to What’s the Big Question? school”, he said. What is it in your story that is going to

12 AMS 2018 Broadcaster Parallel Session 1 Should All Good Stories be

Commercially Successful? By Garvita Sethi

“ ry to focus on humanizing and hu- morizing a story. If you can make a Tperson laugh, it can change everything”, said Twinkle Khanna, producer of Padman in the 15th Asia Media Summit held in New Delhi on the theme ‘Should All Good Stories be Commercially Suc- cessful’. bottle. The innovative marketing strategy a serious tone: “But how can we access which we followed worked well for the those millions of suppressed stories movie to be commercially successful”. of refugees and people living in sub- Saharan countries? They haven’t been Ms Kelly in affirmation to Khanna’s represented well by the mainstream statement, said that it is necessary to media”. draw audience’s attention to whatever project one is doing, be it on corruption, Talking about her own country Malaysia, modern art or a simple documentary. “Any Ms Munira said “Advertisement people content can be successful if it engages, hold the noose of the content that informs and entertains the audience. is showcased on TV. They cash onto Give priority to what the audiences some of the important days including want to watch, and try to answer their Independence Day and Chinese New She was joined in the discussion by Vi- questions”, she replied when Mr Liss Year. The audience keenly waits for such kramaditya Motwane, Director of Lootera, asked her to elaborate on the key things ads and they are very popular amongst Mr John Maguire, Director of Interna- which are essential for a successful story. people of all the age group”. tional Relations & Corporation, France Medias Monde, Ms Deborah Kelly, Head We have a diverse plethora of platforms When the coordinator asked them about of Training and Communications, Thom- from which the audience can watch how they imagine the growth of the son Foundation, United Kingdom, and movies and documentaries and Netflix industry in the next five years, Ms Khanna Ms Munira Murad, Head of International is the new entrant amongst them. Mr jubilantly said that we might venture into Relations, Radio Television Malaysia. Mr Motwane finds this change a welcoming the age of augmented and virtual reality Martin Liss, Consultant of Programme one and said that this will flood the where we will be able to touch and feel Committee, Radiodays Europe, served as industry with a lot of talented directors, the visuals that will be displayed on the the session’s moderator. storytellers and actors. He also pointed screen. Mr Maguire was also in the favour out how much less struggle one needs to of advancement of technology, whereas Ms Khanna said commercial success of do today to produce any sort of content Ms Munira felt that the debate five years a movie is vital to boost the confidence since everything can be done through a from now on will still revolve around how of the producers who make movies on smartphone. However, Mr Maguire had to make more money from the content social issues relevant on the society. She a contradictory view here. He said with we produce. added that “Padman is based on social stigma that is attached to menstruation. Initially, nobody was willing to invest in this subject until my husband, Akshay Kumar and director R. Balki came on board. It shows how much a big name can draw attention to a movie.

She said the next essential step is the proper packaging of the product in a 13 Broadcaster AMS 2018

“Humanise and Humorise” Stories to Engage Audiences

By Monica Phang Organisation (France 24), represented on If and how good stories can produce com- Programme Manager, AIBD the panel by Mr John Mcguire, Director of mercial benefits in a digital environment International Relations and Cooperation, is still being explored. A number of sys- any delegates, both local and are fortunate for not facing the same tems like the loyalty subscription models foreign, were keenly interested commercial pressures like other media are being tried by media organisations like Mto join this only moderated organisations and will often cover issues the Britain’s Guardian Media Group. They debate session on “Should All Good regardless of whether they can generate allow readers to pay voluntarily because Stories be Commercially Successful”, revenues. they associate themselves with the Group and get a glimpse of the popular local and appreciate the organisation’s good Indian film producer and writer, Ms They also shared the same priority that journalism. Another model is through Twinkle Khanna. all media organisations should gain and cloud funding used to fund feature films. expand audiences for their stories, and In the debate, all panelists from different that means engaging them through good At the end of the debate, there was countries and contexts agreed that stories that are impactful to fulfil their perhaps some agreement in the panel journalists need to cover “good stories” social obligations as public broadcasters. that for stories to be successful, or perhaps better phrased as “important media practitioners must tell good and stories” about issues such as migration, The comment from film producer, important stories, reach a wide audience persecution and conflict. They also raised Ms Twinkle Khanna to “humanise & as much as possible and ensure their various possibilities in deriving financial humorise” was a defining moment in stories have impact. benefits from good stories whatever the the debate. She says that by humanising subject matters are. stories we engage people, we make our They also said that producing good stories stories relevant and increase the impact that can be commercially successful may Public service broadcasters such as and reach of our work. By humorising be possible through various business the British Broadcasting Corporation our stories, will certainly engage the models, but some media organisations (BBC) in Great Britain and the French audiences more immensely. have yet to reach that level. 14 AMS 2018 Broadcaster Parallel Session 2 Role of Asian Values in Rising Economies of Asia

ow is the right time to reexamine modernisation and does not suit modern Asian values and the role they economy and society. Nplay in the rising economies of Asia, which have overcome the ill-effects He also suggests to reexamine the of the 1997 financial crisis in the region. doctrine of the ‘mean’ or the middle road which describes a path that not Some of these common values in Asia everything or every situation or relations are collectivism, rule by virtue, and should be characterised as black and harmony, which can be incorporated in white, or enemy and foe. “ Can there be the modernisation drive of the region, a middle road?, “ he said. said Mr Yang Fuqing, Director of China Global Television Network (CGTN), in his This middle road can also be reflected in speech during the Asia Media Summit’s the value of filial piety, which is evolving session on “Asian Values as Broadcasting and changing. In China, for instance, he Themes” held in New Delhi, India on 10 said children practise less blind obedi- May 2018. ence to parents. Young people are becoming more independent.and keeping On collectivism, Mr Yang said there “What role do Asian values play in the their fate in their own hands. is a need to balance this Asian value economic development of China with with individualism prevalent in other strong Confucian values , which in the Should we not show love and care to cultures. “Emphasizing collectivism only last four decades modernised at an parents, which is part of filial piety while or individualism only is not right”, he amazing speed? Do values like collectiv- making relations between parents and further said. ism, thriftiness and spirit of hardwork children more democratic and equal?”, which we find in China contribute to the he further said. He stressed that collectivism without fast development of the country?”, Mr caring for the individual goes against hu- Yang asked delegates, mostly heads of In his presentation, Mr Yang also stressed man nature while stressing individualism broadcast companies, media experts and the importance of ‘ civilisation diversity’, and ignoring the collective jeopardises academics in Asia-Pacific. the source of creation, innovation and the common good of the people. development, so that nations and people What has happened to China, he said, can learn from each other, incorporating “The key is to find a balance between the may provide a counter argument to the good and abandoning the bad from two”. criticisms that Confucianism hinders each civilisation.

15 Broadcaster AMS 2018 Spreading Asian Values through Asian Films

sian films should pay more attention to the interface between Aancient cultures, values and modern civilisation.

“Any tradition must be part of contemporary culture”, Mr S. Letchumanan, Un- dersecretary of the International Division, Ministry of Communication and Multime- dia, Malaysia, said during the Asia Media Summit’s session on “Asian Values as Broadcasting Themes” held in New Delhi, films, he said, which have drawn much Among the values prominent in Asian India on 10 May 2018. attention from different countries due to films, he said, is nationalism and this globalisation is reflected in the use of the national He said there is a need for the world language or love for the mother tongue. to exchange and reference with other In his presentation, he cited the globali- national cultures not only to promote sation of Asian movies and dramas which Other values in Asian movies and dramas national cultures, but also to propel so- contain universal and diverse themes such are love for family, respect for authority, el- cial progress. This should apply to Asian as love, life, revenge, death and poverty. ders and ancestors as well as spirituality.

Production and Development, Discovery Channel, showed some of their documen- Asian Values Critical taries that “ helped create a new way and a unique space to showcase Asian stories, perspectives and values using Dis- for Sustainable World covery Channel ’s visually evocative style that we sometimes internally referred to as Hollywood meets journalism”.

This unique space, he said, is a non- Western international mounted approach in defining the key content in this part of the world.

rofessor Krishnamurthy Ramsub- The Indian professor also lamented the ramanian, a professor at Indian absence of a certain system which gives PInstitute of Technology, Mumbai, ethical education more importance than India, also spoke at this session. technical education. “Therefore, lots of crimes are happening”, he said. He shared two distinct values found in India but has spread across Asia that are “We should not be lured today by material critical for a sustainable world. These incentives than moral incentives that are veneration for nature that can save can be inculcated, and if we inculcate our endangered planet, and family or the moral incentives then one gets rewarded value of the collective over the individual. by our conscience rather than external entities”, he said. He urged media to play a vital role in highlighting these values. Mr Vikram Channa, Vice President for

16 AMS 2018 Broadcaster Parallel Session 3 ASBU Pursues UHDTV, ArtificIal Intelligence, Social Media Interactivity High Dynamic Range-HDR – Multi track broadcasters to analyse audience data, sound production, which offer more and deliver deeper engagement with pixels, images closer to reality, as well as content experience. immersive and better sound experience. She said ASBU is also encouraging their “ASBU is recommending to their mem- member broadcasters to use “distin- ber organisations to start producing us- guished, unique user-generated content ing multi track audio and is organising UGC as part of the show”. training sessions on multi track audio with hands on practice in ASBU Acad- Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the next dig- emy TV studio”, Engineer Ines Jebali, ital frontier, she said. ASBU Head of Production Technology and New Media, said during the paral- She added that fast computers, cheaper lel session on “New Technologies in the storage, high bandwidth internet, and Ms Ines Jebali Broadcasting and Film Industry to En- development in machine learning are hance Storytelling”, held in New Delhi, making AI starting to deliver real-life he Arab States Broadcasting Union India on 11 May 2018. business benefits. (ASBU) is pursuing new technology Tinitiatives to enhance storytelling On social media interactivity, Engineer “ASBU sees AI evolution very promising in TV programmes. Jebali said ASBU is assisting member and examines how it can best serve organisations develop strategies that tap content enhancement and is looking into ASBU recognises the advantages of opportunities offered by this platform, common services that can be deployed Ultra-High Definition TV (UHDTV) and invest in technologies that will enable on ASBU cloud platform”, she said. Achieving Highest Standards of Broadcasting Another speaker at the Summit session excitement of Tokyo 2020 Olympics and was Mr Yuji Yamana, Senior Manager Paralympics, share the excitement with at NHK, Japan, who focused on the IT technologies and public viewings, network’s corporate directions from and provide new viewing experience by 2018 to 2020. adopting new technologies such as Big Data, AR, VA, AI, robotics. One of its goals is to “bring the very highest standards of broadcasting and Another NHK major policy, he said, is other services to Tokyo 2020”. to “produce various programmes such as introducing the charms of each game, To accomplish this, Mr Yamana Japanese cultures to promote people said NHK will use 4K/8K Super Hi- including inbounds”. Mr Yuji Yamana Vision to help people share in the

17 Broadcaster AMS 2018 Focus on Workflow, Metadata, Machine Learning

r Ankur Jain, VP and Head of content, you’re building inefficiencies in Sales, Prime Focus, India, the whole system and also in terms of Mdiscussed the importance of quality. So you are shooting an 8k or 4k broadcast workflow and metadata in the but the fact is today most of the post- storytelling context. production happens in 2k, and resolution is lost that is what the bulk of the industry Mr Ankur Jain “You shoot a content, you shoot a story. is today. So how can you preserve this But if you’re not able to post produce content metadata right from the source more immersive, more inclusive, more it properly, you’re not able to finish the towards to the end result which is the engaging. Hence what you do to shoot a story in a well-done manner, then a good final product is what this workflow talks content, to produce a content, you get story can be a bad story. So we are saying about”. better eyes on those content”. to control the workflow of the digital story of the post-production itself”. He also said storytelling is about He cited the promos in the Paralympics orchestration of this content right from and Olympics which are being created Mr Jain said one of the issues involving the source, not losing any content, any using machines. He also talked about the workflow is the metadata “which metadata and being able to post produce the challenge of monetising a good story is core and captured at the location at it effectively so that we are able to get the like contextual ads that tap machine the time of shooting, is just lost” in the final result which has a lot of enriched learning. storytelling context. content and the metadata both. He advised broadcasters to identify He added that when creating a content His second subject focused on artificial places in the content where you can and distributing it to multiple channels intelligence and machine learning. insert advertisements and use the ad metadata can be a big differentiator. engines to get the right ads, insert them “Train the machines enough so that in the content. “Similarly when you create copies of the stories which come out of it are Three Different Directions of Technology

r Amitabh Kumar, Director (Cor- device they are going to grow to 256 or porate) of Zee Network, India, even more and there is no need to be Mdiscussed the three different connected to a network to continuously directions of technology, apart from 4k, stream either a movie or a story or a virtual reality, and augmented reality, serial or whatever you need”, he said. among others. He predicts that file casting is going to One is file casting, earlier called the replace all other current broadcasting podcasting in a very simplistic format. technologies.

In the next two to three years, he said the Another technology to watch out is the streaming is going to be replaced with Cloud where people want to be for cost file casting. “Today the devices which are savings. Mr Amitabh Kumar 64 gigabytes, each phone or whatever [continued on page 19] 18 AMS 2018 Broadcaster Plenary Session 3 Compelling Storytelling to Regain People’s Trust in Media

ruth in media is vanishing and Office in Jakarta, Indonesia, suggests sensationalism a hotcake in that media should regroup and refocus Tthe market. According to Mr F on core journalism. This requires stron- Sheheryar, Director General of All India ger emphasis on ethics journalism that Radio, India, to regain people’s trust demands accuracy, avoiding hate speech in media, there is a need to produce and thinking of the audience. compelling stories that are relevant, truthful and meant for public good. Mr Sheheryar and Dr Lim were among six speakers of the Asia Media Summit’s “The world over the biggest asset for session on “Telling Compelling Stories: public broadcasters and mainstream Challenges and Opportunities; Radio and Dr Lim Ming Kuok media has been the trust people repose Community Radio” held in New Delhi, “Let them also know the role of in them, and losing that trust particularly India on 11 May 2018. journalism. There’s something to be said for public broadcaster can create about going to the basics”, he said. endemic problems of governance and To get the people’s trust back, Dr Lim delivery”, Mr Sheheryar said. said we need to engage the audience He also warned against getting lost in and rebuild that connection between the the technology side and forgetting the Dr Lim Ming Kuok, Advisor for Com- producer and consumer of news. munication and Information, UNESCO [continued on page 20]

[continued from page 18] Three Different Directions of Technology

Mr Kumar said that while the cloud might He also touched on the unexplored world to be able to cope with virtual reality or save some costs, the reality of the cloud is of connected devices and mobiles in the not I am not able to say at the moment. that once the content is in the cloud “it can digital world. But digital is going to take along with appear in different formats and in different file casting, the whole dimension to a avatars, with people working on it, may be “We believe that as we go along, this different format”, he said. start-ups, and delivering to different net- is going to change the way things are works like community networks, colleges, going to be depicted. Whether it is going to gaming networks, or social media”.

19 Broadcaster AMS 2018

[continued from page 19] Compelling Stroytelling to Regain People’s Trust in Media

core of what we are doing and telling the they want in both mainstream and new human side of story. media”, she said.

In his speech, Dr Lim identified some Dr Shahidul Alam, award-winning pho- approaches to reestablish trust in media; tographer and Founder, Pathshala South ensure the display in newsrooms of the Asia Institute, Bangladesh, lamented journalism code of ethics; put in place that when storytelling in journalism, we safety protocols for journalists in order to don’t humanise the people we talk about. deal with the dangers of, among others, sexual harassment and war coverage; and “As intermediaries, we (media) give our- have a policy of audience engagement selves too much attention and forget or with journalism students as well as civil undermine the farmers, migrant workers, Dr Ramachandran Ponnan society players. who are the backbone of our economy. We reduce people to statistics”, Dr Alam said. needed training in community radio, Ms Paula Slier, Middle East Bureau particularly on local marketing skills. Chief, Russia Today, emphasised the He also stressed the need to reach out to need to know audiences. young audiences in whatever platforms. Dr Ramachandran Ponnan, Associate “They have forced us to rethink our Professor, Taylor’s University, Malaysia, strategy and become relevant. There is praises community radio for highlighting the young audience who wants to be stories where authorities and media empowered, to have a say and it’s time choose to look the other way around. for media to respond”, he said. He also said that new media is enhancing On community radio, Mr Sheheryar said storytelling, narrowing the distance this platform offers opportunities to high- between the storyteller and the audience. light compelling stories, citing narrative on women empowerment, health cam- Ms Sarah Gibson, Chairperson of the paigns and agricultural entrepreneurship. Worldwide Association of Women Jour- Ms Paula Slier nalists & Writers, served as the session’s He urged various sectors to support much moderator. She asked if media are reflecting what audience wants or what stories we want them to hear.

In their YouTube channel, she said their viewers want personalised raw footages of events. “We leave our audience to interpret our materials. They don’t want to be told”, she said.

She said the challenge is to listen to our audience. “Go to the platform and see what they are interested in and appeal to them. They want to be engaged. They want to feel they are important and are listened to. We need to incorporate what 20 AMS 2018 Broadcaster Parallel Session 4 Media must Remain Agile in a Digitally Collaborative Environment

igitisation that has disrupted almost all kinds of industries is Dpushing media to create the right content, make it available to as many distribution platforms, and optimise their yield.

Media players must remain agile, he doesn't match the 400 percent increase said, and as they become digitised there in the availability of content. Budget and is opportunity for them to leverage what revenues are increasing between 3 and made them great, while investing in the 4 percent, with some revenue categories Mr Louis Hernandez digital area. showing an increase, and others a drop. These challenges are “driving this need for new ideas and causing media com- Mr Hernandez offered this view before the He also said that there is much pressure panies to really think why they matter, Asia Media Summit’s session on “Media for media to create the best, most engag- what makes them unique, and how can Business Models in the New Era”, held ing, immersive content. “This is not new, they be different because there’s a lot in New Delhi, India on 11 May 2018. but it is much more intensive an issue. going on in this digitally collaborative en- The best content always wins. You really vironment”, according to Mr Louis Her- The market has become complicated, he have to fight to differentiate yourself”. nandez, Chief Executive Officer, Black said, amid a 50% increase in consumption Dragon, USA. per capita in the last 10 years, which [continued on page 23]

21 Broadcaster AMS 2018 Plenary Session 4 Communication – Key to Successful Sanitation Drive in India

bringing about behaviour change among residents.

“We have grassroots motivators who go out to villages to campaign for defecation-free community and help make it sustainable. They have triggered behaviour change across India”, he said.

Government also tapped local paintings, songs and dances, and street plays at district level, while at the national level, it used traditional media like TV, radio and print as well as social media to reach more citizens for this project.

“Mobilising a jan andolan or people’s movement has galvanised and motivated ndia is implementing the biggest “Lack of sanitation leads to physical and citizens, generating, among others, 220 sanitation programme in the world. cognitive stunting in children. It will lead thousand films, 250 thousand paintings, IIts known as Swachh Bharat to a far less productive future workforce. and 20 million essays“, Secretary Iyer (cleanliness) Mission which aims to end ‘Swachhata’ secures safety and dignity said. open defecation by 2019. of women”, he said.

The campaign has been successful as This session highlighted initiatives of its national rural sanitation coverage has countries in Asia-Pacific to promote the more than doubled since 2014, from United Nations-led Sustainable Develop- 38% in October 2014 to 83% as of May ment Goals (SDGs), which aims to end 2018. Total usage (as a percentage of poverty, protect the planet and ensure access) of toilets has also reached 90%. prosperity for all. Each goal has specific targets to be achieved by 2030. Mr Parameswaran Iyer, Secretary, India’s Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanita- Mr Iyer said inter-personal communication tion, spoke of the success of the coun- as well as media are integral components try’s sanitation programme during the to accomplish the many objectives of the plenary session on Sustainable Develop- sanitation campaign. Reaching out to ment Stories of the Asia Media Summit the community, he said, is important to in New Delhi, India.

Mr Parameswaran Iyer 22 AMS 2018 Broadcaster Sustainable Rural Livelihood

learn and understand more about SDGs small locality who are having difficulty and how they can play a vital role in finding markets. A networked project was achieving the 17 SDG goals. started and sale outlet established”, he pointed out. “A guideline for youth-led groups called the ‘Young Bhutan Network’ Nine nature-based products, developed was also launched. The guideline will as part of a project that aims to sup- strengthen and enhance coordination port sustainable rural livelihood, were

Mr Jagannath Sharma and networking among youth groups in launched in Thimphu. The products in- the country,” he said. clude anti-wrinkle cream, balm, massage r Jagannath Sharma, Head, oil, perfume, soaps and hand sanitisers. News & Current Affairs, Mr Sharma also talked about the MBhutan Broadcasting Service BBS campaign to support Bhutan’s He also said the project, implemented (BBS) highlighted the role of media in cleanliness drive in streets and rivers by the National Biodiversity Centre, mobilising young people to take an active in the form of news, talk-shows and Menjong Pharmaceutical Corporation and part in the implementation of SDGs. educational programmes. the UNDP, is also designed to contribute towards conservation and sustainable He said that BBS supported a national BBS also reported about small use of globally significant bio-diversity in consultation among youth leaders to entrepreneurs producing products in their the country.

[continued from page 21] value and better match of consumption Media must Remain Agile in a Digitally Collaborative Environment – what brings me joy to what you're creating, and allows them to pay for in a In creating content, he said, it is impor- with family and that’s what you’re going way that allows you to make money. This tant not only to consider lowering cost to see on Facebook, and those attributes is where the world is going and you see structure, but also making content avail- reflect the kind of shows I want. This this in pieces like Google”. able to more channels and optimising profile shows a certain demographics for the yield per asset. “That means you a show consumption”. He added that eventually we will “ need have to produce breakthrough winners to a great director, great producer, great make money in media”. The second item refers to what we do show runner who create shows that are and the metadata around that. He said entertaining but are organised around In his presentation, he urged the media Amazon, for instance, “may know what demographics, and you tie in product business to be smarter in optimising their I actually do like I really buy mostly ice placement digitally, ad insertion into yield, saying that over time, they will see cream; I hardly do anything with my dog; the show and you own some of the what he calls a “connected lifetime value I don’t go to the gym; and I usually sit intellectual property too”. approach of assets”. around, watch shows and eat popcorn.” Digitisation has risks, he said, but there’s He explained this concept of lifetime value Combining this person’s self-image with a bright future amidst this competition in media as being made up of three things. his actual consumption pattern and how for creative content, monetisation that The first is how you see yourself and the he pays, Mr Hernandez says, overtime is shifting, and this combining from metadata around how a person creates his helps a company create the winning creative to monetisation. own self-image. This is reflected, he said, content that will be infused with ad in the shows he watches and also what he placement, advertising, and product Noting that media is important to our says about himself. insertion based on what he actually does social fabric, Hernandez said he remains and he actually buys. optimistic about the future of media “I may say I'm a healthy guy, I love to work both for its social contribution and its out, l love my dog and spend all my time “This will allow you to increase lifetime economic power. 23 Broadcaster AMS 2018 The Viewers’ Rights Should Be Promoted

viewers’ participation in broadcasting, Thai Princess Srinagarindra, mother of and manages Community Media Centers. His Majesty King Bhumibo Adulyadej.

Mr Lee was among seven speakers at Ms Ninnad said the project have the AMS plenary session on Sustainable several objectives: to reforest Doi Tung, Development Stories held on 11 May upgrade the people’s standard of living, 2018. provide them with more educational opportunities and public health services Placing People at the Centre of Develop- and promote agricultural development in ment. a systematic manner.

Another speaker was Ramrada Ninnad, “We have transformed the lives of villag- Chief Development Management Officer ers who were opium growers and addicts of the Mae Fah Luang Foundation under into forestry workers, farmers of agricul- Royal Patronage who spoke about the Doi tural products, landscape gardeners and Mr Lee Dong Seok Tung Sustainable Alternative Livelihood entrepreneurs”, she said. Development project in Thailand’s north- rotecting and promoting viewers ern most province. Economically, she said the project has be- rights is important as a way to en- come a financially self-sustaining social Psure impartiality & public interest The project in Doi Tung, a high mountain enterprise since 2000, with an annual rev- of broadcasting, a key mission of the Ko- in Chiang Rai province, is a major envi- enue of USD 15 million, and offered em- rea Communications Commission (KCC). ronmental and socio-economic develop- ployment to at least 1,200 local people. ment programme that was initiated by Mr Lee Dong Seok, KCC Director, told Its social impact is significant, she said, as participants of the 15th Asia Media it has introduced Montessori student-cen- Summit (AMS) held in New Delhi, tred learning in eight schools, improved ac- India that promotion of viewers’ rights cess to healthcare for all ages, established covers both policy making and business a daycare centre for mothers with small implementation. children and increased job opportunities and skills training for the local people. He said that under policy making, KCC formulates and implements policies for The project’s environmental impact has viewers’ right, modifies Act and legal sys- brought about the revival of 90 square tem on viewers’ right, establishes Com- kilometres of forest land, stopped shift- munity Media Centers, and provides sub- ing cultivation, and significantly reduced sidy for viewers’ right. forest fires.

Under business implementation, he “The key to success is to recognise the said KCC engages in media education human potential to bring about change, for viewers, supports more access to and place people at the centre of broadcasting for the marginalised and Ms Ramrada Ninnad development”, she said. 24 AMS 2018 Broadcaster Plenary Session 5

two sides, but more importantly media must state that a fact is a fact. They can Challenges for be obligated to report two sides of a story if both are biased”. Media’s Success

edia success goes beyond sto- said Mr Narayan Chandra Shil, Director rytelling. To achieve it, media General, Bangladesh Betar, Bangladesh. Morganisations must address the public good. Their reporting must How to get people’s trust is media’s big- be inclusive to ensure diversity of opin- gest challenge, Mr F Sheheryar, Director ions and stories, and media practitioners General of All India Radio, India, pointed should pursue accuracy and truth to pre- out. He said we need to migrate from vent misinformation and fake news. the post truth to the truth era, reporting events and issues without any garnish- These were some of the challenges artic- ment. ulated by heads of media organisations Mr John Maguire during the CEO Roundtable on “Story- “Without people’s trust, media will telling and the Success of Media” held continue to exist only, without a soul”, To gain trust, Dr Mottaghi suggested during the Asia Media Summit on 11 he stressed. the pursuit of investigative journalism. May 2018. “Media must report in an accurate and impartial manner, even if sometimes this goes against the interest of the private sector and government to get to the truth”.

Mr Steve Ahern, CEO of International Media & Broadcasting Academy, Austra- lia, identified diversity in broadcasting as a key challenge, saying media must present a variety of stories and opinions and be more inclusive to address the needs of various sectors, particularly disadvan- taged sectors like ethnic groups. He cit- Ms Apurva Purohit ed the case of Australia where a second Ms Apurva Purohit, President of Jagran government channel offers opportunities Group, India, said trust is not a button for diversity and inclusivity by accom- one switches on and off. It has to be built modating various languages, an initiative through the years. She added that media that can address threats of terrorism and has lost control over content as many extremism. Dr Javad Mottaghi more consumers are able to source, Dr Javad Mottaghi, Secretary General write, produce and distribute content. of the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU) who chaired the session, asked Amid the availability of massive content panelists their perspectives on the one and people’s access to various platforms, single challenge the CEO of a media she said audiences have realised that company faces in today’s fast changing consumers are creating some ‘noise’ media landscape, and how this can be as well as biased platforms, although changed into an opportunity. other media outfits are still considered credible. “Media must work for the greater public good, which after all is the reason for Mr John Maguire, Director of International its existence. Public broadcasters in Relations, France Medias Monde, France, particular must address those issues other said being truthful doesn’t mean being media companies are not addressing”, neutral. “It’s not a matter of presenting Mr Steve Ahern 25 Broadcaster AMS 2018

Mr Jawahar Goel Mr Thusira Cintaka Malawi Mr Mohamed Shahyb

Mr Jawahar Goel, Managing Director of Sharing this view was Mr Mohamed Sha- Dish TV, Essel Group, India, called for hyb, President of Maldives Broadcasting greater engagement between government Corporation, who said radio assumes a and media in addressing issues of massive responsibility in dealing with conflict within society. disasters.

In dealing with the challenges of natural “In a disaster-prone country like Bangla- disasters, Mr Thusira Chintaka Malawi desh, we ensure that programmes in the Thantri, Director General of Sri Lanka national language are understandable to Rupavahini Corporation (SLRC), stressed indigenous peoples”, Mr Narayan Chan- the key role of media in minimising the dra Shil said. impact of disasters on communities. Mr Narayan Chandra Shil

26 AMS 2018 Broadcaster Closing Ceremony Time for Asia, not the West, to Shape its Stories of Struggles, Successes

how media can help people discuss infor- new regional mechanisms of media con- mation necessary for their development tent exchange. especially in the era of social media. He also said that Ministers of Information “The summit will facilitate better from Bangladesh, Cambodia and Korea regional cooperation in reaching out to and more than 60 speakers from the millions of underprivileged Asians to Asia-Pacific region and other parts of utilise information in best way for their the world and the host country India development” he said. deliberated deeply and thoroughly on the various topics of the summit. Mr Chang Jin, Director AIBD in his closing statement shared this sentiment, He thanked host India, members and citing discussions for more cooperation delegates for continuing to support the among member countries of AIBD and summit, saying it has “grown up and our partners in the region and the world. become one of the premiere platforms He also said specific suggestions were in Asia-Pacific to discuss and debate made on improving media policy for bet- the most important current topics of the ter and fairer society, pursuing concerted industry”. efforts in the SDGs, and setting-up of “I believe all delegates coming from the Col Rajyavardhan Rathore Asia-Pacific region and other parts of t’s time for Asia to shape its own nar- the world have been deeply impressed rative and build its stories of struggle with the warm hospitality of our hosts, Iand accomplishments and strength- the beauty in the land, the culture and en its position both socially and econom- the people, the talents and wisdom of ically, according to India’s Minister of the professionals of the country, and the State for Information and Broadcasting vision of its leaders”, Mr Chang Jin said. Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore. The AIBD Director also said the Institute As guest speaker during the closing cer- plans to explore new dimensions and emony of the 15th Asia Media Summit opportunities in the fast changing (AMS) in New Delhi, Minister Rathore expressions in media industry through a said, “For far too long, the West has collaborative and inclusive network and shaped the stories of Asia. I think now contribute to the growth of this industry is the time for Asia to shape its own sto- in the rich cultural heritage of the Asia- ries, real stories, the stories of emotions, Pacific region. successes, struggles, but eventually the stories of human ability to conquer dif- During the closing ceremony, Minister ficulties and move ahead”. Rathore graced the announcement and presentation of the winners of the AIBD He praised the theme of the conference, World TV Awards in two categories, namely “Telling our Stories – Asia and More”, the Best TV Documentary in Humanity and its outcome, saying its participants category and the Best TV Programme in engaged in productive deliberations on Mr Chang Jin Science and Environment category. 27 Broadcaster AMS 2018 AMS 2018 New Delhi, India

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Captions AMS 2018 1. The Union Minister for Textiles and Information & Broad- Information Bureau, Shri Sitanshu R. Kar at the 15th Asia casting, Smt Smriti Irani being present memento by 15th Media Summit, New Delhi Asia Media Summit dignitaries at the 15th Asia Media Summit, New Delhi on May 10, 2018. 12. Mr F. Sheheryar DG AIR addressing joint session on telling compelling stories at the 15th Asia Media Summit, New 2. The Minister of State for Youth Affairs and Sports (I/C) Delhi and Information & Broadcasting, Col. Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore officials of the I&B Ministry the concluding ses- 13. The Union Minister for Textiles and Information & Broad- sion of the 15th Asia Media Summit, New Delhi casting, Smt Smriti Irani with the Director General (M&C), Press Information Bureau, Shri Sitanshu R. Kar and of- 3. The Union Minister for Textiles and Information & Broad- ficials at the 15th Asia Media Summit, New Delhi. casting, Smt Smriti Irani with the distinguished dignitar- th ies at the 15th Asia Media Summit, New Delhi 14. Ms Twinkle Khanna was at the 15 Asia Media Summit, New Delhi 4. The Union Minister for Textiles and Information & Broad- casting, Smt Smriti Irani being presented a memento by 15. The Minister of State for Youth Affairs and Sports (I/C) Mr George Kuruvilla CMD of BECIL at the 15th Asia Media and Information & Broadcasting, Col. Rajyavardhan Singh Summit, New Delhi Rathore officials of the I&B Ministry the concluding session of the 15th Asia Media Summit, in New Delhi 5. The Union Minister for Textiles and Information & Broad- th casting, Smt Smriti Irani in a meeting with the dignitaries, 16. Mr. Louis Hernandez Jr. addressing at the 15 Asia Media on the sidelines of the 15th Asia Media Summit, New Del- Summit, New Delhi hi. The Standing Commissioner Korea Communications 17. The Secretary, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Commission, Mr Sam Seog Ko and the Director AIBD, Mr Shri N.K. Sinha with other dignitaries at the 15th Asia Chang Jin are also seen in the picture Media Summit, in New Delhi 6. The Secretary, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, 18. The Union Minister for Textiles and Information & Broad- Shri N.K. Sinha addressing the Parallel Session on the casting, Smt. Smriti Irani at the with the Director & staff new technologies in the Broadcasting and Film Industry of AIBD to Enhance Story-Telling, at the 15th Asia Media Summit, New Delhi 19. Speakers of the Plenary Sessions Sustainable Develop- ment Stories & Programme Manager AIBD at the 15th Asia 7. The Union Minister for Electronics & Information Tech- Media Summit, New Delhi nology and Law & Justice, Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad, at the plenary session on Media Regulation Policies: Ethics, 20. Renowned Folk Artist, Padma Awardee Ms Malini Awasthi th rules and laws, during the 15 Asia Media Summit, New addressing, at the plenary session on Media Regulation Delhi Policies: Ethics, rules and laws, during the 15th Asia Me- dia Summit, New Delhi 8. The Union Minister for Textiles and Information & Broad- casting, Smt Smriti Irani, the Union Minister for Electron- 21. The Union Minister for Textiles and Information & Broad- ics & Information Technology and Law & Justice, Shri casting, Smt. Smriti Irani with 15th Asia Media Summit Ravi Shankar Prasad along with the the Director, AIBD, dignitaries and officials at the 15th Asia Media Summit, in Mr Chang Jin and MD Times Group Mr Vineet Jain, at the New Delhi 15th Asia Media Summit, New Delhi 22. Artist performed culture programme at the 15th Asia Me- 9. The Union Minister for Textiles and Information & Broad- dia Summit, New Delhi casting, Smt Smriti Irani, arrives at the 15th Asia Media Summit, New Delhi 23. Sightseeing at Qutab Minar

10. The Union Minister for Textiles and Information & Broad- 24. Sightseeing at Qutab Minar casting, Smt Smriti Irani with The Director General (M&C), Press Information Bureau, Shri Sitanshu R. Kar, at the 25. Sightseeing at Humayun Tomb 15th Asia Media Summit, New Delhi 26. Sightseeing at Humayun Tomb 11. The Secretary, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Shri N.K. Sinha with The Director General (M&C), Press

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1. H.E. Smt Smriti Zubin Irani 9. Mr Thusira Malawwethantri 18. Dr Ramachandran Ponnan 27. Dr Lim Ming Kuok, 34 Mr Iain Martin 2. Col Rajyavardhan Rathore 10. Mr Shigeru Aoyagi 19. Mr Louis Hernandez Jr Ms Munira Murad & 35. Ms Ines Jebali 3. H.E. Dr Khieu Kanharith 11. Dr Javad Mottaghi 20. Dr Wu Dianyi Ms Philomena Gnanapragasam 36. Mr Aale Raza 4. Mr Sam Seog Ko 12. Mr Abdelrahim Suleiman 21. Ms Deborah Kelly 28. Mr Yang Fuqing 37 Ms Munira Murad 5. Mr Vineet Jain & 13. Mr F. Sheheryar 22. Mr Parmeshwaran Iyer 29. Ms Samantha Ramlu 38. Ms Carol Yu H.E. Mr Hasanul Haq Inu 14. Mr George Kuruvilla 23. Ms Salmah Ibrahim 30. Mr Vikram Channa 39. Mr KC Rabi 6. Mr Ravi Shankar Prasad 15. Mr Narayan Chandra Shil 24. Mr Lee Dong Seog 31. Ms Twinkle Khanna 40. Mr John Maguire & 7. Dr Abbas Naseri Taheri 16. Mr Yuji Yamana 25. Ms Poonam Sharma 32. Dr Venket Iyer Mr Steve Ahern 8. Mr Chang Jin 17. Mr AHM Bazulur Rahman 26. Mr Mohamed Shahyb 33. Mr Gordon Gu 41. Ms Sarah Gibson

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33 Broadcaster AMS 2018 ASBU Meeting ASBU, AIBD Seek Stronger Cooperation

he Arab States Broadcasting Union that they will make available translators a workshop on hybrid broadcasting (ASBU) and AIBD pledged to ex- to enhance engagement of Arab speakers (HbbTV), which Mr Suleiman said is a Tpand their cooperation in capacity with participants from Asia-Pacific. hot topic among ASBU members. building activities for their members. AIBD Director Chang Jin thanked ASBU Mr Suleiman also pointed out that ASBU In their annual partnership committee for their continuing support to the AMS is promoting online training programmes meeting held in New Delhi, India on and other activities of the Institute and in three languages to build capacity and 11 May 2018, Mr Abdelrahim Sulei- said they would include participation competence of their members. Online man, ASBU Director General, commit- of Arab speakers and make available programme topics will include social ted to bringing in more Arab participants translation facility in the conference. media, training of trainers, production, and speakers to the Asia Media Summit and one on radio. In June, ASBU will (AMS) in 2019. Mr Mohamed bin Saad Aljuris, Adviser to launch the online programme on mobile the President of Saudi Broadcasting Cor- journalism. He said face-to-face training Through the Asia Media Summit, Mr poration, Saudi Arabia, expressed support will be converted into an online model in Suleiman stressed the need to present for the summit, saying this was a good order to benefit more members and make a more positive perspective of the Arab platform to enhance understanding and training materials more accessible to world. strengthen cooperation between the two them. He also said that ASBU was ready regions. to partner with AIBD in organising online “The Arab world should not be charac- programmes and requested the Institute terised as simply a region where there Mr Suleiman also pledged US$5,000 as to identify trainers for these programmes. is much conflict and violence; there are support for the AIBD World TV Awards, and bright spots in the region that need to be committed to including an ASBU member Director Chang Jin said the Institute is known across the globe, including Asia- as part of the jury for the competition. On ready to cooperate in this endeavour Pacific, and the AMS is a good venue for the 4th regional workshop on digital radio, while Mrs Philomena Gnanapragasam, this”, he said. which ASBU has supported, he said they Head of AIBD Programme Department, will continue to send participants as well said the Institute has plans to introduce He also advised AIBD to avoid holding as to the proposed AIBD workshop on a similar approach to training. the AMS on dates that conflict with the social media. Ramadan period to ensure more partici- Eight ASBU members and AIBD staff pation from the Arab world. He also said AIBD and ASBU agreed to organise joined the hour-long meeting.

34 AMS 2018 Broadcaster SPT Meeting

embers of the AIBD Strategic Plan Team met recently on the Msidelines of the Asia Media SPT Members Summit 2018 in New Delhi, India to examine directions and programmes of the Institute for the next four years. Review AIBD’s

Discussions were focused on the new Strategic Plan draft which had been New Strategic Plan shared among the SPT members. It covers AIBD’s three strategic areas, namely, AIBD as a regional platform for exchange Corporation (SLRC), chaired the meeting, can offer new and innovative ideas for of information for members in the elec- and said there was a need to further consideration by the SPT. tronic media industry; advanced train- review the document, an idea shared by ing and consultancy, and specialised some SPT members. Director Chang Jin acknowledged the research activities dealing with develop- good suggestions on the draft Strategic ment trends, regulation and policy of the “The draft Strategic Plan needed Plan, and argued the document should electronic media industry in the region elaboration and further examination”, Mr be reviewed and strengthened. He pro- and around the world. Mohamed Saeed, Chief Operating Officer posed to continue the discussions on of Public Service Media, Maldives, said. this plan in the General Conference in In serving as a regional platform for in- Colombo, Sri Lanka in August 2018. It formation exchange, the Institute should Some members also said the specialised is the hope of SPT members to approve cover the introduction of new technolo- research activities benefit members, but the revised Strategic Plan during the GC. gies and services, discussion of regula- these should be shared on the website, tions and standardisation directions. and must involve others in the region. On the AMS in 2019, Director Chang “Consider turning some research findings Jin announced the withdrawal of the Under advanced training and consultancy, into infographics so that members can Philippines as host of this event. He said the Institute should focus on new training learn more”, Mrs Wanida Gajaseni, Senior the process of selecting a new host is programmes, media literacy and launch Information Officer, International Cooper- underway. online media training. It should diversify ation Department, National Broadcasting its research activities and methods as of Thailand, suggested. Another agenda of the meeting was a post well as engage other members in the assessment of the AMS 2018, which most region. Others pointed out gaps in the plan, SPT members described as a success. among them, the lack of clear direc- The underlying vision in pursuing these tions, specific objectives, practical ac- The SPT Chairman said the Sri Lankan strategic areas, is to continue to “achieve tion plans, timelines, and deliverables team found the conference well conduct- a vibrant and cohesive electronic media for effective evaluation. Strengthening ed. There was a consensus that the theme in the Asia-Pacific region through policy regional cooperation and staff develop- and conference topics were appropriate and resource development”. ment should also be emphasized. and relevant, among these, the Master- class on Storytelling, and the sessions on Mr Thusira Chintaka Malawi Thantri, There was a suggestion to share the Director General of Sri Lanka Rupavahini proposed plan to some thinktanks who [continued on page 37]

35 Broadcaster AMS 2018 World TV Awards

Mr Abdul Rahim Suleiman, Director- General of the Arab States Broadcasting Winners of AIBD Union (ASBU), major sponsor for this award on Humanity, congratulated the winner and said their organisation is World TV Awards pleased to be a partner of this important initiative by AIBD and its members.

Announced at AMS The winner of the World TV Award for Best TV Programme on “Clean Water for Life” was “Blueprint for Survival: NE- Water produced by MediaCorp, Channel The winning entry focuses on Urisamba ourney on Foot “Homewards”, a NewsAsia, Singapore. Ba, a man who spends his days gathering TV documentary on the life of an salt in the beautiful Lac Rose of Senegal. Jimmigrant worker who struggles to Ms Mak Ying Kwan, the programme di- He has two wives and 16 children, all realise his dream to return to his homeland, rector, received the Award. She said the dependent on a measly $10 a day broadcast by KBS1, Korea, won the AIBD subject of her programme dealing with income. World TV Awards under the Humanity the lack of water is a story relevant not category on Migration or Immigration. only to Singapore but also to the whole Ba lives for a dream and that is to return world. to his homeland. He saves money for his Mr John Maguire of Audio Visuel de la dream, but life doesn't make it easy for France, Chairman of the World TV Awards “Blueprint for Survival” is a three-part him as he is exploited by brokers . Jury, spoke of the many good content the documentary series showcasing crises

TV Awards jury screened for this year’s that threatened Singapore’s survival In his documentary, Director Kim awards. and how rising to meet these challenges revealed the harsh environment the strengthened and sharpened the mettle migrants are exposed to and also focused Jae-Gook Shin served as the programme’s of Singaporeans. Its winning entry was on finding a meaning in life though life executive producer and its director Han- the episode titled “Blueprint for Survival: is harsh. In accepting the award, he Seok Kim received the Awards’ trophy NEWater”. It focused on Singapore’s hoped people will appreciate better the and certificate. efforts to find solutions to attain water meaning of human life. independence. The country’s willpower

36 AMS 2018 Broadcaster

to overcome water shortage made it seek Environment, was present at the awards and Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports, out technology to recycle wastewater presentation ceremony. Dr Abbas Naseri Taheri, Director General, for drinking. Key players share insights International Department and Advisor to on how NEWater was created and how For each category the winning organisa- IRIB President, Iran, and AIBD Director it opened doors to huge, unexpected tion/producer will receive a cash prize of Chang Jin. economic opportunities. US$5,000. The runner-up for the category Humanity Mr Zhang Yilong, Director of Overseas Also present at the event were Col was “The Promising Land”, directed Business Development, StarTimes, spon- Rajyavardhan SIngh Rathore, Minister of by Ta Quynh Tuand and broadcast by sor for this Awards’ category on Science/ State for Information and Broadcasting Vietnam Television, Vietnam.

[continued from page 35] of the conference proceedings; inclusion SPT Members Review AIBD’s New Strategic Plan of younger speakers in some sessions; “Business Models in the New Era”, and business models was popular among preparation of speakers’ powerpoint pre- “Asian Values as Broadcasting Themes”. delegates. sentations that are more understandable to the participants; evaluation survey of Dr Abbas Naseri Taheri, Advisor to IRIB Some SPT members commented on the speakers after each session; and better President and AIBD General Conference need to manage the time of speakers marketing efforts to attract more foreign (GC) President, appreciated in particular more effectively. Some sessions had too participants. the list of professionals who spoke at many panelists. Speakers in some con- the session on “Business Models in ference sessions failed to offer new per- Fourteen SPT members from Cambodia, the New Era”, saying the information spectives on the topics. Korea, Iran, Malaysia, Maldives, Sri Lan- on advertising in new media and data ka, and Thailand, including a few AIBD mining they presented were useful. AIBD There were recommendations to improve staff joined the meeting which ended at Director Chang Jin said this session on the AMS, among them; the publication 10:45pm. 37 Broadcaster AMS 2018 Gala Dinner

India’s Epic Ramayana at the Asia Media Summit AMS 2018 – amayana is an ancient Indian epic poem that is one of the most R important in Hindu literature. Cultural Dance Written in Sanskrit by sage Valmiki, it narrates the struggle of the divine prince Ram or Rama to rescue his wife Sita from the demon king Ravana. This epic has been performed throughout India and many parts of Asia for at least 2000 years.

Some episodes of Ramayana were performed for delegates of the Asia Media Summit 2018 in New Delhi, India during the Gala Dinner. The show in the dance form depicted the rich culture of the region that has been the source of compelling stories for radio, television, film and even new media. the period of exile in the beautiful forest help, and Sita commands Lakshman of Panchavati. to go. Lakshman leaves reluctantly, Ramayana also reflected the theme of instructing Sita not to come out of the the Summit, ‘Telling our Stories- Asia Surpanakha hut. and More’. The sister of the demon king Ravan is enamoured by the youthful beauty of Sita Haran: Ravan Abducts Sita Here’ a synopsis of the various parts of the two brothers. She approaches one Ravan, seeing Sita alone, comes to her Ramayana that were presented: and then the other for marriage, but is in the guise of a hermit. Sita comes disappointed by both. Lakshman loses out of the hut forgetting Lakshman’s

Khewat Samvad: his temper and cuts off her nose. instructions. Ravan appears in his true Boatman and Ram form and abducts Sita. Ravan’s Court Ram, Sita and Lakshman search for a boat- Ravan, the king of Lanka is surrounded Jatayu Vadha: Jatayu is Slain man to take them across the River Ganga. by courtiers who are intoxicated and are Jatayu, the noble king of birds and The boatman, who knows about the eman- indulging in pleasures. The assembly is Ram’s devotee, tries to rescue Sita, but cipation of Ahilya, refuses to allow Ram to disturbed by the shrieks of Surpanakha. is mortally wounded by Ravan. touch the boat unless he is allowed to wash Ravan swears to take revenge and Ram’s feet.Once allowed, the boatman conceives a plan to abduct Sita. Ram-Ravan fight takes the charanamrit and gladly ferries On Meghnad’s death a furious battle takes them across the river. When Ram offers Swarna Mriga: Gold Deer place between the two armies and Ravan him money, he refuses to accept it. Ravan sends Marich to Panchavati in the himself comes to fight Ram, and with the guise of a folder deer. Sita asks Ram to death of the great demon king ends a long Panchavati kill and bring its skin. After a short time reign of evil. Ram installs the righteous Ram, Sita and Lakshman decide to pass Lakshman and Sita hear Ram’s cries for Vibhishan on the throne of Lanka, and thus peace is established once again.

Rajya-Abhishek: Ram’s Coronation The 14 years’ exile is over, and Ram, Sita, Lakshman and Hanuman return to Ayodhya where they are received by Bharat. Their return to Ayodhya is cele- brated and Ram’s coronation takes place amidst great rejoicing.

38 AMS 2018 Broadcaster Pre-summit: Master Class on Storytelling Telling Better Stories; Right Facts are not Enough

ournalism is basically storytelling, She said people are consuming telling the right facts, but this is not information through radio and TV, live Jenough to attract audiences in the streaming, reading online, podcasts, and fast-changing world. social media.

Former BBC news editor Sarah Gibson, In the traditional media structure, President of the Worldwide Association mainstream journalists are telling stories of Women Journalists and Writers, says that are based on evidence and rational people want journalists to tell stories or scrutiny to build trust among the people. narratives that engage them, and explain But Ms Gibson said in emergent media, why these stories matter to them. people are looking for stories that are rec- ognisably human, they can like and con- “Audiences want stories that they care nect with, and have cultural familiarity. about”, Ms Gibson said, “otherwise they will leave you and look for more relevant As audiences are getting younger, we stories”. are seeing a disconnect between the means providing audiences trends, up- demands of the existing and in emergent dating them with information, and of- Ms Gibson conducted the Masterclass media. But we need to tell stories that fering perspectives. But importantly, on Storytelling, Principles, Methods and have the components of both existing journalists should also produce stories Aims as a pre-summit activity to the Asia and emergent media perspectives. “Both that are inspiring, amusing and educa- Media Summit 2018 held in New Delhi approaches are valid”, she said. tiational. from 8-9 May 2018. What are the basics of storytelling? Another way to tell better stories is In telling good stories, participants iden- solutions-based journalism. Ms Gibson tified some of the challenges they face, Gibson said as journalists we often said young audiences often want to read these include the use of single or mul- assume our audiences know more than and watch more stories that present tiple platforms, innovative approaches to they do. That may not be so, they are solutions rather than just problems. storytelling, lack of resources, dictates often not following every development of concentrated media ownership, find- of a story and they have competing “Of course, we need to hold people to ing out who the audience is, how to build demands on their time. It’s important to account, interrogate facts. But this can trust, and how to make breaking news present and explain basic facts to them. be interpreted as negative and it can more compelling. often turn audiences off. They need more It’s also vital, she said, to go back to solutions,” she said. Close to 30 delegates from 10 countries basics by giving our audiences a strong in Asia-Pacific participated in the two-day lead and a strong peg. AIBD Director Chang Jin welcomed the workshop organised by AIBD with support participants saying this masterclass has from the China Central Television (CCTV). “We can also ask audiences what they become a tradition supported by CCTV want to know, what they want to talk and other partners. In order to tell better stories, Ms Gibson about”, Gibson said. urged journalists to get to know their Two other resource persons who spoke in audiences more, not only their gender, Drawing from her BBC experience, Gib- the masterclass; are Mr Abhaya Kumar social class, geographical and cultural son said audiences now want to see Padhi, author and media trainer from affiliation, but also where and how they that newsrooms feed the needs not only India, and Mr Yang Fuqing, Deputy consume diverse media platforms. of their head, but also their heart. That Director, CGTN English, China.

39 Broadcaster AMS 2018 Disregard Fixing a Formula in Telling a Story

torytelling as an art may not A person familiar to the listeners is more follow any set principles to be credible and acceptable. Sable to draw people’s interest. If storytellers do, then their narratives will Three, stories are mostly told to friends. look alike and will be devoid of diversity. Strangers are not precluded from listening. After all we meet as strangers first “Set principles will cripple variety of and become friends later through the narration. But at the same time we link of a story told. have to accept that all narratives follow a scheme, pattern and style for ease of Four, a story must have a location, a delivery, acceptance and understanding. time, and a situation must be there. We may call them loose principles”, according to Mr Abhaya Kumar Padhi, Five, multisyllabic, erudite, pedagogic author and media trainer from India. words are better avoided; they tend to over-intellectualise and philosophise. No Mr Padhi offered this perspective during qualifying is necessary. Otherwise, the the AIBD/CCTV Masterclass on Storytell- story may turn into lessons on ethics and ing, Principles, Methods and Aims as a morality sermonised and delivered from pre-summit activity to the Asia Media a pulpit. Eight, All storytellers are vulnerable to Summit 2018 held in New Delhi from doubts expressed by the audience. Dare 8-9 May 2018. Six, bring in contrasting ideas, characters to share their doubts and face them with and situations, and juxtapose them by candid emotion of your story. Be bold In his presentation, he identified some of placing them together. Let them come enough to ask your audience what you these ‘loose’ principles. into conflict and collide. In posing two questioned along the way so they too opposing ideas, a whole new idea will be share your doubt, confusion, anguish, One is about the ‘willing suspension of created. anger, sorrow, joy, insight and delight. disbelief’ by both the storyteller and the audience. Seven, stories are all about experience And nine, be a part of the entire process and idea. Reflect on that original idea but do not become a part of the story Two, decide whom, where and why to tell captured your imagination. Pass it on to even if per chance it is about you. This a story and who be the narrator. Is the the listeners as if it were a flame with may take away the credibility factor. narrator a stranger or a familiar person? warmth and light. Autobiographies may make good reading but they lack the imaginative character of fiction.

Mr Padhi also discussed the aims of storytelling, emphasizing that all stories or narratives are shared as a means of entertainment, education, cultural preservation or instilling moral and ethical values.

“Stories largely strive to establish an ethical human civilisation. The mundane, the profane, the celestial, the cosmic and the earthly – all narrated through stories are better understood and appreciated. The Greek principle of catharsis in drama comes into play equally in stories,” he said. 40 AMS 2018 Broadcaster

in the digital media world. Though it is a welcoming change, Miss Gibson Story Telling: highlighted that storytellers from across the world need to use visionary alternative modes of communication to Principles, Methods capture the audience's short-spanned attention, along with regaining their trust on the centuries-old institution back. and Aims By Garvita Sethi She explained working domain of a journalist in a much believable manner “There is no other profession out there which gives you the opportunity to make a difference through telling stories about what’s really going on”. She was also alarmed by the fact that standard form of journalism is a thing of the past and added that the audience has developed the distaste for heavily editorialized and negative stories. Young people all over the world are looking for the solution to their problems, and the first thing which they command is transparency of the media.

Later on, she wisely categorized news and factual content in five symbolic modes- basic factual content we all must know stands for a teacher; self-improvement knowledge to zoom ahead in life can be seen as a life coach; perspective of un- seen depth which is not agenda driven can be seen as a challenging person; interesting human stories about things “ his abundance of information is The audience searches for a steadfast reminds us of a storyteller and finally not the same as understanding, narrative in them, but the credibility of discursive and expanded knowledge of a Tand hence creates new challeng- the information is barely cross-checked. passionate thing or place is appropriate es for the audience”, said Sarah Gibson, Their loss of belief in the authority has to be tagged with a best friend. President of AIMMP, while delivering an paved the way for the concept of citizen intellectually stimulating pre-summit journalism, through which stories from The most nerve chilling moment of the talk on the theme based on principles, across the world are finding their space whole discussion was when she showed methods and challenges of storytelling.

Jahangir Hall of Taj Diplomatic Enclave was filled with pundits from the field of broadcasting, radio and print on the day of the event. The positive learning environment continued for more than three hours where the host introduced blocks of storytelling to its audience, along with making them aware of the rugged transition from old-school storytelling methods to the presently engineered ‘post-truth’ content from the newsrooms.

The monopoly of content from the past has been hunched up by chunks of information, present all over the internet. 41 Broadcaster AMS 2018

a three-minute video titled ‘Your Phone video ends with a powerful scene where reality and virtual reality which are is now a Refugees’ Phone’ shot by BBC multiple people are tapping on a smart- the emerging trends in this globalized Media Action. The heart crunching story phone, but the refugee crisis is not get- world. Some effective strategies were begins when a daughter from a war-strick- ting deleted from their phones. This is also discussed formulating appropriate en country is fleeing from her place, and ironic in the fact that although social me- content while keeping in mind the she updates her whereabouts to her father dia has made our life easier, it is not the essentiality of a feedback system. The through a smartphone. With the help of solution to every problem. insightful session reached its end when GPS, WhatsApp and mobile camera he is the host of the day was given a token of helping her in crossing the border until The audience was also rendered with honour, to valorize her credentials and her phone gets distorted in a fight. The some basic knowledge about augmented efforts for the session.

Article reported by Garvita Sethi (Volunteer), while Pre-Summit workshop was managed by Fathimath Leeza.

42 AMS 2018 Broadcaster Pre-summit: AR/VR

Evolution of AR & VR Technologies – Driving The Digital World

By Monica Phang • Cameras used for gathering surround- Programme Manager, AIBD ing/physical objects and depth sens- ing. roadcasters and film production India. Now on its second year, this regional companies around the world, workshop has become important in the Projection: Beven giant high-tech mobile com- Institute’s portfolio of training initiatives • Turns surface into an interactive envi- panies like Samsung, are exploring Aug- in view of the significant impacts of AR ronment; mented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality and VR to all industries particularly • Takes help of sensors and cameras to (VR) to enhance their creativity in con- broadcasting and the media industries. redefine the augmented environment. tent production to satisfy their consumers’ needs. Three expert resource persons spoke dur- Processing: ing the two-day workshop. • Considerable processing power re- Technologies that have long been so quired; expensive before that they were rarely Mr Naresh Gupta, Vice-President of • Good quality computer vision is key. seen outside of a R&D lab, have now Samsung Electronics Pte Ltd Delhi, become affordable for the average person. touched upon AR technology which has Augmentation and Placement: Most of the renowned IT leading entities been incorporated as a “built-in” apps of • Algorithms for overlay; like Google, Microsoft and Facebook Samsung’s mobile phones besides other • Real time adaption of virtual world have utilised the AR/VR technologies to applications like e-commerce, entertain- with real world. complement their endeavours in order to ment and sports, education and training, remain relevant in this IT evolving era. health care. For the broadcasting industry, Mr Gupta says that AR faces constraints in con- AR and VR are poised to change the en- He explained AR as encompassing the tent creation and delivery/presentation tertainment industry. However, entertain- real world plus the digital world that in- as specialised hardware equipment is ment isn't the only space where AR and volves overlaying of video, sound, graph- needed to view AR content and mostly VR are making inroads. In fact, at least ics, GPS Data and Haptics. unavailable at user premises. 10 industries are capitalising the potential of AR/VR technologies to tap the He categorised AR into marker based, He also presented other issues such as wonders of the digital worlds. They are in maker less, projection based and super- “if the system expects users to be tech education, health care, marketing, jour- imposition based while the key compo- savvy, it will not find wide adoption nalism, travel, real estate, skilled trades, nents of augmented reality are as follows: and the lack of standards on uniformity automobile and retail. across content creation and presentation Sensors & Camera Involving: techniques”. AIBD conducted the regional workshop on • Works as input devices; AR and VR as a pre-summit event to the • Sensors gather user interactions and Asia Media Summit 2018 in New Delhi, actions; [continued on page 44] 43 Broadcaster AMS 2018 AR and its Impact on Broadcast Graphics

r Aale Raza, Director of a form of AR, which allows a real object (an Singapore-based Whiteways anchor) to interact with a virtual object MSystem Pte Ltd, dwelt on AR in a virtual 3D space. It also permits and its impact on broadcast graphics more degrees of freedom and some of that had changed the landscape of the the graphics are simply stunning. media industry particularly the television broadcasting arena. He introduced Unreal Engine 4.00 which is a virtual 3D environment released late He said “graphics has played a very im- last year. Unreal Engine 4.00 is a com- portant part in television. The importance plete suite of development tools made for of graphics as a way of conveying infor- anyone working with real-time technology: mation, as a tool for channel branding From enterprise applications and cin- and as a business model has increased ematic experiences to high-quality games over the years. For financial, weather, across PC, console, mobile, AR and VR. sports news channels, graphics form the Unreal Engine 4 gives you everything you main central information provider. Real- need to start, ship, grow and stand out time graphics has the power to attract from the crowd.A world-class toolset and and hold viewers”. accessible workflows empower developers to quickly iterate on ideas and see imme- He described this as a paradigm shift diate results without touching a line of happening in broadcast graphics by ap- code, while full source code access gives plying the technology of AR. everyone in the Unreal Engine 4 commu- engine. The demo gave the participants nity the freedom to modify and extend en- an idea how easy and fast it was to create In the workshop, Mr Raza started by gine features. graphics. delving into the history of broadcast graphics. The advent of Chroma keying He said that broadcasters can now get As a system integrator, Whiteways pro- in the film – Thief of Baghdad – set a a ready-made virtual 3D engine – which vides their customers with the latest and new course. Film and television have has very advanced features. With the help best in terms of technology. Whiteways never been the same since. After of these features, a scene can be made sees these new developments as a game Chroma keying, came virtual sets. This very quickly and easily. Graphics artists changer for broadcast graphics and will was followed by 3D virtual sets with can breathe easy. They can now do a lot help their customer adopt them. embedded graphics. These were widely more work – which looks far superior and adopted by the broadcasting industry. is in real-time. The workshop ended with participants asking lots of questions in an animated The new paradigm shift has come in the Whiteways showed a demo of the unreal discussion.

[continued from page 43] Bangladesh, Fiji, Malaysia, Maldives, Sri Evolution of AR & VR Technologies – Driving The Digital World Lanka and Thailand besides local participants from India attended the workshop. He also said that AR and VR technologies to imagine new use cases and leverage provide a platform for a more enriching these technologies to implement them The AR/VR technologies seem to be a new and engaging user experience. in meeting the expectation of users and endeavour for most of the participants enriching experiences of the audiences”, who were amazed at how the AR/VR “These could particularly be useful to he said. elements illustrating what the presenters the broadcasters both at the time of are talking about rather than describing content creation and content delivery A total of 36 participants representing it in telling a more compelling story. to the users and audiences. The key is several different foreign countries like 44 AMS 2018 Broadcaster AR & VR is the new reality for creating immersive experiences to share culture and stories

more readily available and at a more rea- She also explained that virtual reality is sonable price point than it ever has. More very much single user based currently, households will have access to hardware so building your story to cater for your needed to view these new experiences”. captured audience is key.

Broadcasters need to embrace these new “Create empathy by letting someone mediums, she said, and start looking work in another person’s shoes or take at how they can use these to tell their them somewhere they may never experi- unique stories, how they can add value ence in their lifetime. Create an immer- to the story arc, and how they can create sive journey where you can tap into more new, and meaningful ways that engage than just their visual sense, use voice audiences. and sound to weave them into the narrative, and for installations other senses She said that at its core, storytelling is can come into play”. about sharing an experience, good, bad, s Shivanshu Samantha Ram- confronting, sad, or terrifying. All that’s She also advised that to enhance video, lu, Managing Director and changed is there are now new ways to broadcasters need to add graphic ele- MCo-Founder Method Digital communicate these stories, and they ments or special effects for more depth of New Zealand, elaborated on the ever have their own unique pros and cons in to your experience. “ Be authentic and evolving ARVR technologies from the how to make the most of these mediums. consider the emotions you’re trying to perspectives of journalism, cultures, so- evoke. VR is also known to be a valuable cial welfare and tourism. In her presentation, she said augmented tool in educating, don’t underestimate reality based stories are best served in this. Experiences in VR are shown to be “There are a whole new host of new tech- bite sized chunks but they work really well more memorable and therefore the infor- nologies available to storytellers that are for documentary or factual based stories. mation is more readily retained”. growing in popularity and reaching new heights of immersion. From augmented “You can tell a linear story or create Finally, she stressed that like any story, to virtual reality and projection map- interactive, non-linear paths to get the content is key – “don’t rely on novelty ping, these new mediums are allowing viewer more involved. Sound, voice, to carry the experience, ensure your story storytellers to take audiences on a won- special effects, overlaid graphics and is genuinely interesting. It’s not about derful journey where stories can be truly text, 3D animations, can all help to give replacing real life or human experiences brought to life” she said. augmented reality experiences and more and interactions but rather enhancing interest. Using real time objects and and adding value to these”. She added that “the industry is boast- environments can really enhance a story ing huge revenue figures by 2020 and and create more interest for a user”, she hardware is vast and becoming more and pointed out. 45 Broadcaster AMS 2018 Pre-summit: Media Law & Ethics Legal and Ethical Issues at the Heart of Asia Media Summit

By Dr Venkat Iyer session which threw the spotlight on legal it was necessary to identify common Barrister, United Kingdom and ethical issues relevant to journalism principles and approaches so that the and broadcasting. workshop could be meaningful and have the widest measure of appeal to The workshop attracted participants those attending. Such principles and from nearly a dozen countries, including approaches could, it was felt, be the Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Mal- building blocks for a further and deeper dives, Nepal, Pakistan, The Philippines, understanding of more complex country- Sri Lanka, and Syria, as well a large specific laws and practices. It is worth number of broadcasters from the host remembering, too, that, in some countries country, India. Spread over four substan- at least, not all the legal measures in tive sessions, it was held a day before the force were the result of legislation, i.e. start of the Summit on 9 May. law made by the respective national parliaments, but the products of judicial Given the importance of both law and decisions. This is a peculiar feature of ethics to the practice of journalism, ‘common law’ countries, of which many equal time was devoted to both subjects. exist in the Asian region. edia law and ethics are usually The workshop was conceived and not given a place of prominence directed by the present writer (who has Some of the topics, e.g. defamation Min international conferences run similar events in various parts of the and hate speech, generated animated unless they happen to be specialised world over the years) and the sessions discussion. A large number of cases, events involving legal professionals. It were very extremely interactive. Among drawn from diverse jurisdictions (in- was therefore a pleasant surprise for the topics covered on the legal side cluding from outside Asia), allowed the many, including the present writer, to see were: defamation, contempt of court, participants to gain insights into how that the recently-concluded Asia Media hate speech and copyright – with a very common problems were tackled differ- Summit included within its programme practical focus in each of those areas. ently, depending sometimes on historical not only a pre-summit workshop on the or cultural factors peculiar to a particular subject, but also a dedicated plenary Given the diversity of the Asian region, country. The workshop provided a valu-

46 AMS 2018 Broadcaster able opportunity to cross-fertilise ideas Inevitably, the central importance of with many of the participants expressing and to share experiences, which was ‘public interest’ became an overarch- a strong desire that more such events appreciated by many of the participants. ing theme of the discussions within needed to be organised on either a this part of the workshop. Much effort regional or sub-regional basis given the The second half of the workshop fo- was expended in identifying what the relative lack of importance normally at- cused on ethical issues. One of the fun- public interest meant in particular situ- tached to legal and ethical training for damental principles on which there was ations, and how far that concept could media practitioners in Asia. The formal widespread agreement was that, in the be pressed in aid of journalistic conduct feedback, received in the form of a ques- practice of journalism as in other areas, which would otherwise be deemed to be tionnaire completed by those attending, ethics deserved to enjoy as much atten- unacceptable. It became quite clear that confirmed this sentiment. tion by media practitioners as legal rules. the line may have to be drawn differently As was noted at the outset, “what is le- in different countries. Even so, it was Media law and regulatory matters also gal may not necessarily be ethical” and agreed that all legal systems and ethical featured in a panel discussion on the it was not enough for broadcasters and codes should provide for exceptions to be subject held as the first plenary session others to simply comply with the letter made on grounds of public interest. of the Asia Media Summit on 10 May. of the law. The discussion, moderated by the pres- As to what constituted the public inter- ent writer, brought together a group of The discussion on media ethics spanned est, most participants accepted that prominent speakers, including: Mr Ravi a wide range of discrete issues such as: such actions as detecting or exposing Shankar Prasad, Minister for Law, Justice accuracy; privacy; right of reply; intrusion crime, protecting people from being and Information in the Government of into grief and shock; chequebook misled by the acts of others, protect- India; Mr Hasanul Haq Inu, Minister for journalism; use of subterfuge in reporting; ing public health, safeguarding public Information in the Government of Bangla- coverage of suicides; treatment of victims safety, exposing miscarriages of justice, desh; Mr Chandramouli Kumar Prasad, of sexual offences; coverage of children; and highlighting serious cases of impro- Chairman, Press Council of India; Dr payments to criminals; and protection of priety, unethical conduct or corruption, Khieu Kanharith, Minister of Information confidential sources. It was recognised clearly fell within the definition of that of the Government of Cambodia; and Mr by all present that some of these issues important term. Numerous examples Ko Sam-Seog, Standing Commissioner, also raised legal concerns, so that there were discussed to illustrate how this Korean Communication Commission. This was an overlap between law and ethics concept would be applied in practice. panel discussion encompassed a wide which had practical implications for range of topical issues, many of which every journalist. The workshop elicited widespread praise, touched on public policy and the role of the government in media regulation.

47 Broadcaster AMS 2018 Pre-summit: Digital Terrestrial Television Broadcasting

Strategies for Smooth Transition from Analogue to Digital Terrestrial Television

By Utpal Kanti Mandal Broadcasting Programme Manager, AIBD

igital broadcasting is a broadcast the termination of analogue broadcast- of digitalisation and aims to install 630 technology based on the trans- ing services. DTT transmitters finally having 230 Dmission of audiovisual media HPTs and 400 LPTs for covering the information by bit streams. The most Considering that the migration to DTTB whole country with a number multiplexes dynamic and technically complex en- has been a global trend, the Asia Pacific at every location to provide a bouquet vironment of TV content distribution is countries could learn from the experienc- of services to the viewers. Therefore, it Digital Terrestrial Television Broadcast- es and best practices of other countries’ is very appropriate for other countries ing (DTTB). Traditionally, TV broadcast- migration to digital TV. The development in the region to gain from the transition ing served stationary receivers at home. of a national roadmap for transition to experience of India. digital terrestrial television starts with an Today’s users require information, info- analysis of the current TV market struc- Regional workshop on DTTB Transition tainment and entertainment anywhere, ture, analogue TV networks and regulatory Strategy conducted in New Delhi on 9 anytime and on any device, if possible framework. The aim or end milestones of May 2018 as a pre-summit workshop interactively and at the highest possible the roadmap are identified by formulating during the Asia Media Summit 2018 thus service quality. Modern broadcasting the digital switch-over (DSO) objectives. got relevance. This pre-summit workshop concepts try to cope with these demands aimed to provide broadcasters and other that can only be satisfied by digital India has adopted DVB-T2 Standard media professionals a clear understand- technologies. Therefore, transition from for digitalisation of its huge terrestrial ing to planning and implementation of analogue to digital technology is a must. network and progressing significantly digital terrestrial television broadcasting Migrating to DTTB allows broadcasters towards implementing DVB-T2 and T2- services. This one-day workshop provid- to be competitive and more attractive Lite services in the country. Doordarshan ed expert knowledge and information on than the other modes of delivery of TV India (DDI), the country’s public Service the road to digitalisation focusing on the services. The transition process allows Broadcaster, has one of the biggest main issues like digital broadcast imple- for a gradual introduction of Digital TV television networks in the world with mentation, regulatory framework & digi- services without subjugating the exist- more than 1100 transmitters of different tal dividend, digital broadcast standards ing analogue TV viewers until such time power levels and categorised as High and market & business development as when a prescribed percentage of the Power Transmitters (HPT), Low Power well as sharing successful case stud- viewing population has already shifted to Transmitters (LPT) and Very Low Power ies and experiences of digital migration digital which will subsequently warrant Transmitters (VLPT). DDI is in the process roadmaps and strategies adopted.

48 AMS 2018 Broadcaster

Quite a number of speakers in this work- Mr M.S. Duhan DDG (Engg.) focused tunities. In the last part of his presentation shop were from DDI who are actively on experiments and experiences with Mr Yilong presented the China-Africa Co- involved in the system designing and DTT delivery on handheld devices while operation project case study on ‘Digital TV network planning activity of digital ter- elaborating on transmission trends and Implementation in 1000 African Villages’ restrial television broadcasting in India. feel of digital terrestrial transmission, along with three other case studies like The expert consultant from StarTimes and receiving devices. He also shared the Large City Single Frequency Network China shared the experience in China their experiences from DVB-T, DVB-H, (SFN) in Lagos, the National DTT SFN in on DTT and provided greater overview on DVB-T2/T2-Lite. He provided detailed Mozambique and the Burundi Solar power the subject for the benefit of participants information regarding the design of DVB- transmission. from different countries in the region. T2 system and technical parameters on Also three country papers were presented modulation schemes and constellations, Ms Archana M. Gupta, Director (Engg.), by the participants from Nepal, Bhutan error correction, and guard interval, DDI, in her presentation talked about and Thailand. among others. Mr Duhan showed some DVB-T2 receivers and antennas. After practical case studies from India and providing overall features of DVB-T2 Mr Surender Singh, DDG (Engg.) from showed coverage surveys conducted in technology she discussed Integrated Dig- the cities Bangalore, Lucknow, Indore, ital TV Receivers (IDTVs), Set Top Boxes and Delhi. He also presented reception (STBs), PCs with Dongles, Car Receiv- results of T2-Lite mobile services from ers, Tablets, Smartphones with Dongles, DD transmitters taken in moving vehicles Smartphones with built-in tuners, Wi-Fi with varying speeds and also successful Routers (DVB-T2 Hot Spots), Bill Boards mobile reception on Aeroplane. and T2-Radios.

Mr Rajender Kumar, Director (Engg.) in DDI, in his session provided details on spectrum planning for digital transmitters. His deliberations were based on the objectives to provide satisfactory coverage to maximum percentage of population, to ensure interference-free reception for specified grade of service and to use minimum possible number of channels in the network for efficient utilisation of Mr Surender Singh frequency spectrum. He described various planning parameters like Minimum DDI was the first speaker who presented Useable Field Strength, Protection Ratio, the topic “Network Planning Flexibilities Coverage Range, Interference range etc. in DVB-T2” where in he explained vari- and explained the ITU-R P.1546 Curves ous design parameters of DVB-T2, Multi for the purpose of channel allocation for Carrier Modulation Schemes, Gaussian, DTT transmitters in the network. He also Ricean and Rayleigh communication provided detailed procedure for manual channels. He discussed various modula- Mr Zhang Yilong approach of channel allocation through tion schemes for DTT transmissions and the Lattice planning technique. variations on data rate and coverage to Mr Zhang Yilong, Director Technical Cen- be taken into consideration when plan- ter, Star Times Software Technology Co. Mr Bishnu Ram Neupane, Director ning the DTT network. He also explained Ltd. China, lectured on “Digital Television (Engg.), NTV Nepal, Mr Tashi Darjay, the other design parameters like guard Transition – Manageable & Operational Assistant Engineer, BBS Bhutan and interval, pilot patterns, and different TV Network Planning”. He shared their Mr Anusorn SrimalaiKul, Engineer NBT constellations for modulation schemes. experience in China on DTT and provided Thailand presented country papers on an overview of technology development developments in pursuing their respective The second speaker of the day Mr D.P. in the video broadcast area, system plan digital migration activities. Singh DDG (Engg.) broadly explained the principles both end to end and on effec- implementation experience in digitalisa- tive coverage. He touched upon the Next More than forty broadcast engineering tion process of terrestrial network of DDI. Generation Business Operation Support professionals attended the workshop and He covered the areas like TV broadcasting Systems (NG-BOSS) solution, Artificial eleven of them were foreign participants in India, regulation on digital terrestrial Intelligence technologies such as natural from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, services, digitalisation plan of DD and language processing and human machine Cambodia, Myanmar, Nepal, Seychelles, various steps taken to deal with various interaction (HMI). He also talked about Thailand, Uzbekistan and Vietnam. challenges. Over-The-Top (OTT) challenges and oppor- 49 Broadcaster AMS 2018

ffective callers’ screening before a radio talk show starts can pre- Event a free-for-all or an add-on to the topic discussion, thereby helping Improving create a vibrant programme.

It helps identify callers with interesting ideas and comments before inviting them Radio Talkback to be interviewed on the air. Callers who can generate emotion and make listeners laugh, cry and get angry, among others, Shows are preferred.

Mr Steve Ahern, Broadcasting Consul- Mr Ahern provided other recommenda- • Share the audio and comments on tant, Australia, offered these suggestions tions to improve radio listener’s talkback social media. Ensure you reply to during the AIBD/Radiodays Europe/RCS sessions or chat shows. comment with a link of audio of person Pre-Summit Workshop on “A World of talking. Listening - New Ways to Tell our Stories”, These include the following: • Invite callers to tell a story. held in New Delhi, India on 9 May 2018. • Don’t beg for calls, just bring them in and give the phone number along • Do tell a story, make a statement, pose “Avoid a weak opening of your radio talk the way. Use social media for this. a question, then go straight to a caller. show. It’s important for host or anchor to Let callers come in and if they're not • If there are few callers, drop topic and do his homework in introducing a topic,” coming in, mention the topic. move on. Mr Ahern said. Before putting a caller on • Make it a conversation not an the air, there should also be a screener obligation. Don't command listeners To generate successful radio shows, Mr to pre-interview interesting callers and that you must ring. You can’t oblige Ahern urged radio practitioners to focus inform hosts of what selected callers people to call. If you make topic on top talkback topics dealing with have to say on the topic. interesting then they will call. personal safety, good health, any items and issues that affect family finances, • Integrate text and social media He also said prepping callers is important. and better life for their kids. “Getting the first caller who is energetic message; let them just become part of is everything”. it.

50 AMS 2018 Broadcaster

Pre-summit: A World of Listening – Telling Our Stories Radio and Social Media – Enriching Listeners’ Experience

adio practitioners should consider social media as their friend Rand brother that they can tap to engage audiences more and enhance their listening experience.

Doing so will require an awareness and understanding of the activities and rules in social media, according to Mr Martin Liss, Media Consultant and Trainer, Ger- many.

Mr Liss spoke at the AIBD/Radiodays Europe/RCS Pre-Summit Workshop on “A World of Listening- New Ways to Tell our Stories” held in New Delhi, India, on 9 May 2018.

In social media, Mr Liss said there is no interviewed on the air. If a topic doesn’t • learn Facebook analytics editor as everyone can write, produce generate much engagement and dies, let • develop a feel for what works on radio and distribute stories. Everyone becomes it be and drop the topic, but ensure you – and see how a piece works. the editor. He also said users press like have an alternative topic for discussion”, or share buttons for various reasons, to he said. • take users or listeners, fans seriously. include telling the world they are cool • create human connection as a brand; and fantastic, helping and explaining the In using Facebook, Mr Liss offers radio you’re radio. world, and highlighting emotions, which practitioners a set of strategies, namely: focuses on the ‘how’ rather than the • dare to explore. don’t be afraid to try • know your market and what competitors ‘what’ in storytelling. anything on Facebook do with social media

If radio practitioners are to tap social • know your brand – what do you do and Mr Anders Held, Co-founder and Man- media, he advises them to tell stories us- what you do not do? ager, Radio Days Europe, Sweden opened the workshop, highlighting the many ad- ing the classic dramatic arc. “This starts • tryout on Facebook; be proactive from introducing, setting up or exposing vantages of radio in telling good stories. a character, place or situation, then to presenting a crisis or a confrontation, followed by a climax and a resolution”, he said.

Mr Liss suggested that if a radio station produces a talk show, it should post the show’s topic onto Facebook not only to publicise and promote it, but also to see what happens in generating comments and feedback. It must also identify the participants in this engagement.

“One can find interesting people with interesting ideas and comments on the talk show topic. They can be invited and 51 Broadcaster AMS 2018 Pre-summit: Mobile Journalism

It doesn’t replace the VCRs, but supple- ments efforts of journalists to tell good Good Storytelling stories in a different way.

“But more than the tool or technology, through Mobile what’s critical is still telling good stories to audiences”, she said.

Journalism The basic kit for mobile journalism will cover a tripod, special lab microphone you can clip on, headphone, and holder you can put camera in and out.

Aside from being a portable equipment, the mobile phone can be used in places and ways the VCR cameras cannot do. It can provide extreme close-up.

In her presentation, she said both smartphone operating systems, IOS and An- droids, are excellent. They have far more in common than what divides them, but there are some important differences.

IOS is a close system that has been a more lucrative platform for App developers, providing stability in various plat- wenty-five delegates from ten composition, filming on mobiles, getting forms while in Androids developers are countries in Asia-Pacific and Af- the best sound, planning and sharing having a hard time to build Apps. Trica joined the AIBD/Thomson content. Foundation regional workshop on mobile Ms Kelly also said Androids is more journalism, a new media tool for story- The one-day workshop is a pre-summit affordable than Apple’s IOS, and offers telling that allows reporters to use mo- event to the Asia Media Summit 2018 better cameras. bile phones with network connectivity in held in New Delhi, India on 9 May 2018. gathering, editing and distributing news. Whether you have the IOS or Androids, A former journalist of BBC and Aljazeera, “the key thing is really storytelling, pro- Ms Deborah Kelly, Head of Training and and ITV News, Ms Kelly said the mo- ducing high quality shots in terms of im- Communications, Thomson Foundation, bile phone is increasingly becoming an ages, photography, good composition,and conducted the workshop that covered effective tool for journalists because it good sequencing of the pictures”, Ms topics on the basics of mobile journalism, works quickly across various platforms. Kelly pointed out.

52 AMS 2018 Broadcaster Mobile Journalism Becoming More Mainstream

ore practitioners in mainstream media are exploring mobile Mjournalism to generate content for their various news platforms.

“The use of smartphones is becoming popular because journalists can go to the field and get stories quickly. It’s an effective tool that can work across all platforms”, says Ms Deborah Kelly, Head of Training and Communications, Thomson Foundation, and A former journalist of BBC and Aljazeera, and ITV News.

She said proof of its popularity can be seen from Thomson Foundation’s competition focus more on how to tell stories through cast cameras, and far more personal and for mobile journalists launched in 2016. the mobile phone. intimate like radio. They are highly porta- Entries have increased from 30 during ble and allow you to go places and shoot that year to 80 entries in 2017. The And two, all rules of journalism apply. in a different style”, she said. competition in 2018 has generated 140 She said the demands of accuracy, entries. objectivity, fairness and balance should She added that more people can have

be practised, among others. access to smartphones, giving them She added that ABC, Aljazeera and a voice that can be delivered in both Buzzfeed are increasingly using smart- She also cited the many advantages of mainstream and new media platforms. phones to produce content for their plat- using smartphones for journalism. forms. But there are disadvantages too, she

“Mobile journalism can tap different stressed, in using smartphones. Among In an interview with the Broadcaster, Ms kinds of phones like IOS and androids, them, the dependence on high-quality Kelly offered some guidelines for effective using basic systems and producing ef- smartphones to produce good pictures, mobile journalism. One is simplification. fective reports”, she said. and reliance on app developers to create She said journalists should not think something that can work on your system. too much about the gadget; they should “Smartphones are cheaper than broad- “When you’re on the field, it can be difficult to be alone to shoot materials. However, the advantages far outweigh the disadvantages”, she said.

Ms Kelly conducted the AIBD/Thomson Foundation regional workshop on mobile journalism, a new media tool for storytelling that allows reporters to use mobile phones with network connectivity in gathering, editing and distributing news.

Twenty-five delegates from ten countries in Asia-Pacific and Africa attended the workshop held on the sidelines of the Asia Media Summit 2018 in New Delhi, India. 53 Broadcaster In-country Workshop Tapping Mobile Journalism for

By Nabeel Tirmazi Impactful Stories AIBD Programme Manager

he in-country workshop on Mobile The later session included the introduc- ered sessions related to advanced editing, Journalism (MoJo) organised by tion of the gears and third-party apps the integrative workflow of smartphones TAIBD in collaboration with Radio essential for effective mobile journalistic with laptops for such kind of projects, Television Brunei (RTB) was held in Ban- approach. The day ended with discus- utilising the power of captioning, overlay dar Seri Begawan, Darussalam Brunei sions on the journalistic workflow from graphics, and finally the publishing of from 28 to 31 March 2018. pre-production to post-production and the material on social media especially publishing of the news and reports done broadcasting their footages live. The workshop was designed specifically through smartphones only. for the media practitioners associated Participants also worked on practical with programming, reporting and the new Day two started with the session on con- case studies and assignments during the media. Twenty-four participants from temporary storytelling techniques which three-day workshop which were present- RTB attended the workshop. lead the participants to field assigned at the closing ceremony. ments. The participants were assigned The initial session of the first day to shoot small news reports from their Mr Haji Azman Bin Haji Abdul Rahim, Act- of workshop covered the theories of smartphones on the economy, tourism, ing Director of RTB, addressed the closing mobile journalism, including the history, food and recent developments in the ceremony. He said that RTB is focusing evolution and current trends in MoJo. It country. The day ended with a session on a lot on building audience’s awareness also discussed the potential of Web 3.0 video editing through mobile phones. towards the contemporary challenges of and future newsroom workflow engaging society. He added that mobile journalism the mobile reporters. A small session on While the first two days focused on the is one approach to highlight those stories integrating citizen journalists into the theories and practical approaches to- on more grass root level with high impact. mainstream media was also held. wards mobile journalism, Day three cov- He wished that participants will create impactful stories by utilising the skills of mobile journalism and as a broadcaster, contribute positively towards a better society.

Mr Nabeel Tirmazi, course consultant, said that mobile journalism is not only meant for active broadcasters only, rather everyone should be learning this skill because it is human nature to have the craving to tell stories. He stressed that the most important thing is that stories generated by such approach requires responsibility, ethical value and relevance.

54 Broadcaster BroadcastAsia CommunicAsia ConnecTechAsia 2018: Converging Technology, Ideas and Business

By Utpal Kanti Mandal in Asia and Beyond Programme Manager-Broadcast Engineer

echnological innovation represents where technology, ideas and business BroadcastAsia is Asia’s must-attend in- one of the key drivers of long-term converged. It has become a very impor- ternational event for the pro-audio, film, Teconomic growth. As the world tant business platform in Asia covering digital media and broadcasting industries becomes increasingly connected through the entire spectrum of communication, and to be connected to the industry’s technology – nations, economies, and en- broadcast, and enterprise technology who’s who. They are creating new value terprises are being digitally transformed and services catering to the needs of the and reshaping the broadcast value chain. and setting new benchmarks ubiquitous- industry in Asia and beyond. ly. In the face of disruption, the ability to CommunicAsia is recognised as Asia’s innovate and evolve therefore becomes a More than 50,000 visitors, speakers most established and relevant interna- critical ingredient for successful transfor- and exhibitors from more than 100 tional ICT industry event for the telecom- mation in Asia. countries attended the technology sum- munications sector. The edition of 2018 mit. It was a place to experience the fu- revealed a refreshed and more focused ConnecTechAsia, the brand new um- ture through a plethora of experiential identity for ICT companies in Asia to brella event encompassing BroadcastA- programmes, including the high-level evolve and maintain a competitive edge sia CommunicAsia, and the new NXTA- summit, technological showcases and in the communications and digital world. sia, was held from 26-28 June, 2018 at complimentary value-added activities Suntec and Marina Bay Sands Singapore on the show floor. NXTAsia launched as Asia’s definitive 55 Broadcaster

Delegates from AIBD member organisations acknowledged the strength of AIBD in executing quality workshops, conferences and effective trainings. Mr Utpal met the potential conference speakers and top executives of media organisations in exhibition halls. Among them were Dr. Peter Siebert, Executive Direc- tor, DVB Project Office Geneva; Mr Stan- ley Chang, Regional Manager, Exterity – Singapore; Mr. Jean-Christian Martin- Garrin, CEO Noovo Technology Inc.; and Mr Adnan Jamil-Mir of Microsoft, UK.

During the exhibition, Mr. Utpal also met Mr Calvin Koh, Assistant Project Director and Ms Elyn Lee, Project Executive from United Business Media Ltd. (UBM), the organiser of the ConnecTechAsia and discussed about future project plans. Mr Calvin on behalf of UBM expressed his interest to partner with AIBD next year and beyond in a more effective manner. showcase for specialised solutions that AIBD publications were made available to He thanked AIBD for its support and can help enterprises in their digital the visitors at the booth. While the focus participation. Mr Utpal conveyed the transformation journey, spotlighted the of the exhibitors was more on display of Institute’s sincere gratitude to Mr Kelvin latest emerging technologies including technical equipment at the exhibition and UBM team for extending a warm the Augmented Reality, Big Data, Inter- hall, AIBD received a good response from welcome to AIBD in the exhibition and for net of Things (IoT), Cybersecurity, Cloud delegates and other interested parties who providing all out support. In totality, the Computing, and more. paid the AIBD booth a visit. The walk-in participation of AIBD in ConnecTechAsia visitors at the AIBD booth collected and as exhibitor in Broadcast Asia - 2018 To keep pace with the technological information on the institute. Mr Utpal was effective and fruitful. advancements and innovation and explained to the visitors AIBD’s functions help promote the Institutes’ activities, and training activities. AIBD participated in the newly created ConnecTechAsia and set up a booth at Broadcast Asia 2018 in Suntec Singapore. The AIBD booth displayed posters and buntings to attract visitors. Mr. Utpal Kanti Mandal, Programme Manager- Broadcast Engineer, handled the AIBD booth and some conference sessions. He met the delegates and exhibitors at the AIBD booth and at the exhibition hall. The Institute’s quarterly magazine Broadcaster, research journal AAMR, proceedings of AMS – 2017 and other

56 Broadcaster AMS Story Doing Good to Others through the AIBD World TV Awards

r Jayson Bernard Santos, winner of the AIBD World TV Awards M2016 under the Humanity category, is no ordinary documentary maker. He makes sure his award matters by sharing the Awards’ prize money to the subjects of his winning documentary.

Mr Jayson Bernard Santos (in spectacles) joins a meal break with the family of Mark, a small-scale miner in Camarines Norte, around 200 kilometers from Manila, capital of the Philippines.

His winning entry for the Best TV Doc- umentary on “Promoting Children’s Rights, was titled” “Reel Time: The Price of Gold”, broadcast by GMA Network, Inc Philippines. It focuses on the lives of those working in small scale mines in the Philippines, particularly minors who suffer from moments of fear that they will Mark, bought livestock and have some He added that small-scale mining in the drown, fall and die from the pit of small- minor repairs in their home made. Mark Philippines produces more than US$10 scale gold mines. is still in school. billion worth of gold every year. Some of them are exported to wealthy countries “After we received the prize money from Ardin’s mother manages a neighbourhood such as the US, China and Japan. AIBD World TV Awards in 2016, I went sundry store in Camarines Norte province. back to our subjects from Jose Pangani- “Most people will never know whose ban, Camarines Norte to give them capi- The Philippines has among the largest blood and sweat went into producing the tal for livelihood and education of the gold deposits in the world. An estimated gold that adores their bodies”, he said. children who used to do underground 200,000 to 300,000 miners risk their mining in the province,” Mr Santos told lives in working in small-scale mines all A year after the documentary was filmed, the Broadcaster on the sidelines of the over the archipelago. Eighteen thousand the mining sites were removed by the lo- Asia Media Summit in New Delhi, India of them are minors. cal government and mining was perma- on 10 May 2018. nently banned. The mining site in Camarines Norte He said that Ardin, the eldest among province The award winning piece also won the subjects, now works for a local hotel recognitions from the New York Festivals, after finishing vocational course in hotel Mr Santos, director and producer of the Shanghai TV Festival, La Salle Scholarum management. Romnick, after he stopped winning documentary, said “ small-scale Awards, and URTI Grand Prix for Author’s schooling for a year, recently enrolled in mining is a demon that repeatedly rears Documentary. junior high school using the money he its ugly head, dropping shortly below the received from the programme. The family radar, but surfacing once more with ever of the documentary’s youngest subject terrifying dimensions”.

Here is the link to the full documentary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtwjT1QqnFo

57 Broadcaster AMS Story Yoga on Radio

oga, the science of exercise and healing, is an ancient cultural Yheritage of India. Its popularity remains in the country, and All India Radio has tapped this advantage by producing a radio programme series entitled Yoga on Radio.

Produced by Ms Meenakshi Mund of all India Radio, External Services, Yoga on Radio features various arsenals or postures that are described by Yoga experts and their narratives communicated by voice experts.

In an interview with the Broadcaster, Ms learn, practice and master the art of Meenakshi Mund said the programme Yoga through vivid description of various was launched in April 2018. Despite postures for the first time ever on radio. Yoga being a hot topic in India, she said no radio organisation has attempted to It is uploaded on its website. “ We want to produce a programme on Yoga the way get feedback from our audiences through All India Radio has done. this platform. We are also producing podcasts to gain more audiences”, she The programme’s content covers 34 pos- said. tures like Kapalbhati (an exercise top pu- rify the lungs), Anulom-Vilom (breathing Ms Meenakshi Mund shared some of her exercise), and Titliasana (exercise for the strategies to come out with an effective legs and knees), among others. radio programme on Yoga. She said the voice that narrates the postures must be Yoga is a holistic practice which empha- soothing and convincing. sizes mind-body connectedness and involves postures, breathing, and medita- “We also include music to sync with the Ms Meenakshi Mund of all India Radio, tion. narration as well as soundbites of Yoga External Services, shows website of Yoga experts”, she said. on Radio on her mobile phone. She said the programme helps audiences The show is informative, providing the benefits and precautions in doing the postures. But she said such information must be “given in a compact way, understandable to ordinary people by using simple words”.

Ms Meenakshi Mund was one of the participants in the Masterclass on Storytell- ing, Principles, Methods and Aims as a pre-summit activity to the Asia Media Summit 2018 held in New Delhi in May 2018.

58 Broadcaster Contribution from Member Values and Principles By Ronyl Narayan Senior Information Officer, of the Pacific Dwellers Ministry of Information, Fiji

Pacific islands nations, especially our Community Support Services has thor- nal approach rather than an individual people are no stranger to the world. oughly identified a number of values and one, for the person being supported. Located within the waves of the largest principles of the Pacific dwellers. • Reciprocity: acknowledging the value ocean on the face of the planet earth, of relationship and obligation of care Pacific Island nations and our people are It is said that charity begins at home. between individuals and groups inter- unique in our own ways and have played In the Pacific, especially in Fiji, we acting for a shared purpose. Mutual a meaningful part towards the global consider our home as our first school help and interdependence are viewed development agenda. with our parents being our first teachers. as more effective than individualism. Our values and principles begin at home Reciprocity is the basis for maintaining From one of the most prominent climate where respect is bestowed amongst balance and harmony through ‘give and change advocates and the former every member of the family. Research take’ (reciprocal) obligations, honesty President of Kiribati, Anote Tong, to the by the Community Support Services has in all things and the exchange of gifts current President of the United Nations wonderfully described what values are to or goods and services. Pacific people Conference of Parties (COP 23) President the Pacific people. mutually help and support each other and current Fijian Prime Minister, Rear through the contribution of money, time, Admiral Retired Voreqe Bainimarama, to Family values teach us that every person people and things that are needed. our rugby or football teams, we all have belongs to a family and every family • Respect: an expected behaviour, punched above our weight on the global belongs to a person. This brings identity including respect towards elders, arena to contribute to a cause. For tiny and belonging. Ancestry and a sense of parents, women, children and people island nations whose shores and lands are place involve a kinship with what and in positions of authority. Respect getting submerged by the rising sea levels who has gone before. includes keeping face, acknowledg- every day, where challenges are many, ing someone’s status and observing opportunities are little less compared For many Pacific people, it is important proper etiquette. Observing the cor- to the developed nations, Pacific Island to create and maintain good relation- rect etiquette or ‘way of doing things’ nations have risen above the challenge. ships within the family, and beyond to is an important aspect of respect and We have taken every challenge thrown other families, friends and community. maintaining dignity. This includes at us with grace and have turned our Ancestry and sense of place involves a both the formal, solemn processes that limitations into opportunities. kinship with what and who has gone be- Pacific people observe when meeting fore. Healthy and strong families are the and interacting with others, as well as How are we, Pacific Islanders, able to basis of individual and community well- a sense of individual poise and pride. rise up to all the challenges, against all being. Socially cohesive societies tend to odds? produce healthier members, and Pacific • An emphasis on spirituality and religious people demonstrate higher levels of so- practices, and customs and protocols. This is purely because of the staunch cial connectedness, with strong partici- These will have developed over time, values and principles we have back home pation in church life and volunteering. and are the traditional or ‘right’ way or that drive us to our cause and motivate the accepted ways of doing things. us to punch above our weight and go • Communitarianism: a sense of com- beyond what we see. munity. Teamwork, consultation and Fiji is named as one of the happiest co-operation with all members striving countries in the world where people Values in the Pacific can be defined or to work together to achieve common are filled with Bula smiles and warm seen in the smallest of the things we goals through a consensual approach. hospitality. If you have ever visited Fiji do every day. Be it conversations with A consensual approach is taken in or planning to in future, you would know a person, our normal day job, playing the decision-making process, seeking the true extent of its warm reception. rugby or football in the dusty parks of input and views from the wider com- What makes us the friendliest people on the village, our humbleness is reflected munity to get the agreement of all earth? The answer is simple, it is only due in our everyday lives. It is rooted deep the people concerned. It is important to our values and traditional ideologies within our mindset on the need to reflect for support workers to acknowledge, that makes Fiji, the way the world should our very own values on a day to day basis. understand and respect that Pacific A publication by New Zealand-based people value a collective and commu- [continued on page 63] 59 Broadcaster Contribution from Member Sustainable Development Stories: Accepting a Trust By Abdulwarees Solanke Assistant Director, Strategic Planning & Corporate Development Department Voice of Nigeria, Ikoyi – Lagos, Nigeria

ince the colonial era, the stories and sustainable development often told of most Sub-Saharan in our reform projects. These SAfrica countries, Asia and the questions underline the nature, Pacific as well as the Caribbean were pri- relevance and depth of the marily subjective. I refer to such stories sustainable development stories in this presentation as negative SWOC/T mass media should feature about stories. They were stories of their sins and countries of sub-Saharan Africa, Asia sicknesses, of wars, oddities and catas- and the Pacific Rim. trophes. Africa was usually grotesquely painted as the Dark Continent. Granted As public service media, the stories we that many Sub-Saharan African countries The Important Questions tell of our continents must pungently were slow in catching up with western ask: What policies must we INITIATE to civilisation, this pejorative perception of The first question here is: What public con- leapfrog all the countries into the league Africa does not in any way do justice to cerns, issues and problems must INSPIRE of the developed nations with com- the vast opportunities and raw materials our governments in Africa and Asia to com- mendable human development indices? of the continent, the very reason for which mit themselves to an aggressive drive for Despite huge investment in several social the western imperialism nations invaded sustainable development? The post-inde- capital projects on the continent since Africa to plunder our natural resources to pendence experiences at policy and reform the political independence of many of our feed their factories during the industrial projects in many African countries suggest countries, especially since the 1960s, revolution. that they are almost always responding to much parts of the continent still lacked crises as the structure and forms of gov- essential amenities that will qualify the

In telling stories about Africa as well ernments that have dominated her history governments as committed to develop- as Asia therefore, we first need to have largely being dictated by emergencies ment. So, at any point in time and in every interrogate the circumstances of their and political misadventures. Therefore, situation, our concern must be delivering contemporary evolution before using the our public policies and programmes, even policies and programmes that ensure the Western standard, the Euro-America lens if they were genuine, were not enduring. greatest good for the greatest number of and depressing media portrayal. We need Today, many of our countries are certainly people, with least compliance lethargy. to change the negative and depressing in emergency, in terms of development Health, housing, public transportation, narratives about our continents to ones aspirations. The logic here is if emergency waste management and environmental that will speedily facilitate sustainable management has not yielded sustainable protection, gender balance, basic educa- development in Africa and Asia. We development for Africa, governments in tion and economic empowerment must need to accept that telling good stories the continent must return to long-term be dominant in our content and themes. of ourselves is a TRUST that must not and long range planning that will assure Therefore, in the stories we tell, we must be betrayed if we care much about enduring transformation and development be interested in the likely responses to sustainable development for the sake of for their citizens. Consequently, for every reform initiatives by employing all ratio- future generation. reform project, African countries must nal and behavioural analytic tools in our draw inspiration from countries with simi- predictions on outcomes of programmes In this context, we need to raise a dozen lar national experiences and best practices and projects designed to address the de- questions germane to achieving success in governance. velopment challenges identified. 60 Broadcaster

We must also with our stories ask: Who inspire the entire citizenry through the tion with private sector providers and direct must we INVOLVE? Critical to the success cost, sacrifices and denials seen in leaders foreign investors who have requisite exper- of any reform project is the support and of the government or the elected represen- tise and financial strength. But their stake legitimacy of all stakeholders and interest tatives. Those visible incentives, sacrifices in the national economy must transcend groups, beneficiaries or victims. Without and denials which ultimately result in sav- profit but include a commitment to national consultation, engagement and collabora- ings for the citizens are the stories that the growth and development. They must have tion with those to be affected, programmes mass media must tell. So, there must be qualitative public value to deliver to the na- and reform initiatives are justifiably mis- fidelity on the part of the mass media to tion through their involvement in the local construed, opposed and rejected or they this function of mobilisation. economy. Our stories must reflect how to suffer apathy and indifference even from get such partners and monitor the quality of the intended beneficiaries. This leads to the leading to the next their performance. The stories we tell must question about utilisation, maintenance promote investigate the credibility of such Our Sustainable development stories must and management of those physical and partners to ensure that they are actually also probe what policy framework must we human capital that are national assets. what they claim to be, and not opportunists. INSTITUTE in our development policy for- Without an appreciation of culture of mulation and implementation processes? In protection, conservation and continu- Our stories must also deal with the ques- consideration of reform initiatives, experts ous investment of national assets and tion of what we must INCREASE. This and officials are always bordered by how resources, quality assurance, measure- question relates to what we produce with well or how soon a programme will yield the ment or evaluation and improvement of our human capital assets and in which desired dividends. Such result is measured the processes of delivering public goods areas we have comparative advantage. by the efficiency, effectiveness, economy and services, public investment in them Our experts and technocrats in various and the impact of the tools and strategies will only be fragmental, misaligned analyses presented facts that clearly sug- adopted in the implementation process and wasteful. The nation must prevent gest that even though we are classified to push through the reform project. Since the mistakes of the past in our culture among the oil-rich nations, we are still oil- most reforms are bitter, painful and unusu- of public management. These are the impoverished per capita when compared al, they are necessarily prone to rejection. themes that sustainable development with many other OPEC members whose Therefore, the framework that is best suited stories must constantly interrogate. production capacity outweighs ours in to preventing policy shock and glut is one spite of their lesser population. A resource Such stories must also answer such ques- that gives room for learning, coping and ad- whose production process, distribution tion as: Who must we INVITE? That is who justment by those likely to be affected and and marketing does not engage a sub- are those that will partner or even compete those implementing the policies. stantial percentage of our population and with the government in the delivery of these does not guarantee us much comparative Again, we must ask a cogent question essentials of life that are needed to assure advantage in the world economy cannot on who our governments in Africa must good quality of life that are contained in be said to be in our ultimate interest. INSPIRE. Our governments must inspire the Sustainable Development Goals that or mobilise the entire citizenry in various nations of the world, particularly the poor Our stories must therefore explore the countries by the quality of leadership pro- ones agreed to pursue. The reality of public theme of diversification of the national vided. To inspire or mobilise the citizenry management and provision of public goods economy in such ways that the bigger op- towards sustainable development goals and and services suggests that big government portunities that abound in every part of objectives, they must be visionary, respon- is no longer suitable to achieving handsome the country become open to all citizens. sive and transformational. It must project results as governments in Africa cannot do The successes of Economic Recovery all the elements of good governance. In all alone. They need credible partners and and Growth Plan (EGRP) of the Nigerian practical terms therefore, the governments collaborators, including foreign direct inves- government is a clear case study of the must inspire in the citizenry the readiness tors, operators in the private sector and non- type of stories mass media must main- for trust, partnership and collaboration governmental organisations with experience stream in telling our stories of sustain- through the services they provide, the in- and the financial muscle. Therefore, the able development. centives and opportunities they create for option for our government is to relinquish the stimulation of growth, real employment those areas of less national strategic impor- So what must we IMPORT? Collectively, we and productivity. Furthermore, they must tance and seek partnership and collabora- have to reach an understanding that our 61 Broadcaster imports must be those things that grow and regard, the mass media must offer hope vi. Engender partnership and collabora- add real value to our capacity rather than and not heighten the desperation of the tion for development not only among being dependent on others for everything citizens. In the stories we tell, we must internal stakeholders but also with through the stories we tell. Our stories must open windows of opportunities for alter- UN institutions, international agen- encourage us to moderate the consumption natives and reliefs. cies and NGOs committed to the of what is not produced locally. They must success of the SDGs therefore lead us to be disciplined on what Now, in what must we INVEST? The an- vii. Advocate protection of the environ- we must INHIBIT or restrict and why we swer is in everyday discourse, but which ment through responsible use of re- must restrict them. Our governments must we have been rather slow to address as we sources discourage commodities and items that engage in conspicuous consumption while viii. Promote positive values, ethical Prac- prevent the growth of our local industries. enhancing productivity and improving em- tices and Integrity in Public Manage- But they must also explain what incentives ployment in other countries. We must nec- ment and Leadership and subsidies we must introduce in sec- essarily invest in infrastructure and human ix. Serve as performance measurement tors that are not immediately profitable or capacity development for us to be compet- mechanism attractive to local entrepreneurs who need itive in today’s knowledge economy. x. Assist in prioritisation of public to be protected. So, the media is critically needs important in explaining or telling such sto- xi. Use platforms for provision of policy The Pertinent Answers ries that will assist making correct choices choices and determination of alter- in what we import or restrict as well as seek natives. In specific terms therefore, the following cogent ways of regulating economic activi- xiii. Sensitise public interest in issues are pertinent in the way we tell our stories, ties whose engagement will jeopardise the of sustainable development through not only in Africa but also in other countries needs of the future generation. The public publicity of achievements and prog- pursuing or implementing policies on mass media. ress reports. sustainable development as enunciated in the 17 SDGs. Our stories must: Similarly, we need to ask, what must Certainly, we must tell stories that will we INVENT or INNOVATE? We must be i. Assure fidelity to policy, plans and increase our chances in achieving the sensitive to the two demands of inspiring programmes for enunciated in the goals and objectives of development as research and development and growing 17 UN SDGs. enunciated by the UN in the 17 SDGs our local industry. So, our government ii. Stimulate productivity in industry in the issues we frame, the themes we and the mass media through the stories and economy of Africa, Asia Pacific focus on and the choices we consider or we tell must encourage invention, invest- and the Caribbean nations at whom mainstream in the media production pro- ment and patronage of technologies ap- the SDGs are principally targeted. cesses, the talents and opportunities we propriate for our development stage. iii. Mainstream peace and nation- unveil in our programmes and publica- building/conflict resolution; plural- tions, the courage and commitment we Furthermore, we must raise issues on ism, diversity & inclusiveness in the demonstrate in the feature or coverage of what we must IMPROVE. In any reform continents that are mostly victims of the critical infrastructure needed to fast initiative, it is inevitable that that some political, ethnic/racial and religious track development: We must tell stories vulnerabilities and negative externalities crises which stultify development. celebrating our creativity, showcasing will arise. They are the price we must pay iv. Encourage participation in gover- our investments in human capital or tal- if reform must be impactful. We must nance as there is a usually a wide ents and promoting our cultural heritage, therefore improve on our social security gap between governing elites and the not ones that demonise our values, tradi- deliverables to mitigate the impact of common citizens. tions, rites, symbols and practices. This reforms and widen the arena of dialogue v. Monitor provision of critical social I believe is the way we should tell our and communication to imbue trust and infrastructure that are being provided stories to advance sustainable develop- confidence that the evidently harsh and in the transformation projects of the ment in Africa, Asia and More. painful decision is temporary. In this SDGs.

This is an abridged version of Mr Abdulwarees Solanke’s speech undelivered at the Asia Media Summit 2018.

62 Broadcaster New Appointments New Appointments AIBD New Leaders New Secretary of the Ministry of Information, Government of Bangladesh Mr Abdul Malek

Mr Abdul Malek is Bangladesh’ new Secretary of the Ministry of Information, Government of Bangladesh. He joined the Ministry on 18 March 2018.

He has a long and illustrious career in the civil service covering a diversified experience of working both at field and policy levels. He worked in different positions of field administration in Bogra, Sirajgonj, Rajshahi, Jamalpur, Mymensingh, Rangpur, Magura and Khulna Districts. He served as Deputy Commissioner and District Magistrate of Comilla District.

His experience covered working for the Ministry of Public Administration, Ministry of Textiles and Jute, Bureau of Anti-Corruption, Ministry of Labour & Employment and Ministry of Land.

H e previously worked for the Local Government Division as Joint Secretary, Additional Secretary and later on as Secretary. He served as Private Secretary-1 to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

Mr Malek obtained his BSS (Honours) and MSS in Public Administration from Dhaka University. He also completed an LLB Degree. He also participated in courses and seminars at different renowned international institutes like The Hague Institute of Local Governance, George Washington Institute of Public Policy, Harvard Kennedy School, and Duke University of North Carolina, long others.

[continued from page 59] of western culture is testing the strong Amongst everything, our family stands Values and Principles of the Pacific Dwellers foundation of our traditions and values. strong in paving the way for the youth be. Our values back in Fiji start right or their fellow members. Fiji is a nation from our home and further moulded in While globalisation is bringing in wealth for where literacy rate is 93%. This means the churches and schools. We in Fiji are my island home, the question really for us most of the parents now in Fiji have gone taught the basics of humanity, that is to is how we are managing these influences through the formal education system love and respect each other, to appreciate to conserve our traditions and values. Me- and have been part of the greater glo- each other’s efforts and presence, to dia industry especially in the Pacific has balisation process. These parents have lend a helping hand to the one in need. a huge role to play when it comes to in- inculcated the need and importance of Our parents and elders in the family and fluencing traditional practices and values. maintaining our values from their par- the society, our church leaders as well as Media industry’s landscape is changing ents. The mindset has been created from our peers play a huge role in inculcating all over the world and Pacific islands na- a generation to generation. values and traditions in us. tions are no exceptions. Western content is changing the mindsets of individuals Pacific’s culture is unique and evolving. While Fiji is proud about its staunch especially the youth. While some influence From the pre-colonial days until today, traditions and values, it is not immune are considered as education, entertain- Pacific people are adopting to new style of to the impacts of globalisation where the ment content is what lures youths towards living with new set of norms. In this evolving very foundations of our ideologies have the western cultures, in the process forgo- world, this will continue to change. The been tested time and again. ing their own traditions. Social media is Pacific while it has changed drastically another platform that is the catalyst for over the decades has stood tall to maintain For an island nation that is punching change in our norms. Facebook users in its uniqueness. This is something that above its weight on the international Fiji have increased by more than 2 folds we as Pacific Islanders are proud of. We front, whose more than half of the popu- since it started some years ago. will continue to put up a holistic fight to lation are youths, increased presence preserve our cultures and traditions. 63 Broadcaster Sightseeing New Delhi