In today’s time, the only thing which is keeping everyone busy and connected to the world is Internet, and all sorts of things related to Internet like social media- Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp. Just a beep distracts everyone from their work. Moreover, it is one of a kind which has connected a country to another, a person to another. However, apart from social networking, many other things are happening online, for example- social marketing, digital media.
By the invention of new technologies and arrival of social media, people are expanding their business online, many people are using this platform to showcase their talent and there are individuals who are empowered to act as a reporter and a journalist using social media as a medium. Media, nowadays, has changed immensely as compared to media 25 years back. Traditional media had its own credibility with television, radio and newspaper as its medium. Employers had to reach places to attend a seminar or a meeting. Also to promote their work they had to visit places whereas, today, promotion, meetings are all done at home or one can attend it even if one is not present their physically but through skype. One only have to contribute few minutes or hours with their computer and the work is done. We are just a click away and wonders could happen. Certainly, Digital Media puts a huge impact not only on youth but also on all age group. It changes not only the way readers and viewers consume news but also how the content is being produced. Images, articles, videos, news, everything go viral and become sensation in a blink.
As many things are being changed or replaced by new technologies similarly, Traditional Media, where people used to sit and wait for news to get updated, is being replaced by digital media, where, we get updated news every minute via feeds on social networking sites and we can not only read or listen them but also can post and share our opinion regarding that particular news. One such type of journalism is citizen journalism.
Citizen journalism is the reporting of news, events by general public present at that moment via Internet to spread the information. A common person can utilise this platform to spread that one and many news or facts which were being ignored by journalists thinking them less important. It is also a way of saying no to media trial.
When we say a common person, it includes diversification of people, i.e. people with different mind-set, language, culture, region, and even different religion, which can act as a barrier. For instance, a person posted an article related to a news in his/her native language at social website and made that post public. Now, that news reached masses but, due to language barrier all could not understand what it said and hence the post become less important for many whereas, had it been translated in common language used by all say, English, its worth increased in public.
By the above instance, one can conclude that being a multilingual in today’s enormously changing time has a real worth. A multilingual could make variations in a normal piece by his/her advancing mind full of knowledge regarding different aspects with different perspectives without being discriminative or racist.
Being a linguistic management intern at Modlingua, I thank the team to make me aware about this side of journalism and making me learn many a new things, I was not aware earlier. I aspire to be a responsible journalist, connecting masses showing them many more different facts hidden worldwide.
Writer Himani Khera is French and English Language and Translation Intern at Modlingua, India's No1. certified translation and Language service providers based in New Delhi
