‘Technology has brought changes to every sector, including media’

During an interview with journalist Asma Shirazi in 2008, politician Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain had ended up using some unsophisticated words. She recalled that by 2010 that video clip had been circulating through emails because social media was not a big thing here back then.

She said that no one had known back then that by 2013 things would begin circulating as soon as they happen. This, she stressed, became the biggest challenge for journalists. Asma was speaking at a session titled ‘New Media, New Demands’, part of the 15th International Urdu Conference that concluded on Sunday, at the Arts Council of Pakistan, Karachi.

Speaking at the session, journalists remarked that technology has brought changes not only in media but also in every sector, and any section of society can understand its usefulness. They said that the invasion of YouTube and other modern media is not only Pakistan’s problem, but the entire world is facing it, and it will improve with time.

Asma said YouTubers are becoming very popular, and people are following them. “I’m also a YouTuber because we decided to reach people,” she said, adding that they also need to address fake news through YouTube and social media.

She stressed that people want to hear the truth, and news media should use modern technologies for the dissemination of information so that fake news can be controlled. Awais Tauheed said that due to the evolving social media, Pakistani journalism is facing immense challenges. However, he stressed, not only Pakistan but also developed societies like America are going through such challenges, and they evolved themselves with technological revolutions.

He said that today’s media is no longer neutral, as every media person is associated with parties and personalities. He also said that in the age of social media, the truth is what people want. Media houses are divided with parties, and it affects neutrality, he added.

Abdullah Sultan said that the biggest difficulty now is separating the truth from the lies, while in the past, if there was even a little suspicion, news stories were put on hold. He said that even a villager has a YouTube account now, and this is a positive thing.

A blogger becomes a star journalist on anything in no time, while we are debating whether the news is genuine or fake. Javed Soomro said that 13 million people used to watch BBC Serbia. “The programme has been discontinued because after the advent of digital media, priorities have changed. Now we want to show what brings more and more traffic.”