Premium
The global media forum with the theme "New Media in the Era of the 4th Industrial Revolution", held in Shusha, the cultural capital of Azerbaijan, ended on Sunday after the last discussion session, which was dedicated to the safety of journalists.
During the session, the participants discussed the improvement of communication mechanisms in crisis situations and the threats and challenges faced by journalists in conflict zones.
Claudia Nicolae emphasized that AGERPRES had a special correspondent in Ukraine eight times since the war began, detailing the conditions in which he, like other journalists from other countries, fulfills his press mission in the context of such a conflict.
Drawing a parallel with medical professionals, she noted that journalists should strive to be objective, avoiding emotional bias, while fulfilling their role as information providers.
Also, the managing director of AGERPRES referred, in her speech, to the European regulations regarding the media.
The Vice President of the Korean Political Science Association, Professor Gi Woong Jung, noted that journalists are becoming a target of increasing violence.
"The safety of journalists is a problem that cannot be solved individually. The protection of journalists is not a problem of a particular country, but a general problem. There is a certain prejudice against journalists. Anti-media rhetoric should be prevented by law," he said, quoted by www.azernews.az.
Apart from the session dedicated to the safety of journalists, the forum also included two sessions on "The Future of Media: Journalism in the Digital Age, New Tools and the Role of Media in Communication" and "Investment and Consumption Trends in Media".
The speakers at this last session were the CEO of PA Media Group (Great Britain), Clive Marshall, the founder and CEO of the communications consulting firm DigiTips (Switzerland), Matthias Lufkens, the American defense analyst Oubai Shahbandar, and the general manager of the Georgian Public Broadcaster, Tinatin Berdzenishvili. The discussions focused on investment and consumption trends in mass media and the importance of media education, respectively the methods of combating disinformation and fake news.
In his speech, Clive Marshall noted that traditional media are already losing their leading position in the digital environment. "It is necessary to take into account the needs and interests of consumers, the public demands short, concise and quick information. The young generation is intelligent, they understand what propaganda is. If we talk about traditional media, people must trust them," said Marshall, quoted by the APA Azerbaijani news agency.
DigiTips CEO Matthias Lufkens said that social media offers the opportunity to publish short and concise news that the public wants. "Twitter, YouTube, TikTok and other social networks offer these opportunities, so we have to adapt to these new platforms and use them. We have to adapt the content we produce to these platforms," he opined.
Matthias Lufkens stated that media education is important for the correct and effective use of social networks: "We always hear about the negative parts of social networks and not about their possibilities. But we need to teach our children how to use them effectively. At the same time, we need to increase the level of media education among the public to combat fake news on social networks."
Organized for the first time in the history of Azerbaijan during the Year of Gheidar Aliev (former president of the country between 1993 - 2003, father of the current head of state) and on the occasion of the 148th anniversary of the national media in Azerbaijan, the forum brought together the most important media in the world, heads of journalistic organizations, influential experts in the field of media, information and of communication, renowned journalists. At the opening of the event, on Friday, the Azeri president, Ilham Aliyev, was also present, and he spoke and met with the participants.
150 foreign guests representing almost 50 countries participated in the forum. Among them were state news agencies from 34 nations, 12 international organizations and numerous media entities. They were joined by 60 managers and representatives of the local media.
