The new world of audiovisual professions and new media is changing and they have developed as a result of technological innovation, social changes and also the dynamics of the labor market (functions and flexibility desired by employers).
With the mindfulness of these daily new media developments, Eastern Mediterranean University’s Faculty of Communication and Media studies seeks to prepare their students for these realities by organizing conferences and seminars that address issues concerning our world of new and evolving technological media innovations. Today, the 20th of April witnessed yet another conference organized by the Faculty, the conference was themed “Media Factory, New Professions for New Digital-Audiovisual Markets”. It started by 10:30 am at Prof. Dr. Aysel Aziz Hall.
In her presentation, she explained 3 Scenarios of the New Digital Audio Visual markets. The scenarios included:
- Social Change: Networking Society, arrival of new global media players, increasing competition for talent and content.
- Labor market transformation: flexibility of employment, legitimacy of Public service media, need for multitasking, trending nature of organizations, increasing numbers of unguaranteed workers and freelancers, and the changing nature of organizations.
- Technological Scenarios: digital evolution (social media), new digital universe, Tradition- Old media TV and Radio, Innovation- Internet and new tech devices.
Quoting a Steve Jobs quote, she said, “Technology is nothing. What’s important is that you have a faith in people, that they’re basically good and smart, and if you give them tools, they’ll do wonderful things with them”. She went further in her presentation to explain how the Internet is not a media but a channel through which many forms of communication media such as the TV, social media etc. are spread.
Through a number of charts, she showed and explained the different areas of professions in the media industry and how they are influenced by various factors such as flexibility of employment, arrival of new global media players, increasing competition for talent and content etc., Areas of profession in the media industry are categorized into three and they include the new professions; online advertising, social media manager, video operator with media specialization etc. The common professions; journalist, advertiser, directors, camera operators etc., and also the traditional professions; news anchors, newspaper writers, radio hosts etc. She said it is important to prepare students for the new realities. She gave a percentage of each occupational group in a Business Organization Field chart and the chart showed the new professions for the post production and production media industry fields.
To end her presentation, she quoted “It is necessary to understand the new educational needs, mental flexibility is not enough, technical skills are also required, multitasking skills, new legal aspects, learning to participate in cross disciplinary team works, dealing with big data. It is essential to teach knowledge of the planetary era, it is essential to teach how to deal with uncertainties that every individual in the community inevitably encounters”.
By Jemima Atii
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