Elena Vartanova interview: Facts and fakes, higher mathematics and new generation of journalists
31.05.2021
Elena Vartanova told about the evolution of the Faculty specialization, which moved beyond the boundaries of philology to cover sociology, philosophy, political science and, to a certain extent, computer sciences. The new specialization titled Media communications and journalism is designed to fully correspond to current media realities. Students are provided with a comprehensive theoretical and practical training covering different aspects of the ever-changing modern media, including industrial, organizational, sociological, psychological and philosophical levels. Besides, there is an evident need for a new cluster of professionals, trained to work with digital formats of content and multimedia products.
To fit the demands of digitalized media environment, the Faculty of Journalism launched a program titled Media Communications, where students, among many other things, study advanced mathematics. To explain this remarkable trend, Professor Vartanova emphasized that modern newsrooms actively work with big data and AI, making higher mathematics a prerequisite for successful journalism work.
Dean of the Faculty of Journalism was asked to elaborate on the concept of infodemic, a widely-discussed problem in large part caused by the pandemic. As it turns out, it boils down to the following. The lockdown heavily influenced our media consumption patterns, greatly increasing the time we spend online, which made us more dependent on media content. However, insufficient level of users’ media literacy did not let most of them cope with the ceaseless flow of information, including false or misleading information, which led to the problem called infodemic. However, according to Professor Vartanova, anyone can uncover fakes by being attentive enough. For instance, it might be worth analyzing the headline: if it is extremely emotional, it is probably fake, and same applies to the whole text. Besides, it is important to look at the sources, since the best indicator of accurate information is multiple references to reliable and transparent sources.
Abundance of fake information inevitably points to certain ethical challenges, and in this connection Professor Vartanova told about how journalism ethics is taught on the Faculty. The course is split into two parts: there are fundamental principles of ethics and universally shared ethical values on the one hand, and seminars where specific application of ethical principles in journalism practice is discussed.
Elena Vartanova then talked about this year’s Lomonosov Academic Tournament participants and noted high rate of their digital literacy, which they demonstrated while completing the final stage of the contest. Winners received a chance to be admitted to the Faculty on preferential terms.
Concluding the discussion, Dean said that journalism as a profession remains broad. Master’s and Postgraduate programs of the Faculty are designed for everyone who wish to master the principles of this profession, including those who have non-humanitarian specialization. For those it might be a perfect opportunity to expand their areas of activities and boost their competitiveness on the market.
Source: Rossyiskaya gazeta
Elena Vartanova told about the evolution of the Faculty specialization, which moved beyond the boundaries of philology to cover sociology, philosophy, political science and, to a certain extent, computer sciences. The new specialization titled Media communications and journalism is designed to fully correspond to current media realities. Students are provided with a comprehensive theoretical and practical training covering different aspects of the ever-changing modern media, including industrial, organizational, sociological, psychological and philosophical levels. Besides, there is an evident need for a new cluster of professionals, trained to work with digital formats of content and multimedia products.To fit the demands of digitalized media environment, the Faculty of Journalism launched a program titled Media Communications, where students, among many other things, study advanced mathematics. To explain this remarkable trend, Professor Vartanova emphasized that modern newsrooms actively work with big data and AI, making higher mathematics a prerequisite for successful journalism work.
Dean of the Faculty of Journalism was asked to elaborate on the concept of infodemic, a widely-discussed problem in large part caused by the pandemic. As it turns out, it boils down to the following. The lockdown heavily influenced our media consumption patterns, greatly increasing the time we spend online, which made us more dependent on media content. However, insufficient level of users’ media literacy did not let most of them cope with the ceaseless flow of information, including false or misleading information, which led to the problem called infodemic. However, according to Professor Vartanova, anyone can uncover fakes by being attentive enough. For instance, it might be worth analyzing the headline: if it is extremely emotional, it is probably fake, and same applies to the whole text. Besides, it is important to look at the sources, since the best indicator of accurate information is multiple references to reliable and transparent sources.
Abundance of fake information inevitably points to certain ethical challenges, and in this connection Professor Vartanova told about how journalism ethics is taught on the Faculty. The course is split into two parts: there are fundamental principles of ethics and universally shared ethical values on the one hand, and seminars where specific application of ethical principles in journalism practice is discussed.
Elena Vartanova then talked about this year’s Lomonosov Academic Tournament participants and noted high rate of their digital literacy, which they demonstrated while completing the final stage of the contest. Winners received a chance to be admitted to the Faculty on preferential terms.
Concluding the discussion, Dean said that journalism as a profession remains broad. Master’s and Postgraduate programs of the Faculty are designed for everyone who wish to master the principles of this profession, including those who have non-humanitarian specialization. For those it might be a perfect opportunity to expand their areas of activities and boost their competitiveness on the market.
Source: Rossyiskaya gazeta