KD Singh
“A recent survey has found that students who studied journalism as their college majors regretted their decision the most and would jump at the opportunity to go back and take up a different degree,” reports an online news portal based in India. It was published on November 15, 2022 under the heading “Journalism tops list of ‘most regretted’ college degrees”.
“Here is a list of the top 10 most regretted degrees - Journalism, Sociology, Communications and Education all topped the list of most-regretted college majors, according to ZipRecruiter’s survey of more than 1,500 college graduates who were looking for a job,” it added.
On subsequent days, the same news was published in various mainstream media, including leading national dailies, under various sensational headings. On National Press Day, which is observed on November 16, a local daily took up this story under the heading “National Press Day Irony: Journalism Most Regretted College, Finds Survey”.
“Top 10 most regretted and most loved college degrees | Journalism turns out to be the most regretted!” writes another reputed TV News channel.
What was wrong with the News?
Nothing! The issue is not about the survey or the findings of the survey but the way Indian media in general and social media based pseudo-journalists in particular reported the news, compromising the fundamental qualities of reporting i.e., Accuracy, Balance, Clarity, Objectivity and Impact.
Concealing the source of the news, research methodology and parameters adopted to analyse the empirical findings of the survey, Indian media have failed to maintain its professional ethics. With their half-baked information and failure in gatekeeping duties, mainstream media have time and again given an impetus to social media warriors and wannabe journalists to misguide the people. Social media pages highlighted only the result of the survey. For their safe side, they used phrases like “According to a recent survey,” without specifying the source.
Let’s understand the facts
Context of the survey: Journalism, sociology, communications and education all topped the list of most regretted college majors, according to ZipRecruiter’s survey of more than 1,500 college graduates who were looking for a job in the United States (not in India).
The official website of ZipRecruiter clearly mentioned on its webpage that the monthly ZipRecruiter Job Seeker Confidence Survey is based on an online sample and conducted for ZipRecruiter by Qualtrics. It is administered to 1,500 job seekers between the 10th and 16th of each month and weighted to the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey. Respondents may be employed, unemployed, or not currently in the labor force, but they must reside in the United States and plan to find a new job “in the next six months” in order to be included in the sample.
Applicability of the findings: Since the context, society and market of the aforementioned subject is different, there shouldn’t be any two opinions on its applicability. In Eastern culture, where countries are optimistic of achieving 2030 agenda of Sustainable Development Goals, academic intervention in cultural studies, liberal arts, medicines have great scope and significance. On the other hand, the ZipRecruiter Job Seeker Confidence Survey listed all these degrees as the most regretted majors. This might be applicable in Western context, not in the developing countries.
Sharing is not always caring!
Sharing is caring is what we have been hearing and practicing since kindergarten times, but sharing half-baked information should in no way be encouraged and entertained. I was shocked to see the contents being shared on social media platforms regarding the same.
Media Literacy matters
With the fast evolving Information and Communication Technology (ICT), we are bombarded with pool of information on a daily basis. The ability to segregate credible information from a mixture of information, analyse, question and making use of that information is what a media-literate person is expected to do.
Information is power and in spite of having access to information through sophisticated technologies and advanced digital gadgets, it is unfortunate that media consumers today are unable to segregate rumours from facts and verify the authenticity of media contents. It is high time to rethink our media consumption behaviour.
Ambiguous Reporting
Academically, we can classify reporting as Objective, Interpretative and Investigative. Complete objectivity is a mere concept but at the same time journalists must take utmost care in interpreting the facts, otherwise it may lead to misinterpretation. Regarding the news on Journalism being the most regretted major, what many news outlets have failed to do is mentioning the most fundamental fact that the survey was conducted in the United States, which is altogether a different society. Such honest and sincere approach in news writing should be an essential trait of a promising journalist.
Conclusion
The most important step to take is to interrupt your own reflex of sharing posts that outrage you or resonate with your beliefs. Scammers capitalize on that instinct by tailoring their stories to fit the beliefs of their targets so they will slip under their defences.
-Never share a post on social media without fact checking
-Look for the sources
-Consider the story's agenda
News organizations typically operate for money and part of their brand (and thus their profits) lies in their accuracy. However, many news groups tailor their content to particular segments of customers, and thus are more likely to cover stories with a particular perspective. This can skew their accuracy, turning it into affinity with the preconceptions of their target audience. Stories are coloured by the agendas of their writers but media literates must always question.
(The writer is a former journalist and currently working as an Assistant Professor of Journalism and Mass Communication, St Joseph University, Nagaland. He can be reached at kdsingh37@gmail.com)
