Virtual Town Hall Series 2021 In Collaboration with Google News Initiative, Data Leads, and First Draft
The Department of Journalism and Mass Media (JMC) organized ‘VAXCHECK’- a training session for journalists, media students, health planners and citizens, on checking fake news around vaccination for COVID19.
The Virtual Town Hall is a national level initiative by Google News Initiative, Data Leads, and First Draft (an international fact-checking organization), in 30 states and UTs, to create awareness and knowledge about the software that helps in identifying and checking the misinformation, about the vaccination leading to wrong practices and incorrect dissemination of the COVID prevention program.
The session was attended by several organizations, and academic institutions in Haryana, apart from the students and the faculty members of FMEH. Among the prominent guests present, Professor Tankeswar Kumar, Vice-Chancellor, Guru Jambheshwar University of Science and Technology, Hissar was invited to speak as a chief guest.
Prof. Maithili Ganjoo, Dean, FMeH, enumerated initiatives taken by MREI like
· Counselling Helpline
· Setting up of Covid Isolation Centre
· Helping families to access doctors, medicines, oxygen, and blood plasma
· Providing assistance in hospitalization
· Providing information regarding food delivery to affected families etc.
2 Technical Sessions, were held by resources of Data Leads – Prof. Umesh Arya, Associate Professor, GJUST and Mr. Jatin Gandhi, a veteran journalist, and educator.
Focussing on the misinformation about Corona virus and fake news related to it in his talk, Prof Arya emphasized on the need to cross-check all the forwarded news through social media and other mass media platforms.
In his second session, Mr. Gandhi underlined the need for journalists to blend traditional journalistic practices with modern verification techniques.
The program was led by Dr. Aman Vats, Head of the Department of Journalism & Mass Communication.