National Seminar on Issues of Content & Technology in Contemporary Media- Technical Sessions Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chandigarh, Chattisgarh, Delhi, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh,  Jharkhand, Kerala, , Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra,  Manipur,  Orissa,  Puducherry, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamilnadu, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, West Bengal; the whole of India was here at Teerthanker Mahaveer University (TMU), Moradabad, in the last week of June 2012. The historic occasion was the National Seminar organised by the College of Journalism and Mass Communication on the “Issues of Content & Technology in Contemporary Media”. The seminar was part of the long series of academic discourses conducted by different colleges on the campus of the university. Inauguration: The seminar started at a pleasant note with best-wishes by the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Shri Akhilesh Yadav. The Chancellor Shri Suresh Jain and the Group Vice President Shri Manish Jain also extended their good wishes for the success of the seminar. The inauguration of the seminar took place with galaxy of stars in the university auditorium inside Dental College Building on June 28. The chief guest of the function Shri Sunil Shastri highlighted the importance of journalism in the development of society. Shri Shastri, son of the great leader Lal Bahadur Shastri and president of Lal Bahadur Shastri Foundation, quoted interesting examples from personal experience to tell the audience how journalistic practices and ethical values have changed over the years. Keynote speaker Shri Paranjoy Guha Thakurta, talked about how advancement in technology has revolutionized the media and accelerated the growth. The eminent journalist, author and analyst, however, cautioned the journalists and media users to remain beware of the ill effects of this technological revolution. Prof. Devesh Kishore, professor emeritus at Makhanlal Chaturvedi Patrakarita Evam Sanchar Vishwavidyalaya, Bhopal, former head-Education and Training at IGNOU, held media institutions responsible for sensitizing the budding media professionals. Prof. R.K. Mittal, Vice Chancellor of TMU, welcomed the dignitaries and lauded the efforts of the College of Journalism and Mass Communication in organising the seminar. Dr Ambrish Saxena, Professor Incharge of College of Journalism and Mass Communication, presented the vivid account of the seminar at the outset, while Prof Rakesh K Mudgal, Registrar of TMU, expressed gratitude to the dignitaries for giving their precious time for the seminar. Both Prof Mittal and Prof Mudgal highlighted the role that media could play in the transformation of society. Release of Books: College of Journalism and Mass Communication at TMU did what no media institution in this country has ever succeeded in doing i.e. production of four books with ISBN carrying selected research papers of the seminar. The emphasis on Hindi was also a unique feature of the seminar.  Incentives were offered to media educators and researchers to write and present papers in Hindi, and an independent book was taken out with Hindi papers. All these books were produced before the beginning of the seminar, and everybody was astonished to see their formal release by the dignitaries in the inaugural function itself. The English books are titled as ISSUES OF MEDIA POLICY, REGULATION AND ETHICS, ISSUES OF MEDIA CONTENT, MARKET AND TECHNOLOGY, and ISSUES OF COMMUNICATION, DEVELOPMENT AND SOCIETY, while the Hindi book is titled as MEDIA KE MUDDE. The Books in English have been edited by Dr Ambrish Saxena, while Hindi book has been edited by Ms Susmita Bala. The books have been published by Kanishka Publishers, Distributors, Delhi. Brainstorming Session: College of Journalism and Mass Communication succeeded in designing the national seminar with a difference i.e. holding a brainstorming session before the technical sessions. Five most distinguished scholars of the country, namely, Shri Alok Verma (eminent journalist, educator, trainer, and founder and editor-in-chief of Newzstreet.com, and former editor of   ZEE News and Aaj Tak), Shri Amar Nath Amar (eminent poet and author, and  Dy Director at Delhi Doordarshan Kendra), Shri Prashant Tandon (senior broadcast journalist and analyst, and formerly working with Star News, IBN7, India TV and TV9), Shri Subodh Kumar (journalist, media educator and film scriptwriter and presently working as Group Head of global communication group  CARAT) and Shri Om Gupta (veteran journalist, author, educator and trainer). On several occasions these experts locked horns on complex issues and jolted the audience with their thoughts. The participation of the members of audience was huge as everybody was up in arms asking questions to media veterans sitting on the dais. Technical Sessions: On June 28 and 29, twelve technical sessions were conducted in the seminar; Six technical sessions were held in Lecture Theatre I and another six parallel sessions were held in Lecture Theatre II in the building of the College of Engineering. The technical sessions were divided on the basis of sub themes, like Issues of Constitution, Law and Media Policy, Influence of Market Driven Media on Content, Content Generation and Innovation in Technology, Issues of Content, Regulation and Ethics, Formal and Non-formal Education and Role of Media,  Alternate Media, Development Issues and Society. More than 80 papers were presented in technical sessions, while more than 40 authors could not attend the seminar for the presentation of their papers. Out of 125 papers submitted, 100 were in English and 25 in Hindi. In fact, the number of abstracts received by the organizing committee crossed 160, but some authors failed to submit their papers within the deadline while some others’ abstracts were not approved. The authors included media educators, researchers, PhD scholars, students, and even media practitioners. Few African students studying in India also submitted and presented their papers. In the technical sessions, the recent issues, developments, changing trends, problems and possible solutions in media were discussed and debated thoroughly. Topics like paid news, ethics and code of conduct for media, legal aspects related to media, regulatory bodies, cartoons as medium of expression, internet censorship in India, commercialization of media, marketing of films, advertising ethics, use of language in media, sub standard content in media, distortion of language and grammar in media content, dynamics of Information communication technology, blogs and their effect prevailed upon the seminar. Important personalities who chaired technical sessions included Prof Sanjeev Bhanawat, Head of Sanchar Kendra, University of Rajasthan, Jaipur, Mr Ajoy Kumar Chatterji, self publishing author from Kolkata, Dr Shoma Chatterji, eminent film scholar from Kolkata, Dr U S Pandey, computer scientist from Delhi University, Dr Vinod Pandey, Head of Journalism Department at Gujarat Vidyapith, Ahmedabad, Prof A K Srivastava, Director of IMS NOIDA, Mr Rakesh Kumar Dwivedi, Head of Department, CMCA, TMU and DR M B Saxena, Head of English Department at Maharaja Agrasen PG College, Moradabad. Blend of Academics and Industry: Since the seminar followed an inter-disciplinary approach, the contributors belonged to not only Journalism and Mass Communication but also Law, Computer Science, Education, Management Studies, Engineering and Technology, Forensic Science, Social Works, Political Science, English, Hindi and other subjects. The authors had affiliation with more than 40 universities and colleges spread across the country. The seminar provided a blend of media academics and the industry. Large number of paper authors and presenters came from the media industry. They belonged to more than 10 news and non-news organizations. Senior journalists from Star News and India TV, radio jockeys, print journalists from Hindi and language press, all came to have their first academic experience. Music for Relaxation: A cultural evening was organized in the Open Air outside 7 Days in the evening of the first day of the seminar. The young talent from BJMC and MJMC mesmerized the delegates with their performances. The dance, drama and music enthralled the viewers who remained captivated for about three hours. Two bands, Guroor from Delhi and The Soul Player from Moradabad added glamour to the fascinating evening. Excursion in Jim Corbett: The seminar concluded with a trip to Jim Corbett National Park where more than 40 delegates stayed for a night. This education cum fun trip was a bonus offered by the College of Journalism and Mass Communication, Teerthanker Mahaveer University, following intense intellectual exercise. And finally, everybody left Moradabad with sweet memories.