BMF’s 20-Day Training Programme For BHUTAN MEDIA By Delhi Based 9.9 SOC To Commence On 24th July

July 23, 2012 - PRLog -- In its drive to create a globally renowned media fraternity in the Kingdom of Bhutan, the Bhutan Media Foundation will be conducting an exhaustive training programme between 24th July 2012 and 12th August 2012 at Thimphu. This 20-day programme will see 5 different courses, which will be delivered by internationally acclaimed media personalities, media managers, and media marketing experts. These courses have been custom designed to meet the current needs of Bhutanese media professionals ranging from Editors, to Reporters, to Circulation and Marketing Executives from the various media organizations of the Kingdom of Bhutan. Bhutan Media Foundation has roped in one of the best known media institutes from New Delhi - 9.9 School of Convergence – to deliver this programme to Bhutanese media persons. 9.9 School of Convergence has made arrangements for this programme to be conducted in both English and Dzongkha by highly competent and experienced three national trainers and seven foreign trainers.

“The Bhutan Media Foundation, since its establishment, has widely consulted with the media. As a young democracy, we believe in empowering our young media,” Ms. Lily Wangchhuk, Executive Director of Bhutan Media Foundation said on the eve of the launch of this highly anticipated programme. “Bhutanese media are faced with several challenges and constraints, one of the key challenges being the lack of availability of trained and experienced media professionals. This has affected the professionalism and maturity in the Bhutanese media. It is the objective of the Foundation to address this challenge through capacity building programmes for various target groups such as the one which has been organised in conjunction with 9.9 School of Convergence.”

The five courses that will be conducted for over 135 Bhutanese media professionals are - Intensive Course on Basic Journalism for English Reporters, Basic News Reporting and Writing Course for Dzongkha Reporters, Intensive Editing Course for English Editors, Intensive Editing Course for Dzongkha Editors, and Intensive Course on Marketing Management for Media Circulation. The list of foreign journalists for the programme includes prominent names like Mannika Chopra, Ravinder Bawa, Bejoy Suri, Gunjan Aggarwal, Mahima Kaul, Christina MacGillivray, and Sathya Saran.

Commenting on the training programme, Ms. Gunjan Aggarwal, Associate Dean, 9.9 School of Convergence said, "We are really excited about this collaboration with Bhutan Media Foundation that will further the cause of creating a responsible and strong media talent in the Kingdom of Bhutan. We are leaving no stones unturned to deliver what we believe will be a life-changing experience for the participants. We have put together the finest set of senior journalists, with over 25 years of experience of teaching and journalism in India and abroad, especially to impart the training programme."

The course for journalists will cover topics like different facets of today’s journalism, art of storytelling, planning, types of research, the essentials of news reporting, news-desk organization, writing online content, basics of sub editing, social responsibility, nature and characteristics of news, lead generation, interviewing skills and techniques, and ethics and morality in journalism.  

The course for editors will cover topics ranging from the responsibility and changing role of editor, prerequisites of editor as a leader, forward planning, importance of referencing, qualities of a good editor, coordination, role and selection of stringers, to media ethics and responsibility.

The marketing and circulation course will include subjects like potential sources of revenue for a news agency, how to manage circulation, Advertising Models, and Negotiation Skills.

This programme delivered by 9.9 School of Convergence, New Delhi is the first of its kind being held in the Kingdom of Bhutan. The curriculum of the various courses is based on the capacity need assessment exercise that the Foundation carried out in 2011 for the media. The Bhutan Media Foundation was established through a Royal Charter issued by His Majesty the King on February 21, 2010 to foster the growth of a strong responsible media capable of playing an important role in the social, economic and political growth of the nation.