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| MOBILE JOURNALISM (MOJO): RELEVANCE IN AGRICULTURE | | |
Dr. Parveen Kumar
The emergence of smart phone has brought about a information and communication revolution in the world. The global community has been confined to our fingertips. The way information is collected, processed and consumed has witnessed a sea change. Today, a smart phone can be considered to be an effective combination of a personal computer, a television, a radio set and a newspaper. This novel device has impacted all he sectors of the economy all across the globe, but one sector where its application has shown extraordinary results is the agricultural sector. It has also led to the metamorphosis of journalism with a change in the ways and methods new stories are produced and disseminated. Gone are the days when television journalists would roam about in an outside broadcast van everywhere and carry huge broadcast equipment wherever they went. For print journalists as well, the usage of Digital Single Lens Reflex (DSLR) cameras is on the wane. Radio journalists no longer carry inconveniently big microphones anymore. A journalist now just carries a smart phone in his pocket and it simply takes care of all things. This type of journalism with the help of a smart phone is called mobile journalism.
Mobile Journalism also abbreviated as MoJo is simply a format of digital journalistic storytelling that exclusively uses mobile phones. The story can be in the form of an audio, video, text, graphics, animation or a combination of all of these. Primarily, the product that is created is also consumed with the help of a smart phone. However, this is not a necessary pre-condition. At times, the result of MoJo can be printed on a newspaper or broadcasted on a television or radio channel or streamed as a podcast or published on a web portal. All these products may or may not be consumed on a mobile phone. There are two things that make mobile journalism unique. First, it enables reporters to carry out many production and distribution activities with a single device. Second, this allows for new forms of storytelling, and supports a more inclusive approach to journalism. This is what makes smart phones truly revolutionary, the audience also has access to the means of producing content. What distinguishes MoJo though is the process of collection and production of news, which is done with the help of a mobile phone or a smart phone to be precise. All across the globe there has been an increasing trend towards the use of mobile journalism.
This is because of the inherent advantages that this kid of journalism offers. It is comparatively cheap: All that one needs for this is a good quality smart phone and some basic associated equipment such as a Gimbal, a lapel microphone, a tripod and a portable mobile charger. It does not require a large amount of money for expensive journalistic gazettes such as cameras, microphones and the likes. By default, MoJo is minimalistic. Another advantage is that it is more convenient. One can immediately start shooting or recording even when there is a breaking news situation. On multiple occasions, reporters have missed the most important part of a story subject because of the complexities of setting up the equipment. The ultra convenient smart phone can be taken out of the pocket within seconds and shooting or recording can be started within moments. Also earlier, there was the obvious disadvantage of having to move the entire setup to another location just in case two different locations were needed to be covered for a story. It is discreet in the sense that when the traditional big journalistic equipment is turned towards the face of the subject, there is a possibility that the subject might feel awkward or a little intimidated. MoJo makes journalism discreet and shooting or recording can be started without raising an eyebrow. Infact for shooting investigative stories, MoJo is much more convenient and reliable than the traditional form of journalism. MoJo has made journalism within the reach of everyone. There was a time when journalism was considered not to be everyone’s cup of tea and was considered to be the fiefdom of the intellectual elite. With the advent of Social Media and MoJo, anybody and everybody can become a journalist. This has ushered in democratization to the craft. Now, we can have a school student, a villager beaming an important news story from say the school located in a remote location or an inaccessible rural countryside. MoJo also does not require much infrastructure or men power. As the country is going through a phase of economic slowdown, where more jobs cannot be created. A number of organizations have taken recourse to austerity measures and thus given the situation MOJO comes with the advantage of optimization of resources. A number of news organizations, in fact, in India and abroad have completely turned to Mobile Journalism. A premier example in India is NDTV, which has gone mobile from the later part of 2017.
MOJO IN AGRICULTURE: In agriculture sector, the use of mobile phone particularly in third world underdeveloped countries is playing a vital role for the enhancement of farmers business towards agriculture. Various studies have proved that the dissemination of information through mobile phones is considered very important in enhancing farmers’ access to better understand agricultural market situation. Infact farming communities appreciate mobile phone as easy, fast and convenient way to communicate and get prompt answers of respective problems. Nowadays, the mobile phone has generated an opportunity for the farmers especially to get the information about marketing and weather. Various mobile apps have been developed through which farmers can regularly update their skills and improve their knowledge and understanding of various aspects of crops and allied sectors improvement. The different aspects also include the weather forecasts, application of various inputs like fertilizer, insecticides and pesticides. The advent of Mobile Journalism (MOJO) can be seen as another important effective tool in transfer of technology in the form of videos covering stories of success, sustainability, profitability and empowerment. Small videos and audios of 10-15 minutes duration can be shoot and made in the fields, animal sheds, demonstration units and uploaded from anywhere for the larger benefit of farming community. As the videos are based on seeing in believing, this also ensures higher adoption of the technologies. |
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