June 22, 2023
On June 13, the Institute for Journalism, Media & Communication Studies' Spring Semester Public Lecture was held at the South School Building Hall on Mita Campus. From academic year 2020 to 2022, the event was held online or with participation limited to on-campus members due to the effects of COVID-19, but this time, for the first time in four years, the public lecture resumed as an in-person event open to the general public. Approximately 60 people, including Keio students, Keio University alumni, high school students, and working professionals, participated.
In the lecture, journalist and fact-checker Daisuke Furuta (CEO of Media-Collab Inc.) gave a presentation on the theme of "The Evolving News Reporting in the Digital Age." He gave a fast-paced talk, introducing case studies from Japan and abroad to illustrate how news reporting is changing as the global information environment is rapidly transformed by digital technologies such as the internet, smartphones, social media, and AI. He also discussed what must be done now for the future of journalism.
In the Q&A session that followed, a wide variety of questions were raised one after another on topics such as digital reporting, fact-checking, the work and education of reporters, and how to find one's calling, so much so that the scheduled time was not enough. Finally, the lecturer, Mr. Furuta, spoke about the Japanese news media, which is said to be in a crisis of survival. He stated, "The function of reporting must be carried out by someone. It's an industry whose necessity can never be reduced to zero," and offered words of encouragement to students aspiring to enter the industry.
The next public lecture by the Institute for Journalism, Media & Communication Studies is scheduled to be held at Hiyoshi Campus during the Fall Semester 2023.
Photo by: Takeshi Kishi