A delegation comprising two representatives from the Germany-based Deutsche Welle (DW) international broadcaster visited the University of Karachi on Monday. The delegation included DW’s Director of Programs for Asia, Debarati Guha, and the Head of the Urdu Department, Adnan Ishaq.
They toured the KU Radio station and the TV newsroom established within the KU Department of Mass Communication. The visit was conducted in the presence of KU Vice Chancellor Dr. Khalid Mahmood Iraqi, Chairperson MCD Dr. Asmat Ara, and other faculty members. The DW representatives commended the facilities and production work of the students in the television and radio labs.
Dr. Asmat Ara provided the DW delegation with an overview of the daily radio bulletin aired by KU MCD Radio 90.6 and highlighted the various projects undertaken by students in the TV news lab. During an interaction with students and faculty members at the Jinnah Auditorium of the Dr. A.Q. Khan Institute of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, Debarati Guha shared insights into DW’s objectives. She mentioned that DW, headquartered in Bonn, Germany, aims to engage with young journalism students and provide them with valuable insights into DW’s work in Asia.
Guha emphasized DW’s commitment to journalistic ethics, standards, and constructive journalism. Guha revealed that DW reaches approximately 1.5 billion people worldwide each month and focuses on promoting democratic values, free trade, justice, and cultural diversity. She highlighted DW’s efforts to provide unbiased analysis and programs in 11 languages in Asia, with a particular focus on youth engagement and promoting dialogue in society. Guha acknowledged challenges in media censorship in certain countries but affirmed DW’s adherence to international standards in journalism. She emphasized the role of media in highlighting societal issues and mentioned DW’s global presence, operating in 32 languages worldwide with over 4,000 employees of 150 nationalities.
In response, KU VC Dr. Khalid Mahmood Iraqi emphasized the importance of local media in upholding ethical standards and providing training. He highlighted KU MCD’s efforts to incorporate advanced technology and curriculum updates, including a course on social media marketing. The visit concluded with a fruitful exchange of ideas and perspectives between the DW delegation and the university faculty and students, fostering mutual understanding and collaboration in the field of journalism and media studies.
