Depok-Universitas Indonesia (UI) Vocational Education Program adds collaboration in the field of education and research with one of the universities in Warsaw, Poland, Collegium Civitas. The signing of the Agreement of Implementation (PKS) was carried out by the Director of the UI Vocational Education Program, Padang Wicaksono, S.E., Ph.D, and the Vice-Rector for International Relations Collegium Civitas, Dr. Katarzyna Maniszewska on September 4, 2023 at the UI Vocational Auditorium, UI Depok Campus.
(Photo: Padang Wicaksono giving a speech to new UI Vocational students class of 2023)
In his speech, Padang said that collaboration between Vocational UI and Collegium Civitas would be carried out in several forms, namely education, research, student and teacher exchanges, as well as joint curriculum development. Padang said, “We are trying to run the Universitas Indonesia program as a world-class university through collaboration with various campuses abroad. “This collaboration program is expected to improve UI’s quality in the fields of research and education, as well as its existence at the international level.”
The program received a positive response after a visit carried out by UI Vocational management to Collegium Civitas at the end of last August. During the visit, various programs that would be built between UI Vocational and Collegium Civitas were discussed.
(Photo: Dr. Katarzyna presenting material about current media literacy)
On the same occasion, Dr. Katarzyna Maniszewska gave a public lecture entitled “Media Literacy and New Media Development Through Polish and Indonesian Perspective” to students of Media Production, Public Relations, Multimedia Broadcasting and Creative Advertising. She explained that the role of the media in society today is very massive. Various phenomena can be recorded and published by anyone. In fact, the concept of citizen journalism is increasingly found in everyday environments. However, as people who are very close to the world of journalism, we must also understand the journalistic code of ethics that must be implemented in responsible content production when we enter directly into the mass media industry.
Dr. Katarzyna gave examples of codes of ethics published by several media outlets, such as Al Jazeera and the BBC. “In publishing information, whether on social media or mass media, everyone needs to pay attention to existing journalistic codes of ethics and guidelines. For example, such as the code of ethics issued by Al Jazeera, one of which states that we need to adhere to journalistic values, namely honesty, courage, fairness, balance, independence, credibility and diversity. As well as prioritizing professional considerations over commercial or political interests,” said Dr. Katarzyna.
On the other hand, Dr. Katarzyna explained the importance of media literacy that needs to be understood, especially for students. Media literacy refers to any technical, cognitive, social, civic, and creative capacities that enable individuals to access and have critical understanding when interacting with media. The presence of media technology can be used as a forum for conveying information widely and quickly.
(Photo: The atmosphere on the first day of the 2023 UI Vocational PKKMB activities)
She added, “The use of the media still needs to be done carefully. Many fake news (hoaxes) occur due to unwise use of the media. In fact, disinformation is often found to lead public opinion towards a phenomenon. The impact of fake news can result in losses great in various aspects.” Moreover, as a student studying communication science, media literacy skills are very important in the process of receiving, processing and redistributing information or content that is owned.
Referring to this phenomenon, she provides three steps to identify fake news, namely 1) apply critical scrutiny to a report on a phenomenon first before passing it on to others; 2) check the source and sender of the report received (can be via the official government website or social media channel or search engine); and 3) use the existing fact checker system. She also hopes that the fact checker system in Indonesia can be developed so that news that is spread can be identified precisely and accurately.
