Indrajit Banerjee
10 November 1964 – 25 January 2019
Photo from Calcutta de la rue à l’école
(http://www.calcuttadelaruealecole.org/unesco-2/27164485_1643993945679674_4864003017922954664_o/)
Indrajit Banerjee
The Asian Media Information and Communication Center, Inc.(AMIC) announces with deep regret the death of its former AMIC
Tribute to Indrajit Bannerjee
ITU Pictures from Geneva, Switzerland [CC BY 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
“Indrajit was my colleague at the Asian Media Information and Communication Centre (AMIC) when he was Secretary General and I was a Board member. He was one of the most driven and creative Secretaries General since AMIC’s inception in 1971. He found ways to position the Asian organization as a strong player in the global communication landscape. His long and warm arms of friendship embraced numerous scholars and practitioners from around the world and engaged them for the benefit of AMIC. He was exceptionally ambitious for AMIC and found creative ways to make things happen. His programming of AMIC conferences during his tenure was an intellectual treat for many of us who had often struggled to put up decent conference agenda. He had a way with ideas and people. He got things done against many odds. He pleaded, cajoled and, occasionally, ‘threatened’ dear friends into submission. I was looking forward to meeting Indrajit in Paris today at his invitation to attend a UNESCO conference. Fate took him away yesterday. I and many other friends who knew him well were devastated. Fortunately, his work and words remain with us and will inspire me and others to strive for greater heights in what we do, as he did.”
Arun Mahizhnan
Singapore
26 January 2019
Farewell, Gerry Josue
Dear AMIC officers and members,
It is with deep regret that we announce the passing of GERARDO “Gerry” R. JOSUE on 12 August 2018. Gerry was a member of the AMIC Board of Directors and AMIC Country Representative to the Philippines. AMIC recognizes the many contributions of Gerry to the organization especially in institution building and program planning.
AMIC has extended its condolences to the immediate family of Gerry and has co-organized on 15 August a necrological service to honor our dear colleague and supporter. His contemporaries have also expressed their appreciation for Gerry.
“He was a gentleman and a great friend to have. During my stint as AMIC’s SG, Gerry was also a very supportive board member and always a pleasure to work with.” – Sundeep R. Muppidi, Ph.D.
“It is with deep sadness that I learnt about the passing away of our dear friend and AMIC Board member Mr. Gerry Josue. Gerry was an extremely decent and dignified person who was deeply committed to AMIC and provided me with invaluable support during my tenure as AMIC SG.” – Indrajit Banerjee , Ph.D.
We invite our AMIC officers and members to offer prayers for the repose of his soul.
Thank you very much.
Sincerely yours,
RAMON R. TUAZON
Secretary General
Internship/On-the-job Training Program 2018
The internship/on-the-job training program is a project-oriented learning opportunity for undergraduate students to gain experience through assignments based on AMIC’s current operational needs.
AMIC advertises its internship assignments once a year and welcomes driven, creative, and self-directed individuals to apply.
The program offers students the opportunity to
- Work for 250-400 hours in a major international association for communication, professionals;
- Work collaboratively with other trainees/interns on industry-relevant assignments;
- Gain a deeper understanding on management of social media platforms, corporate website, contact lists and databases; production of marketing collaterals; and email marketing;
- Contribute to AMIC through various program and administrative tasks; and
- Receive complimentary access to the library of AMIC and the Asian Institute of Journalism and Communication (AIJC) from the start of the program until three months after the date of completion.
Internship candidates must be
- Currently enrolled in an undergraduate-level program (Communication, Journalism, Advertising or other programs directly related to AMIC’s work);
- Competent in English oral and written communication; and
- Adept at using MS Office and similar applications.
By the end of the program, the trainee/intern will be able to learn
- Basic email marketing and correspondence;
- Management of contact directories (media, higher education institutions, Public Information Offices, nongovernment organizations, AMIC members) and other data;
- Content management of social media accounts (LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram);
- Website development and maintenance;
- Design and layout of corporate collaterals;
- Product photography and basic photo retouching; and
- Other basic skills in the workplace such as recordkeeping and file management, drafting minutes of meetings, and preparing audio transcriptions.
Application Process
The internship application process is online through the AMIC Secretariat. Eligible candidates may apply by sending their CVs, three sample written works, and the contact information of their internship/OJT coordinator, together with a cover letter, to f.academia@amic.asia.
Deadline of submission is on August 30, 2018. Applications submitted after the deadline will not be considered.
To avoid errors in submission, applicants are advised not to wait until the last day of the application period in submitting their internship applications.
AMIC evaluates applications based on eligibility requirements, relevance of academic background, and the candidate’s level of interest and motivation to contribute to AMIC’s work.
Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
AMIC Award for Fr. Franz-Josef Eilers, svd
The 2018 AMIC Award for ‘Transformative Leadership” has been accorded to Fr. Franz-Josef Eilers, svd at the 26th Annual Conference of the “Asian Media, Information and Communication Centre (AMIC)” on June 8, 2018 at Manipal ‘Academy of Higher Education’ in Karnataka, India “for his outstanding contributions in the field of Church and social communication”. He has “written extensively on human and social communication and developed the concepts of pastoral and evangelizing Communication” which is also reflected in an academic program at the Pontifical University of Santo Tomas in Manila. His several books in the field are considered as standard in the field, including a 632 page commented edition of all official Vatican documents on Communication from 1936 to 2014 (Logos, Manila).
AMIC is since the 1970s the only professional continental organization for Asian communication scholars and professionals which since 2006 gives only one annual Award to outstanding figures in the field. The last former awardees were Shelton Dhavalasri Guanaratne (2016) who is recognized as proposing a “de-Westernizing” communication theory especially under Buddhist but also Hinduism and Confucianism perspective. The 2017 Awardee Wijayanada Jayaweera was leading the “International Program for the Development of Communication (IPDC) at UNESCO in Paris and developed a “human-centric theory of Press freedom” based on Daoist principles.
Original article at St. Joseph Freinademetz Communication Center, Inc. website.
AMIC joins IAMCR 2018 Conference
AMIC Secretary General Ramon R. Tuazon joined three panels organized by UNESCO in the recently convened 2018 International Association of Media and Communication Researchers (IAMCR) held at the University of Oregon on June 20-24, 2018. The three panels were “Wither the Communications Landscape in the next five years?,” New Challenges, New Curricula: Media Education in the Face of Disinformation and Attacks on Journalists,” and “Attacks on Journalists and the Issue of Impunity: The Fight for Sustainable Journalism against Civil Diminishment.”
R. Tuazon, L. Obonyo, O. Adekunle Suraj, A. Vega Montiel, M. Pathak-Shelat and R. Mansell. © UNESCO
According to Tuazon, journalists’ safety is being compounded by the evolving ecosystem of violence against journalists in many parts of the world and the lack of public awareness, or worse public apathy, on the issue. He emphasized that safety competencies have emerged as new core competencies of journalists which should be integrated in journalism curricula.
Panelists of New challenges, new curricula: Media education in the face of disinformation and attacks on journalists . © UNESCO
On the issue of impunity, he called for more interdisciplinary research especially the impact of political economy on the workings of media. He also urged the UNESCO and the academia to further engage young people to make them active stakeholders in pushing back sustained efforts to attack freedom of expression. SG Tuazon cited the recent 2018 AMIC Annual Conference with the theme “Disturbing Asian Millennials: Some Creative Responses.” The AMIC event was held in Karnataka, India and was hosted by Manipal Academy of Higher Education (see related story).
During the conference, SG Tuazon had separate one-on-one meetings with UNESCO Director Guy Berger of the Freedom of Expression and Media Development Division and Dr. Janet Wasko, IAMCR president. They discussed partnership opportunities in the areas of research, publications, and training.
Among the other AMIC stalwarts who attended the IAMCR 2018 were AMIC Board of Director Binod Agrawal and AMIC Lifetime member and AMIC Asia Communication laureate John Lent. A number of AMIC members who attended the conference expressed their delight to SG Tuazon that AMIC has become more visible again in the past few years. SG Tuazon invited the members to be active in future AMIC events especially the 2019 AMIC Conference in Bangkok, Thailand.
Other related articles:
https://en.unesco.org/news/experts-debate-global-trends-freedom-expression-and-media-development
https://en.unesco.org/news/journalism-curricula-welcomed-academic-conference
More photos by UNESCO Communication and Information HERE