The Sharjah Government Media Bureau (SGMB) organised three interactive workshops to shed light on the careful planning and tactical strategies essential for media reporting and the requisite skills to harness the potential of social media platforms to communicate effectively with the public. The three workshops were held as part of the debut Sharjah Events Festival.

Communication and impact

The first workshop session titled ‘Media Reporting: Social Media Platforms’, addressed the impact of social media on speeding up the transfer of information and news and their role in reshaping contemporary lifestyles.

The workshop discussed the volume of content that is exchanged every second around the world via social media, including photos, videos, posts, and news, and emphasised that with the emergence of social media as a powerful communication medium globally,it is vital to harness the potential and dynamics of this new genre of communication.

Media standards and ethics

The second workshop titled ‘The Fundamentals of Media Work’, highlighted the standards that every media professional must strive for, including providing verified and accurate information in news stories, maintain objectivity and neutrality in reporting, and the use of simple and clear language when addressing the public. The workshop also emphasised the need to refrain from the use of technical terms, slang language while paying close attention to the rules of grammar and semantics.

Fact-checking information

The third workshop titled ‘Skills of Fact-checking Social Media Information’, provided a comprehensive insight into the tips and techniques to be developed to avoid falling prey to misleading news and false information circulated on social media platforms. The workshop emphasised the need to get the right information from the chief source, and to rely only on verified and official accounts when those become the main source of news. The workshop facilitator also said reporters must fact-check with entities and representatives before sharing any information on the internet, and conduct an extensive research on each piece of information or news before publishing it.

The workshops programme featured an interesting mix of presentations that showcased lists and recommendations of the most important programmes and apps to enhance media reporting skills.