Photographer and activist Dr Shahidul Alam has urged students to pay greater attention to long-form storytelling in journalism, saying depth and critical thinking are increasingly being lost in a fast-paced media environment.
He made the remarks while interacting with students of the University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB) at the inaugural session of “Ctrl+Alt+Story: Research and Storytelling in Journalism”, a joint initiative by Drik and ULAB aimed at nurturing prospective storytellers through structured mentorship.
The inaugural event was held on Wednesday to welcome participants and orient them about the program’s four-month-long activities.
Prof Sumon Rahman, dean of ULAB’s School of Social Sciences and head of the Media Studies and Journalism Department, delivered the welcome address. He said society’s growing inclination towards quick, short-form content has made the reading and writing of long, in-depth pieces increasingly rare.
“In the long run, this may affect various aspects of our lives, as these habits are closely connected to deep and critical thinking, which requires time and reflection,” he said.
He added that the initiative seeks to inspire young minds to revive these essential habits and skills, and thanked Drik for partnering with ULAB on what he described as a timely and important initiative.
During his interactive session, Dr Alam discussed the fundamentals of slow and investigative journalism, drawing on examples from his four-decade-long career as well as the work of other journalists.
He said journalism is not merely a clerical task of reporting who said what and where, but a creative pursuit that seeks to explain the “why” by digging deeper in an objective and scientific manner, and presenting findings in a way audiences can best understand.
“We must not rush everything. Sometimes we need to slow down, think deeply and critically, and understand the true essence of the phenomena around us,” he said.
Dr Alam also cautioned students that searching for the “why” is often neither easy nor safe, and the same applies to sharing those answers with the public. However, he added that “there will always be ways forward if one’s intent is honest and strong.”
The session was moderated by Dr Sarkar Barbaq Quarmal, associate professor of Media Studies and Journalism at ULAB and one of the project coordinators. The other coordinator, Oliur Rahman Sun, lecturer at ULAB’s Department of English and Humanities, presented details of the initiative to the participants.
The Ctrl+Alt+Story initiative has begun with 21 participants selected through a rigorous two-step selection process.
Over the next six weeks, participants will attend a series of workshops and masterclasses conducted by renowned journalists and storytellers. Following this phase, ten students will receive fellowships worth Tk50,000 each, along with mentorship support, to pursue investigative journalism projects of their choice.
