University in Malaysia Joins SputnikPro Project
Sputnik International News Agency and Radio held the first SputnikPro online masterclass for a Malaysian institution — the International Islamic University of Malaysia joined the project.
Sputnik has forged new educational ties with budding Malaysian journalists.
As part of the master class, Victoria Polikarpova, Head of Sputnik International and Sputnik India, told students of the Department of Communications the secrets of newswriting.
She talked about journalists' responsibilities when breaking new stories and how to recognize and debunk fake news.
"Do not be afraid to add your own news angle when writing a news story. Sputnik provides an alternative viewpoint which is different from the Western mainstream, or 'legacy' media, narrative," Polikarpova said.
"As the world is becoming more multipolar and multidimensional, the stories from regions other than the Anglo-Saxon world and the voices of the Global South journalists are becoming louder and more meaningful," she added.
Associate Professor Aida Mokhtar of the Department of Communications gave her impressions of the event.
"The students and staff of the International Islamic University Malaysia enjoyed the Sputnik training session," Mokhtar said. "We learned what makes a news article newsworthy, the importance of using words with suitable connotations and the importance of doing a fact check before writing news articles."
The International Islamic University of Malaysia (IIUM) is a public educational institution located in Gombak, Selangor, Malaysia. It was founded in 1983 and specializes in educational programs in Islamic teachings and humanities.
The university is supported by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and its teaching and administration are conducted entirely in English.
SputnikPro is a project by Sputnik News Agency and Radio for journalists, students, press service employees and media managers. Its main goal is to promote exchange of expertise and develop professional ties between colleagues worldwide.
The project's modules are hosted by Sputnik media managers and other prominent Russian experts. The sessions focus on various aspects of journalism, including production of multimedia content, social media management and building website traffic.
Since March 2018, more than 10,000 people from more than 80 countries have taken part in SputnikPro workshops.
