The taxi driver - a man aparently in his fifty- didn't speak a word of English. Me, I don't spek a word of Thai. He didnt think it twice. As soon as it became clear that we were not able to communicate, he produced his smartphone, whispered something in Thai to the microphone and handed it to me. Google them told me in English he didn't know how long it would take us to get to our destination due to the traffic jam, the information I was demanding. We kept on talking for a while, he in Thai, me in English, with his smartphone acting as an interpreter. It was just one of the two devices he was using. The other one was showing him the way through Google Maps.
Yes; I know. This is not new. These apps have been on the market for years and its use is becoming widespread. What stroke me was the natural way in wich this taxi driver from a northern town of Thailand used technology, as he had been doing so all his life.
The same readiness, natural approach I noticed whenever I stop someone on the street to ask a direction. They just pointed to the phone they had in their hands (and were looking at while walking) and showed me the way in Google Maps or grab a ‘Grab Car’ for me through an app similar to Uber.
It was seven years since my last trip to Asia. And definitely this Asia had nothing to do with the one I have traveled in before, from Turkey to West Papua through the 'Stans' (Kyrgyzstan, Kazakstan...). It's true: time flies and for things regarding technology, it flies even higher and faster. But still the leap forward was huge.
Statistics explained with figures my perception, when I googled for answers later. I tend to forget fast numbers and percentages, but I've kept three ideas from what I read:
1. FAST GROWTH. Asia -and mostly Southeast Asia- has gone through a vertiginous growth in the use of smartphones in the last 5 years. To the point that some of these countries are in leading positions in the worlwide rankings of smartphone users.
2. THE PHONE FIRST. Smartphones have been the tool for a massive access to internet, as personal computers were not available in every home.
3. THE INTENSITY. Smartphone users in this part of the world tend to spend more time watching their screens than users from the rest of the world. In the Philippines they expend more than 4 hours per day just in social media. And more than three in Thailand, according to Global Digital Report 2019 (conducted by Hootsuite and WeAreSocial). In weekends, it could be even more, as some people I've met explained to me.
Is he exagerating? I don't know. But everyone in the streets -from Bangkok to the small town of Sukhotai or, farther north, Chiang Mai- seemed to be glued to the screens. ¿Would you come with a similar conclusion travelling in Europe? Maybe, but you'd hardly notice the same intensity and passion.
But, what about media? My trip to Asia had a goal: attend and speak at the first conference on mobile journalism held in this part of the world under the name of MojoAsia 2019. Organized by Konrad Adenauer Stiftung (@KASMediaAsia), it atracted about 250 atendees from 32 countries, among scholars, professionals and managers from the media.
A great opportunity to know how they are coping with innovation, driving the transition to digital and embracing innovative tecnhnologies such as the mobile way of producing and delivering content based on smartphones. And, according to what I could listened from the speakers and attendees during the two days of conference, some media seem to be paying attention to what is happening around them: the fast evolution to an hyperconnected society. These are some ideas extracted from the conference.
1. EARLY ADOPTERS. Some media across the continent adopted ‘mojo’ early and have been practicing it for years now. The turn for mobile was driven initially by financial reasons: a smartphone (and the gear required to do a professional work) is cheaper than a traditional camera. Besides, they were atracted by the fact that it simplifies and make content production easier -in some cases it can be as straighforward as 'point and shoot’, as Ana Puod from News5 Philippines said. Corinne Podger (@corinne_podger), who has advised Konrad Adenauer Stiftung on the organization of this event, has travelled across Asia and the world teaching mobile journalism. This is how she explains the process.
2. SPREADING MOJO IN COMMUNITIES. Is citizen journalism a threat or a huge opportunity? A number of media across Asia support the second choice. And they long ago got to work on it.
As some of the explained, they are training citizens to produce their own stories. By doing so, they don't look for free contributors for their outlets. Instead, they try to engage them, give voice to communities in a way legacy media could never afford to do and also have fresh views, sources and even raw content for their social media.
Trained citizens can also help to fact-check and verify stories, as Pipope Panitchpakdi (@panitchpakdi) explained. Pipope's interesting journey from being a traditional camera operator to become Deputy Director General of Thai Public Broadcasting Service, goes through the adoption of mojo and the support of citizen journalism.
There are also social benefits, as the lebanese videojournalist Sara Hteit (@sarahteit) explained. Supported by a foundation, she is training syrian refugees on the use of mobile devices to tell their stories so they can have a voice in the community and even in the media.
As Claire Lyons -a former BBC producer and independent trainer now based in Thailand- pointed, there was a trend to consider citizenship journalism a threat years ago. But that debate has been overcome. "Now, the most advanced media share in their social platforms stories produced by their communities. Besides, they get involved training those communities in the adoption of mobile tools, spreading among them no just technological skills but also critical thinking".
3. YOU STILL NEED A TEAM. Asia newsrooms may be pioneering the adoption of mojo but they are also learning on the go from the experience. And the experience of the journalists involved shows that there's room to improve.
Being able to report from anywhere to different platforms with just a phone at a very low cost is empowering but... some journalist declare themselves overcome by the number and intensity of duties they are requiered to do. Working as a one man/woman band on the ground and being asked to produce content for TV, radio and social nearly at the same time is definitely too much, some say.
"Mojo doesn’t need to be necesarily always a one man band's duty", they point. Working with a team -even using mobile devices- can be suitable according to the situation, experimented mojo reporters such as Umashankar Singh (@umashankarsingh) from NDTV India or Rajini Vaidyanathan (@BBCRajiniV) from BBC stated during the conference.
4. USING SMARTPHONES SMARTLY. Reporters doing mojo on the ground tend not to consider smartphones able to completely replace traditional gear but to complement it. Using the smartphones smartly is their idea. Right now -they argue- the agenda is set by social and the goal is 'being first', because the smartphones allows you to be fast. But companies should reflect on how that affect the workflow and the amount of pressure put on their staff.
There are questions waiting for an answer: Are media asking too much from reporters? Are they training their staff coveniently? Are they providing them with the suitable gear? Are they asking too much from MOJO?
5. SHOULD WE KEEP ON ASKING IF SMARTPHONES ARE PROFESSIONAL TOOLS? Even though reporting from a smartphone is neither new nor infrecuent across Asia, doing so is not yet always perceived as a professional way of reporting, Henna Saeed (@Henna_Saeed), a former reporter for BBC and CNN from Pakistan explained. Mainly not by other media collegues neither perhaps by VIP or people used to talk in front of big cameras. "We need to show our press card to prove we are reporting", she explained. This seems to be just a question of time.
But in the meantime, this can be an advantage, as Nesar Fayzi (@NesarFayzi) -an afghan reporter- experienced first hand. Talibans -he explained- don't like big cameras as they don't like journalists. And they have proved so by killing, kidnapping and hitting them. But they are able to smile for a selfie with a reporter when he is using his phone. Do they think he was playing? Well, maybe that was the reason, but in fact he was reporting for AP (Associated Press News Agency) from one of the most dangerous places for journalist in the world. And he succeeded doing so.
Nesar Fayzi also explained that in his country mojo is becoming popular among the female journalists, as they find in the phone a light, handy and discreet device to do their job. A device with wich they can report unnoticed when they need it. Whatever the reasons, the same is happening in Pakistan, India and the Philippines, among others. We perceived the empowering capacity of mojo through some women-dominated pannels. This seemed to me a really good news.
"People in rural areas are no longer reading newspapers. They get information mainly from the phone".
I wrote down this sentence as it was pronounced by one of the journalists at the pannel 'Mojo in Asia. Challenges and opportunities". The following days, as in all my trips, I tried to take a picture of a person reading a newspaper. As a journalist who used to work for printed press, I like this kind of pictures. And I've done many in different places.
I didn't succeeded this time. No pic opportunity of a single person around reading a newspaper in Chiang Mai or Sukhotai, the places I visited in Thailand apart from Bangkok. On the contrary, I had plenty of opportunities of taking such pictures:
Obviously we cannot consider the decline of printed press something new. But maybe we should start considering that mobile journalism is not yet that new. Not that quirky. Not that pointless. Not that... Ok. it's time to speak about Suthichai.
Suthichai Yoon (@Suthichai) is a famous, versatile, experimented, forward-looking 72 years-old Thai Journalist. Just try to think of a star journalist in your country with a similar profile to make an idea of who we are talking about. He was cofounder of The Nation -first English written newspaper in Thailand- and also of the countrie's first independent news TV station. Now he is a youtube and Facebook star. He conducts an online dalily live show that has become very popular. And he keeps on writing a daily column in the newspaper.
This is what he has to say (and what he did say in his keynote conference at MojoAsia 2019):
Journalism is facing a perfect storm. We, media and journalists, need to abandon the old ships to board a safeboat and survive. In order to do so, we need to adapt: learn new skills, search for new ways to tell the stories, connect with the audience where audience is and the way they are consuming contents. Ressistence will be useless. Ressistance will become us irrelevant. And that will be the end.
"Journalism is facing a perfect storm. We need to get out of the confort zone to survive. Resisting will become us irrelevant"
Suthichai spoke to us at the very same day that The Nation -his former newspaper-, was being printed for the last time. From then on, it will just be online... definitely, this is not a new story.
Indeed, some issues addressed at MojoAsia rang me a bell. We've heard also amazing stories of adapting to and profiting digital in the five editions of Mojocon/Mojofest (2015-2019), MojoLatam 2019 and other conferences around the world. Initiatives such as #Hashtagourstories (@hashtagourstory), a global project to train and involve young people around the world with creating social content. An many, many others. But the idea of becoming irrelevent as a result of not reacting to what is happening appeared to me the best way to explain to the skepticals the risks we are facing.
So, to put an end to this post, here is my list of five tips not to become irrelevant with ideas taken from mojo conferences around the world.
1. TECHNOLOGY IS HERE TO STAY. All of us have brought it here, enthrone it and profit it. Resisting it is useless.
2. FORGET ABOUT THE SIZE OF THE CAMERA. We should not be dissapointed by the limitations of this technology. Later today it will improve. Tomorrow it will have changed. And we'll need to be always adapting. Focus should not be on the technological side. Focus should be on people and what they do, on what's happening around us to try to understand it and explain it to the audience.
3. COLLABORATE AND NOT COMPETE. We have to admit it. Everyone can -and has a right to- tell a story. Write it, tell it outlod, film it, share it... technology has make this true for everyone. Journalists are no longer the only ones with the speaker. Isn't this a good news for journalists? Why don't do things together? Why don't profit this comprehensive source of content, voices and views?
As professional journalists, we are the ones paid for doing a professional work. That means, we have time to research the stories and we do our job according to a method, rules and ethics. That's our commitment with society and audience. We need to build our reputation and credibility based on our professional daily work. Our work as journalists emains as important as ever, but there are new ways to do it.
4. NO NEAD OF FEAR. This is not about technicians fearing to lose their jobs. This is not about journalists scared about being replaced by citizen journalists. This is not about fear. We have the opportunity to catch the wave and lead the move. Or we can just wait and see how we become irrelevant.
5. THE MAGIC BEGINS. Explore. Push the limits. Break standards (but not your commitment with journalism rules). Look for the best way to tell each story. Have fun. I love this sentence with wich Iris Gonzales (@eyesgonzales) from Philstar.com started her article on MojoAsia 2019. “Outside one’s comfort zone is where the magic begins.” That's it.