Prof. Gül Esra Atalay, Dean of the Üsküdar University Faculty of Communication, evaluated the changing employment structure of the communication sector in the age of artificial intelligence, future communication professions, and the competencies students need to prepare for the new working life.
Communication graduates' employment areas are expanding
Prof. Gül Esra Atalay pointed out that technological developments have increased, rather than decreased, the need for communication, and stated that the role of communication professionals has also changed with digitalization.
Saying, “Today, we are truly living in an age of communication,” Prof. Atalay added, “Communication has always been important, of course, but today we are in a hyper-connected world where everyone is accessible at all times thanks to smartphones, social networks, and digital platforms. Technology makes communicating easier, but it makes creating meaning, building trust, and finding common ground more difficult. Therefore, being trained in communication skills is increasingly making a big difference in professional life.”
The communicator's job will not be limited to content creation
Atalay stated that artificial intelligence rapidly automates routine content production processes, emphasizing that this does not mean communication professions will disappear; on the contrary, the communicator's role will shift to a more strategic point.
Prof. Atalay said, “In the past, finding a good advertisement idea, turning that idea into a visual, and writing its text could take days, even weeks. Today, when you give the right commands to artificial intelligence tools, you can get many alternatives in seconds. However, algorithms alone cannot determine which of those alternatives will touch a person's heart, which has a social resonance, or which will truly make people laugh. Artificial intelligence can analyze human behavior, but it cannot feel like a human.”
For this reason, Prof. Atalay noted that in the future, the value of communication graduates will be determined not only by their “production” skills but also by their competencies in selection, verification, interpretation, commentary, and strategy development, and stated that professionals who can use human creativity and artificial intelligence capabilities together will gain an advantage in the business world.
Journalists will be more verifiers and interpreters than writers
Prof. Atalay stated that journalism is one of the areas most affected by artificial intelligence, and in an era where routine news can be automatically generated, the professional value of a journalist will focus on their capacity for research, verification, and interpretation.
Prof. Atalay used the expressions, “A transformation is occurring from the journalist who writes news to the journalist who verifies and interprets. Routine agency news can now be written by artificial intelligence. The new role of the journalist will be to filter disinformation, conduct in-depth research, perform data journalism, and capture the human story behind raw data.”
The new job of advertisers: managing artificial intelligence with creative strategy
Atalay stated that a similar transformation is being experienced in advertising, pointing out that artificial intelligence can produce numerous ad texts, visuals, and campaign alternatives in seconds.
Saying, “The advertiser's job will no longer be solely to create from scratch,” Atalay added, “Choosing the most suitable alternative among those created by artificial intelligence for the brand's spirit, the target audience's psychology, and the societal context; creating the right prompts and establishing the creative strategy will become more important.”
New employment area in public relations; digital trust
Prof. Atalay noted that the spread of deepfake, disinformation, and AI-powered manipulations has also created a need for new specializations in public relations and corporate communication, and stated that one of the most important communication areas of the future will be digital trust and reputation management.
Atalay said, “While traditional tasks such as press release distribution and media monitoring are becoming increasingly automated, cognitive crisis management and trust architecture are gaining more importance. In an age where deepfake and manipulation are so easy, PR professionals must manage reputation crises spreading at AI speed and build genuine connections between society and institutions.”
The communicator of the deepfake era will also be a verification specialist
Emphasizing that future communication professionals must possess data and algorithm literacy, Atalay stated that skills in combating deepfake and disinformation will become increasingly important for employment.
Communication students learn to work with artificial intelligence
Prof. Atalay, drawing attention to the need for communication education to be redesigned due to this transformation, stated that they are integrating artificial intelligence into different areas of communication education at the Üsküdar University Faculty of Communication.
Using the expression, “First and foremost, we tell our students: ‘Artificial intelligence is not the communicator's rival, but their smart assistant,’” Atalay continued:
“Being a good communicator is no longer limited to merely having strong writing skills or a good visual perspective. Cognitive flexibility and the ability to communicate effectively with artificial intelligence have also been added to these. Students are not just learning theory; in practical lessons, they experience how to give correct commands to an AI model, how to evaluate and filter the output. Confirming the accuracy of information produced by artificial intelligence, recognizing cognitive biases, and deciphering algorithmic manipulations are at the core of our education. Authenticity and ethics form our main backbone.”
AI-focused mandatory courses are available in every department
Prof. Atalay stated that in different departments of the faculty, students take mandatory courses that integrate artificial intelligence with their professional fields, saying, “In our Cartoon and Animation department, we have AI-Supported Concept Development; in our Visual Communication Design department, Generative AI in Visual Communication Design; in our Journalism department, AI in Journalism; in our Public Relations and Publicity department, Public Relations and AI Applications; in our Radio, Television and Cinema department, AI-Supported Film Production and Management; in our Advertising department, Digital Advertising and AI Applications; and in our New Media and Communication department, AI courses are mandatory. Additionally, our elective course pool also includes AI-based courses.”
What kind of employment landscape awaits communication graduates in 2-4 years?
Prof. Atalay stated that in the field of communication, jobs at the intersection of digital content, data, artificial intelligence, verification, reputation, and crisis management will become more prominent in the next few years, and pointed out that graduates can work in a wide range of fields, from media organizations to advertising agencies, corporate communication departments to digital platforms, production companies to social media and content agencies.
Atalay noted that communication graduates can also pursue new areas of specialization born with technology, in addition to classic professions, adding, “A significant portion of the areas expected to grow fastest in the next 10-15 years will require a combination of technical knowledge and communication skills.”
New professions await communication graduates
Atalay, stating that artificial intelligence will open up brand new career options for communication faculty graduates, listed the future areas of work as follows:
“AI content strategizing, digital reputation management, disinformation analysis, data storytelling, human-AI interaction design, digital verification expertise, AI-supported creative strategy, algorithmic content management, and digital crisis communication.”
“Future communication graduates will manage algorithms”
Prof. Gül Esra Atalay stated that young people choosing the field of communication should not act on the belief that professions will disappear due to artificial intelligence, and concluded her words as follows:
“Future communication graduates will be professionals who manage algorithms, make sense of artificial intelligence, and build digital trust. Professions are changing, but the ability to communicate well is becoming more valuable than ever. Communicators who can use artificial intelligence correctly and appropriately, think critically, understand human psychology, observe ethical boundaries, and produce original ideas will stand out in the business world. Those who fully delegate their minds and creativity to artificial intelligence will not take their place in the future communication world, but rather those who use artificial intelligence as a tool to enhance their own creativity.”
