Experts state that digitalization, an inseparable part of our lives with technology, causes changes in every aspect of life, and they draw attention to the advancements and innovations particularly in the field of “new media and communication”. Stressing that these innovations and changes will create a significant labor force need for new media tools in the future, experts emphasize the importance of education in New Media and Communication.
Üsküdar Üniversitesi Faculty of Communication New Media and Communication Department Head Assoc. Prof. Dr. Feride Zeynep Güder made evaluations on the effects of digitalization on the media process and transformations in new media education.
Digitalization has multi-faceted effects on social life
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Feride Zeynep Güder stated that we are in a period witnessing very rapid change with digitalization, and said, “The digital age, rapid change, and new media. These three intertwined concepts create countless associations and prismatic reflections. Transformations in social life standards and daily life practices, new interactive communication possibilities, digital transformation in media, cultural interactions, new consumption habits of popular culture, and similar transformations present us with a new world imagination and design by opening up untried paths and paradigms in the intellectual structure. In this context, for example, the idea of futurism has become much discussed with digitalization. High technological elements have rapidly evolved towards a perceptual change where new realities can become possible, both accelerating intercultural communication processes in a globalizing world.”
Digital culture leads to multi-layered innovations
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Feride Zeynep Güder said, “Network society and digital culture, which manifest with different characteristics such as creativity, collage, visualization, and quantification, lead to multi-layered innovations not only in social structure transformations but also in commercial relations in working life, consumption trends, and hybridized work hours.”
Digital culture contains many new concepts
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Feride Zeynep Güder pointed out that digital culture includes many new concepts unfamiliar to the ordinary person, and said, “For example, concepts such as artificial intelligence, big data, crowdsourcing, digital surveillance, hive mind, neurotechnology, hyperreality, internet of things, super intelligent society, and smart city stand out in this field.”
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Feride Zeynep Güder noted that this culture confronts us with a new world that has completely different intellectual problems and paradigms, and said, “Therefore, these massive movements on digital platforms emphasize the necessity of new educational tracks and contents in realizing fluid communication and in the future construction that futurism has designed for us. From this perspective, new media education does not see renewal merely as the renewal of technological tools.”
The importance of New Media and Communication education is increasing
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Feride Zeynep Güder pointed out the importance of education in this field, stating, “In this new world, there is a need for individuals who can cope with these concepts, actively strive, and take an active role in employment. The New Media and Communication department offers an educational program for digital natives who can correctly interpret these situations and concepts and keep pace with digital and social transformations.