UNS — Commission I of Universitas Sebelas Maret (UNS) Surakarta Board of Professor initiated webinar on ‘Mass Media Opinion Column Writing.’ The webinar aims to encourage UNS professors to share their ideas, particularly through writing.
Inviting two speakers, the webinar was held online through the Zoom Cloud Meeting application and live-streamed on the UNS YouTube channel on Monday (13/12/2021). Two invited speakers are Prof. Dr. Agus Kristiyanto as UNS Columnist and Vice-Dean at the School of Postgraduate Studies and Iwan Kurniawan from Tempo Institute.
The webinar on opinion column writing was officially opened by the Rector of UNS, Prof. Jamal Wiwoho. In his opening remark, the Rector appreciated the webinar because opinion column writing in mass media has great benefits for participants who like to write to the media. Prof. Jamal also thinks that UNS faculty members have a large opportunity to share their ideas through writing, considering the diverse disciplines in UNS that could translate into various topics of discussion. Through their writing, UNS faculty members could share their ideas and contribute to solving the nations’ problems.
“I truly hope that the members of the Board of Professors and all participants could find solutions for local, national, and even international level,” Prof. Jamal added.
Widely accessible and available for the public, writing in mass media could improve people’s awareness of the issues in Indonesia. “Writing also elevates us, elevate our delf identity,” Prof. Jamal added.
Attending the same occasion, the Chairman of the UNS Board of Professor, Prof. Suranto Tjiptowibisono, agreed to Prof. Jamal. Although, writing in media is not an easy task that requires experience and patience. Prof. Suranto emphasized that journal writing tends to be formal and difficult to understand for common people, while the information contained in such writing is accessible for everyone.
“Our highly formal writing in the form of the journal needs to be modified and shared to people who are not in that particular field of study but also understand the topic,” Prof. Suranto stated.
Therefore, Prof. Suranto hoped that through this webinar, UNS Board of Professors and UNS faculty members could share their ideas in mass media and facilitate accessibility towards such discussion for people. The Chairman of the UNS Board of Professor also added that currently, 12 articles from the UNS Board of Professor are under publishing process by Cambridge Publishing Company. Humas UNS
Reporter: Alinda Hardiantoro
Editor: Dwi Hastuti