Role of Publications as Information Gateways

With increasing digital advancement, the printed press is facing continuous challenges. This advancement cannot be stopped, yet for many holding a publication in hand has a completely different charm. Just like meeting someone in person has a different impact then talking to the same person on phone.

Amongst such publications, magazines range back its presence to colonial period. They are considered as the first medium to become ‘national’ in scope. Today, publications are expanding its reach, with their websites and engaging readers via other social media platforms as well. However, information-sharing on the EHS front, as it exists, suffers from certain intrinsic deficiency – both in terms of content and context, despite there being numerous publications already circulating in India and abroad.

There is a serious gap which is required to be addressed. There are a number of challenges for coming out with such a publication. For e.g. what content should be a part of a publication devoted to EHS? What are the economic implications? If so, how to find the right authors for writing about EHS? Would a magazine or a publication be accepted by the EHS community, despite the large amount of data floating around in the internet? What kind of an identity would such a magazine want to create? Why would people want to spend on a printed edition anyways? There are always many questions to answer and challenges to address.

“I must have a prodigious amount of mind; it takes me as much as a week, sometimes, to make it up!”
– Mark Twain

Magazines or Publications (in the past, in the present and in the future) are an integral part of the information framework of any community. Any future without print cannot be envisioned. Rather, a circumstantial marriage is taking place – a collaboration of digital and print – with the single objective of giving out information that is useful, progressive, knowledgeable, and educative.

It is the responsibility of every publication to ensure that information conveyed to its readers is truthful, meaningful and progressive. As masses have experienced, publications are a great source for;

  • Keeping abreast with the latest news, technologies and updates
  • Seeking good job opportunities
  • Acting as ready reckoners
  • Gaining knowledge & information
  • Sources of support & services
  • General awareness
  • & much more

Furthermore, publications also play the role of policing non-compliant events or happenings through cultural commentary, information on general civilization habits, adopting new lifestyles and more. Offline publications have to ensure that those who may not have the liberty to online privileges are provided with (at least) crucial information that can contribute to the growth of individual and community together.

These and much more need to be evaluated and encompassed in a publication. Do you think that a magazine specifically on EHS is the need of the hour, especially in a country like India? Let us know your views in the comments section

ASK-EHS recently launched B-Proactive – A magazine for the EHS professional, and will soon come out with its second edition.

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