The document summarizes a career seminar held by MDIS School of Media and Communications and Oklahoma City University that featured four distinguished speakers from the media industry. Each speaker shared their perspectives on the current state and future direction of the media industry. After the seminar, three student members from the MDIS Media Club interviewed each speaker to learn more about their careers and views.

1. 22 > Horizons September - October Issue
A full house hung onto every word as the speakers shared their perspectives about the media industry, the direction
it is currently heading in, and what we as industry practitioners can do to keep up with the ever-changing world of
online media. True to their job descriptions as media experts, all four speakers managed to intrigue, captivate and
entertain the audience all at the same time as they framed complex topics and ideologies in simple layman’s terms.
After the seminar, three student members of the MDIS Media Club got a chance to sit down and have a chat with each
of the four speakers.
UsingCommunications,Social
Media&Technologyinthe
MediaIndustry
On the 10th
October, the MDIS School of
Media and Communications and Oklahoma
City University held a career seminar for
its students. Held in the spacious MDIS
Residences’ auditorium, the two-hour-long
session featured four distinguished speakers
from the media industry: namely, Mr Jonathan
Ng of Singapore Press Holdings; Miss Lai Lei
Khim from the Media Development Authority
of Singapore; Mr John O’Callaghan of Edelman
Southeast Asia; and the Honourable President
MrRobertH.HenryofOklahomaCityUniversity. Faculty members of Oklahoma City University

2. Horizons September - October Issue > 23
Learning
Mr Jonathan Ng
Editor, Razor TV
As the Editor for RazorTV, the Singapore
Press Holdings’ multimedia arm, Mr Ng
is no stranger to the Internet. A strong
believer in journalistic responsibility,
he believes that – regardless of
whether one was writing for the Straits Times or Stomp – one
should always report news accurately, ethically, and with
integrity; especially when it came to topics that are easily
sensationalised or taken out of context.
Mr Ng is adamant that all good reporters should be, above all
else, curious and courageous. Not only must he or she be able
to ask why, the reporter must also have the tenacity to dig
deep to find the truth. This is one of the reasons why he feels
that the Singapore Press Holdings is such a good employer.
Not only does the company encourage passion and creativity,
it also allows one to specialise horizontally across multiple
fields and departments, allowing a young reporter to gain a
broad-based understanding of the industry.
Lai Lei Khim
Director, Outreach Division, Media
Development Authority
Miss Lai is the Director of the Outreach
Division at the Media Development
Authority of Singapore and is, despite her imposing title and
position, an exceptionally warm and friendly person. As an
advocateofmedialiteracyandcyber-wellness,MissLaibelieves
that education is the key to helping the public understand how
they should behave on the Internet. If people took some time
to first understand the nature of digital media and, secondly,
theimportanceofbehavingresponsiblyandethicallywhileonline.
Contrary to popular belief, things are not less important simply
because they are on the Internet: instead, the impact one’s
actions has are magnified because the Internet is a public
space, and whatever one says or does online will likely stay
online forever. Freedom of speech notwithstanding, Ms Lai
stressed that members of the public should always think twice
before saying or doing anything online.
John O’ Callaghan
Director of Publishing & Partnerships,
Edelman Group
As a successful journalist who has
worked with world-renowned papers such Reuters and the
Globe and Mail, Mr O' Callaghan is a preeminent writer with
experience working in cities such as Hong Kong, London,
Singapore and Washington D.C. In his current position as the
Director of Publishing and Partnerships in Edelman’s South-
East Asia arm, he has seen the importance of having passion
in one’s work and exactly how far that can take someone.
MrCallaghanbelievesthatuncoveringthetruthasajournalist
does not just require specialist knowledge but, instead, also
requires a deeper philosophical understanding of how the
world works. Not only will the latter help drive a journalist’s
career forward, such an understanding – when coupled with
an ethical desire to make the world a better place – will also
serve to minimise bias and bigotry when reporting the news.
Robert H. Henry
President and CEO,
Oklahoma City University
In addition to being a member of the
Oklahoma House of Representatives,
Mr Henry was also appointed to the
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth
Circuit as Chief Judge before becoming the 17th President of
Oklahoma University: a role that he still holds to this very day.
While praising the curriculum of MDIS and noting how its
students get to experience the best of two very different
education systems (the Singaporean and the American), Mr
Henry stressed the importance of critical thinking, cynicism,
journalistic integrity and social responsibility for media and
communication students. Without these qualities and a
willingness to work hard, he said, no media professional, no
matter how gifted, will be able to succeed in today’s economy.
This article was contributed by Chang Kin Keong, Aiman Shamsul, and Priyamvadha Ramakrishnan.