Suggesting new thinking on the direction of digital transformation of journalism

Representatives of more than 10 central and local press agencies and leaders of several Journalists Associations of northern provinces and cities attended the workshop.

In his opening speech, journalist Le Cong Tuan, Editor-in-Chief of Hung Yen Newspaper, Chairman of Hung Yen Journalists Association, emphasized that the workshop is a practical activity, helping press agencies gain more experience in the process of digital transformation; suggesting new thinking about directions and strategies for developing journalism in a professional direction, mastering modern communication technology, creating high-quality press products and distributing them on many digital platforms to meet readers' needs, contributing to innovation, improving the quality and effectiveness of press work and the Party's ideological work in the new situation.

At the workshop, journalist Nguyen Hoang Nhat, Deputy Editor-in-Chief of VietnamPlus e-newspaper, shared content on exploiting digital technology to implement digital transformation of journalism. He emphasized that press agencies need to invest in technology platforms, produce multimedia journalism, personalize users, pay attention to developing young readers, focus on developing e-newspapers on mobile devices and new platforms, in addition to traditional platforms.

Journalist Nguyen Hoang Nhat emphasized the trend of applying artificial intelligence to the stages of news production and distribution, freeing up labor, helping reporters and editors of press agencies have time to focus on creating digital products; at the same time, using data analysis tools to collect and grasp user behavior and readers' needs.

Speaking at the workshop, journalist Nguyen Thi Thanh Mai, Deputy Editor-in-Chief of Hai Duong Newspaper, Vice President of Hai Duong Provincial Journalists Association, said that Hai Duong Newspaper implemented digital transformation early and has been making progress recently. Hai Duong Newspaper develops in the direction of being a multimedia press agency, with many types: paper newspaper, electronic newspaper, visual newspaper, audio newspaper and social networking platforms. In recent months, Hai Duong electronic newspaper has maintained its 6th position out of 63 local Party newspapers nationwide in terms of monthly visits, ranking 2nd among local Party newspapers in the Northern region. In June 2024 alone, Hai Duong electronic newspaper ranked first in this region.

Journalist Nguyen Thi Thanh Mai also proposed a number of solutions to promote digital transformation of the press such as changing the mindset, especially the awareness and determination of leaders about digital transformation; strengthening training, improving the quality of the team related to digital transformation; requiring officers and employees to regularly self-study and find ways to adapt to the strong development of digital transformation, ready to change jobs when needed; building a cooperation mechanism with businesses to take advantage of the information technology resources of businesses, providing technical support for the newspaper; taking advantage of the attention and support of provincial leaders, promptly proposing appropriate policies and strategies for the implementation of digital transformation of local newspapers, especially in terms of financial resources, operating mechanisms, etc.

Representatives of many press agencies also discussed, shared, and clarified solutions to promote digital transformation of the press, such as focusing on recruiting, training, and improving the qualifications of IT staff in press agencies; developing the press economy, digital advertising, building a press ecosystem; using converged newsroom software and protecting data...