Does Design Journalism serve a purpose or is it just for amusement?

The present scenario suggests that our world is on the verge of numerous trials and tribulations. A variant-shifting pandemic, economic losses, and war strikes; the list goes on! However, one thing is not a challenge anymore for most global citizens: finding information. There are too many virtual beings out there, waiting to relay information, from Google to Instagram, Facebook to Wikipedia.

Despite the abundance of data available to everyone, there are certain topics of study or professions, that are still very hazy to the common man. Architecture, for instance, is a term that has been in society even before the pyramids of Egypt. However, people are still not very sure, about the role an Architect plays in society, or even what the study of Architecture includes or excludes.

Is it because of simple ignorance? Design Journalism: Necessity or Amusement?

With changing times and research, synonymous with other fields, Architecture has seen paradigm-shifting changes. If we discuss specifically about the Architecture and Design Community, apart from the legitimacy issue, lies the question; of how much of this online data is reaching the common man.

Is that content relevant to a mass or is it just for people with prior knowledge of design?

Welcome to the world of Design Journalism-Architecture Journalism or Design Journalism, is the profession of reporting, writing, and communicating; the varied news, topics, and relevant details of the built environment. Similarly, phrasing is in the form of rhetoric.

How should one find out about the latest architectural wonder in your city? Simple enough?

We do not claim to say, that all problems related to the field of Architecture can be eliminated, with the awareness that such a stream of Journalism brings about. It can rather be illustrated as an effective bridge of knowledge, between Architecture and the Common Man.

Additionally, we do want to imply, that considering the percentage of our wondrous cities that are designed or have been built by some technique, it is a shame to be oblivious to that creative community entirely. The lack of a proper, simplified, and comprehensive definition of Design Journalism, is a classic example of how digital information can be inadequate.

That is exactly what Design Journalism does. It brings the correct information, right from the Architect's studio to you. It communicates a chosen plethora of ideas, executions, techniques, and professionals; which is relevant to the target audience and can prove beneficial to every reader.

Along with annihilating the millions of doubts regarding the job and specifications of an Architect; accurate reporting of design facts, can assist in creating a rather respectable position for Architects, who build and metamorphosize the entire global facade.

Often, it has been noted, that our Architecture and Design Community can tend to be a rather closed circuit; wherein professionals only can understand the current scheme of things, and there is no room for the common man to perceive or collaborate.

Journalism of design can adequately create numerous windows of opportunity, such that people get a sense of what happens within the community, and respond accordingly. An informed group of people can then make an au-courant decision, that best suits their need for a project. With those familiar with the Architecture education of India and know a bit about the community, each year more than 400 fresh graduates enter this field.

When people from different walks of life, with a conjoint interest in Architecture and Design, come together, it can only result in a balanced representation of the built world from both perspectives: the professional and the primary user.

With all said and done, there is a duty that even practicing journalists in this field also need to abide by to state valid facts without a hint of bias. So if we wish the audience and the world to accept Design Journalism as a dependable pursuit, we have to prove our capabilities in narrating and reporting design stories, that are genuine, relatable, and thought-provoking!.

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