MASS COMM UNICAL; THE PACESETTERS!

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 Welcome to the Department of Mass Communication and Digital Media, University of Calabar. This is where today’s dreams for tomorrow’s creativity are shaped. The vision of the department is to create a brand of dedicated and professional communicators who are compelling story tellers. The department is made up of distinguished scholars in all areas of communication whose vision is to nurture and produce graduates capable of achieving self-development and contributing to national growth and development through creative, innovative and professional use of the mass media. The department runs a practical-oriented training platform in order to raise communication experts with diverse competencies and potentials for leadership positions in the media industry. For this reason, the department made adequate arrangements with Hit F.M and Cross River State Broadcasting Corporation for its students to receive first-hand broadcast training. The Department has also joined hands with professional bodies like The Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) to establish its student’s wing in the department. This is a welcome development as it seeks to groom members that want to develop a career in Public Relations and make the students have a competitive edge over their peers. Though the Department is making bricks, it is doing so with little hay as it is yet to have its own state of the art studio due to lack of adequate funds. A well equipped studio will further drive our all-round training package.

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THE BEGINNING OF MASS COMMUNICATION DEPARTMENT
The Department of Mass Communication spear headed by the 10th vice chancellor of the University of Calabar, Prof.Zana Itunbe Akpagu, came into being on June 1, 2017. The process leading to the creation of the department began in February 2016, when the Vice Chancellor presented the proposal to the University Senate for the establishment of the “Department of Communication Arts”. Fortunately the proposal was duly approved by the Senate. The Senate further directed the dean of the Faculty of Arts to set up a committee to harmonise the media and communication courses offered by the Departments of Theatre and Media studies and Linguistics and Communication studies so as to produce a draft curriculum for the new department. Consequently upon this, the Dean of Faculty of Arts, Prof. Olumagbemi Jacobs constituted the curriculum Drafting Committee on June 21, 2016, with Prof Eddie Iji of Theatre and Media studies as chairman. Other Members of the committee were Prof. Offiong Ani Offiong and Dr. Jacob Agba of Linguistics and Communications studies, Dr. Joseph Ekpang and Dr. Brenda Akpan of Theatre and Media Arts while Mr. Emmanuel Uddor, the Faculty Officer served as secretary.
     The name of the department was changed from Communication Arts to Mass Communication. The committee arriving at this decision, noted that the term ‘‘communication arts” was filled and embraced other arts outside the realm of mass media, as Fine and  Applied Arts, Music, Theatre Arts and Literary Arts. On the other hand, the term “Mass Communication” conventionally embraced the Broadcast/Print Media, Internet and it’s allied New or Social Media, Photography, Phonography as well as Public Relations and Advertising.

On October 5, 2016, following the receipt of the report of the Curriculum Drafting Committee, the Dean proceeded to set up another committee charged with the responsibility of drawing up a document for the actual establishment of the Department of Mass Communication. The committee was also saddled with another responsibility of producing the policy framework that was to guide the faculty in the establishment of the new department.

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The actual take off of the department followed the appointment of the Acting Head on June 1, 2017. On assumption of office, the Acting Head of Department, Dr. Joseph Ekpang wrote to the Vice chancellor to redeploy some academic staff from the department of Theatre and Media, Linguistics and communication studies, to form the initial take-off staff. There include,  Eddie Iji, Offiong Ani Offiong, Chukwuemeka Okugo, and Jacob Agba who are  erudite Professors; Lawrence Ekwok, Patrick Ene Okon, Oshega Abang, Stanislaus Iyorza, Rev Fr. Leonard Ojurgu, and Eric Ogri who have obtained Doctorate degrees in the various fields of communication study; Mrs. Ekpe Edemekong, Mathias Oshie, Steve Nyong, Raymond Osong, Charles Ushie, Kwita Adomi, Kalita Aruku, Joan Nweke, and Prof Andy. O. Alali, a Professor of Communication from the California State University, Bakersfield, United States of America. They all provided invaluable support when the department commenced operations. Later this crop of pioneer staff was later joined by Dr. Presly Obukoadata, Dr. Brown Ndoma, Mr. Peter Ogar Inyali, Mr. Godwin Omelagah, and Mr. Godwin Odoh. A considerable number of these lecturers have had experience of working in the media houses. The department has strived to optimize theoretical rigor and practical exposure of its students, through a constantly evolving curriculum, a plethora of activities and workshops, and exposure to key experts from the various fields of communication.
At the 214th meeting of the University of Calabar Senate, the name of the department was changed to Mass Communication and Digital media. In justification of the nomenclature, Mr. Charles Ushie, a pioneer staff and senior lecturer in the Department in an interview, says that the evolution of media technology has brought about the new way of communication which has made information dissemination easier. So, it is pertinent for mass communication students to learn these various new ways of bringing information to the audience. The course arrangement indicates that there is no contrariety in the nature of the courses; rather there is a complementarity in the arrangement. The Department has embedded the concepts of communication, history of media and new media, introduction to online journalism etc. Growing from the traditional way of information dissemination, the department has created a synergy between the old and new ways of communication.
The goal of the department is to give students technical and professional skills necessary for employment in various areas of mass communication industry such as Public Relations, newspaper, radio, television, news agencies.  The Department of Mass Communication seeks to set global standards for media education, research and training, using state of the art technology to build a knowledge driven information society that would ultimately beget human development and empowerment especially in the areas of multimedia communication, Modern public relations/Advertising and public speaking.

THE VISION OF THE DEPARTMENT
Mass Communication Department, University of Calabar strives to create a dynamic teaching environment that nurtures contemporary ideas, creative research and scholarship for the development of professionals and innovators in the domain of Media and Mass Communication. In addition, every student in Mass Communication will have verbal and visual learning through different bodies of knowledge like lecturers and technological equipments.

Click on the video to watch our journey so far.

Setting up a new department is not a job that can be done in a day, according to Mr. Ushie, the department is working hard to get accredited by the National Universities Commission (N.U.C) with an initial process of Resource Verification which is already underway. Aside from this, we also need studio equipment to enable us achieve our mission and vision. So we call on Corporate Bodies to embrace the Department as a matter of  corporate social responsibility and to take a look at our facility and wonderful programme in order for us to work together in grooming the journalists for the future. For we have the right spark but only need fuel to cause a communication conflagration. 

For more details, you can contact the department via email at masscomm@unical.edu.ng or call 08173187013, 08184130910.

Writers: Attangadi Stella Mfon and Okem Gloria Mpeh 

Editor: Okem Gloria Mpeh 

Interviewers : Okam Rose Agbo and Onah Gift Ese 

Video: Ansa Dennis

Photos sourced by : Okem Gloria Mpeh

Contributors : Ogboaka Vivian and Gideon Lawrita Odumbi.