COLLEGE NEWS

Al Jazeera president talks media at Monmouth U

Amanda Oglesby
@OglesbyAPP

WEST LONG BRANCH – The world of television news is fiercely competitive, yet the president of one of America's youngest TV news channels took a break Monday to speak to Monmouth University students.

Kate O’Brian, president of Al Jazeera America, addresses students at Monmouth University.

Kate O'Brian, president of Al Jazeera America, stepped away from her usually 13-hour long work day directing the not yet two-year-old channel to talk to aspiring media professionals in the university's first #comMtalks.

The #comMtalks series "allows students to connect directly with important people in the communication industry," said Chad Dell, chairman of Monmouth University's Department of Communication. "I also want them to be exposed to the larger global issues that are going on. I want them to see beyond the story of Beyoncé."

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As many American media outlets shift their news coverage increasingly toward celebrity and entertainment pieces to drive ratings and attract advertisers, O'Brian said Al Jazeera America is following an "old school" form of journalism that takes a deep dive into stories.

Kate O’Brian, president of Al Jazeera America, takes questions from students at Monmouth University.

"We don't do tabloid stories," O'Brian told the room of more than 50 students and professors. "We don't judge ourselves on ratings."

Al Jazeera has struggled to find an audience in America, where its Arabic name and financial support from the ruling family of Qatar have been viewed with suspicion.

When a Monmouth University student asked why the organization did not try changing its name, O'Brian said transparency was an important part of building trust with viewers, and added that the channel operates with editorial independence despite Qatar's financial support.

The Monmouth University students, some months away from graduation, listened quietly to O'Brian's words of professional advice.

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"Practice your writing... Writing is literally the most important thing you can do," she said. "Be as versatile as you can be."

Caitlyn Bahrenburg, a 22-year-old Monmouth University senior who lives in Point Pleasant, covered O'Brian's appearance for the university's online magazine, The Verge. In a few months, Bahrenburg said she will graduate and move into a job at Downtown Magazine in Manhattan.

"I'm just so inspired to see a strong woman in such an amazing position within a company," she said. "As a young writer who's just emerging into the industry, to see someone like that, it's really inspiring, especially in such a male-dominated field. She's really shattering glass ceilings, and I think it's amazing."

Anna Butts, a 22-year-old communications studies major from Atlantic Highlands, said Millennials often fail to analyze the source of their news and the messages they consume through media.

"I think we're zombies," she said. "I think we consume whatever is in front of us."

News audiences are shrinking as Generation X-ers and millennials consume less news than older generations, according to a 2013 Pew Research Center report on media consumption. That will be a challenge these Monmouth University communications students will eventually face in the professional world, and a trend their professors hope can be reversed.

"I want students to know that news is important and vibrant," said Dell, the Communications Department chairman. "It is changing quickly, but it's a terrific career path and an option for them."

Amanda Oglesby: 732-557-5701; aoglesby@app.com