Website is the vanguard of an institution. In the eyes of readers, the Website is considered a representation of the institution’s image. Therefore, good management is the main thing. The management in question includes management in terms of static content, dynamic content, content graphic design, to technical maintenance according to the branding of the relevant institution, likewise with websites in the UII environment.

The UII Public Relations field has made several breakthroughs since 2020. First, for example, by appreciating website managers within UII at the unit, department, and faculty level. Second, create a training series for website managers, from writing training to slider design. In 2021, capacity building will also be carried out by providing writing training using paraphrasing techniques and graphic design to maintain CMS (content management system) devices. Fourth, the appreciation event was again held with UWA 2021/ UII Website Appreciation.

UII Public Relations appreciates websites managed by Faculty units, Departments/Prodi, service units, Study Centers within UII. According to Ratna Permata Sari, Head of Public Relations at UII and also Communication Lecturer at UII, this appreciation was given to UII Public Relations for their participation in maintaining the positive image of the Indonesian Islamic University amid the Covid-19 pandemic. During the Covid-19 pandemic, the website has become an essential tool to bridge UII’s services and vision in front of students, whether it’s also helping with lecture services, information services, academic services, or supportive services for students and parents affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. Students and the entire scholarly community also benefit from website optimization within UII.

The assessment was carried out from August 16 to October 6, 2021. Then the peak was on October 20, 2021; the UII Public Relations Division announced the results of the UWA 2021 of UII. The UII Communications Website, which won the first award as the website with the most content at the department level, is now ranked as Web with category C in the previous year. This ranking shows that the website has several elements from each assessment aspect. Some of the content is updated, such as sliders, news, and schedule/announcements. It must be admitted that the UII Communication web slider had not been updated. Meanwhile, the UII FPSB Website was successfully entered in category B. This category shows that the website has elements of every aspect of the assessment and is sufficiently updated in its content, especially the slider. The UII Communications Website and the UII FPSB succeeded in eliminating 49 participants who managed the website at UII, and the remaining 13 did not receive any category awards. 

What are the Assessment Criteria?

It is essential to discuss these assessment criteria so that the leadership ranks can improve the performance of their website in the future. The first assessment criteria are, the website uses the UII standard theme. Then the unit logo on the website must match the branding UII. Website Traffic is also constant and registered into Google Analytics. The following criterion is news content, and Agenda must be up-to-date. That content includes Static content, dynamic content, and content language style. Static content contains complete content based on the menu. At the same time, the Dynamic range has news updates. The language style of the content must also be explicit information content. Informative website content. This information includes a valid and clear address, a valid and active email, and an office telephone number.

Lecturers must not only carry out teaching activities but also research and serve. Disseminating research to a global audience has also become necessary in the current digital era. Therefore, special skills are needed not only for lecturers but also for managing editors of the Jurnal Komunikasi UII to find reputable international journals and understand how to write and send international journal articles.

To realize this mission, UII Communication Studies Study Program held a workshop and sharing session on tips on finding journals and writing articles for journals of international repute on October 8, 2021. The participants were lecturers and managers of UII Communication journals from UGM, Diponegoro University, Halu Oleo University, UPN Yogyakarta. , and also Universitas Islam Indonesia/UII.

Abdul Rohman shared his stories and experiences through international journals in this event. So far, his articles have been published in several global journal publishers such as the International Journal of Communication, the New Media & Society journal, and the Media, Culture & Society journal. He is also a lecturer at the Department of Communication, School of Communication & Design, RMIT University Vietnam. 

According to Abdul Rohman, it should be understood that writing articles for international journals is not always smooth. It takes perseverance, enthusiasm to continue to rise to face rejection, to a steady writing habit. Abdul Rohman, for example, is accustomed to immediately writing ideas and writing ideas so that he becomes the first draft of writing. “Usually, the first draft is still very early. Anything that comes to mind is immediately written down. Anything,” said Abdul Rohman. He is used to writing in his mother tongue, Javanese, rather than directly speaking English. According to him, every writer has habits and comforts that must be found as a rhythm in writing. Then the following process is to write and rearrange the initial draft.

The next process is to ask for feedback or input on our manuscript. Feedback can come from colleagues, mentors, or even friends. This input is significant as the reader’s perspective is more distant than our manuscript. Then the next stage is to enter the editing and rewriting steps. At this stage, proofreading is also carried out. This is the stage where we must understand the style or environment of the intended journal target. If we have fulfilled the journal’s scope, immediately submit the manuscript.

Besides Abdul Rohman, there was also a sharing session with Masduki, a Communication Lecturer at UII whose articles have also been published in international journals. Masduki told one of the reasons for writing in international journals and the trick to choosing reputable international journals and not fake ones.

When floods, earthquakes, or tsunami, or any disaster come, what should we do? Because of the lack of past disaster knowledge, None of the new generations will know how the disaster happens in the past. Therefore we need to transfer knowledge from the past generation to the future generation. That is a simple illustration of what we call Disaster Risk Communication. But what is precisely the importance of it?

Alfi Rahman said that One of the important is to Empower the audience to make informed decision-making. So people can make more choices about risk. Another essential thing of disaster risk communication is, “Increase trust In risk management institution, people empowered,” said Alfi Rahman, a researcher at the Tsunami and Disaster Mitigation Research Center (TDMRC) of Universitas Syiah Kuala, Banda Aceh, Indonesia, at Annual Workshop on Globalization held by International Program of Communication Department UII (Universitas Islam Indonesia). The Annual Workshop on Globalisation under the theme “Disaster, Media, and Globalization” was held on September 25, 2021, online by Zoom Meeting.

Disaster and Risk Communication also help build understanding For efforts to manage risks. It also tailors communication, so it considers emotional Response to the event. Alfi told all of the students as a participant that risk communication. It also prevents negative Behavior and Encourages constructive response to crisis or danger.

Alfi also illustrates how people Create a knowledge transfer to make a disaster risk communication into the next generation. He told the example of The Smong Story Of tsunami risk in Simeuleue Islands, Aceh. It should make a message about the disaster and a knowledge Through action as the second aspect of disaster risk communication.

These Smong stories have also been a lesson learned In saving lives during The 2004 Indian ocean tsunami. Alfi presents that in 1907 there were 50% (some said that 70%) That the tsunami killed the Simeuluean People. But in 2004, three people were reportedly killed, showing the positive impact of the Smong Story As a warning signal.

Besides Alfi, the Workshop also invited Ruzinoor Che Mat as associate professor of Universiti Utara Malaysia and Herman Felani as the Department of Communication UII. While Alfi’s speech is about disaster risk communication, Ruzinoor speaks about 3D Modelling Simulation for Flood Evacuation, and Herman talks about pandemics and globalization.

So far, there have been many misunderstandings in the practice of media analysis. For example, many students consider critical discourse analysis (CDA) to only analyze at the textual level. It is as if discourse analysis cannot read everything outside the text. However, many things affect the text.

CDA is not enough with textual dimension analysis. “So you have to also talk about conditions outside the text/producer/social action: conditions that affect producers (history of the text, etc.),” ​​said Holy Rafika Dhona, UII Communications Lecturer, who became an instructor in the Advanced Journalism Training/PJTL HIMMAH UII on 16 September 2021, noon. HIMMAH is a university-level Student Press Institution/LPM within the Indonesian Islamic University (UII).

CDA always connects the dimensions of the text, social action with context. CDA also combines the historical-power-ideological extent because it is based on the PHI (power-history-ideology) principle. Therefore, said Holy, CDA is not only done by conducting linguistic analysis.

What is an example?

“The discourse, for example, about the Breksi Cliff tourist spot, changed something that was originally just an ordinary cliff into a place for good photos. It was a process of changing discourse,” said Holy.

Holy added, according to Fairclough, discourse is the way people produce and interpret texts in social interactions, which are also influenced by the broader social environment, namely social institutions, and society. “That’s why Fairclough said that behind language is ideology or politics,” he added.

Media discourse, therefore, according to Norman Fairclough, CDA is not only text analysis but also connects context (production texts and consumption texts) and sociocultural practices (talking about history and others). . Because they are all intertwined.

This is where it is essential to understand what critical theory is. The critical theory includes three things according to Max Horkheimer (1937), namely: (1) theory that sees reality is never neutral, (2) theory that sees reality is always historical, (3) theory that does not separate praxis.

The value of a critique, said Holy, briefly is (1) Power of power: where there is power, there are the oppressed and oppressors, then the second is (2) dialectical, and (3) 3. Historical. Therefore, students must be able to understand critical thinking. The critical way of thinking is to see that something is not neutral and shaped by history.