Shashi Tharoor, MP, has called for laws and regulations that limit the control of multiple news organisations by a single business of political entity.
Such norms, along with an overseer to limit the power of corporate and political behemoths over the media, are essential to encourage an independent and robust press in the country, he said.
Delivering the N. Ramachandran Memorial Lecture after receiving the N. Ramachandran Foundation Award for excellence in public service here on Monday, Mr. Tharoor expressed concern at the changing media landscape that is increasingly being driven by a “breaking news culture”.
Reminiscing the “speculation, gossip, accusation and worse in the course of several years in politics” he had been subjected to following the demise of his wife in 2014, Mr. Tharoor said the fourth estate has begun to simultaneously serve as witness, prosecutor, judge, jury and executioner.
“In ancient times, India put its accused through an ‘Agni Pareeksha’ (a trial by fire). Today, we put them through a trial by media,” he quipped.
Television news in India, he claimed, has long since given up any pretence of providing a public service with the breaking news story privileging sensation over substance. Print media too has been affected by the same tendencies with journalists trying to keep up with the relentless 24/7 breaking news cycle, he lamented.
The former Minister proposed certain ideas to ensure a free and professional media that serves as a mirror to governments and societies. The media must primarily engender a culture of fact verification and accuracy that the industry, he felt, currently lacked. “Journalists should also not be pressed by their employers to break the news, but empowered to hold stories until they are sure their facts and accusations are accurate.”
Media outlets must welcome comments and feedback from their viewers and readers to generate both and environment of trust between the consumers and the media, and the feeling on the part of the public that they are not merely passive recipients of a point of view.
He credited The Hindu for upholding its unique practice of having a Readers’ Editor who serves as an ombudsman for the newspaper and acknowledges mistakes of facts or emphasis in the newspaper’s coverage.
Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka D.K. Shivakumar, who presented the award, lauded Keralites for making significant contributions for the growth of Karnataka and the country as a whole. Karnataka, he affirmed, stood with Kerala to protect democratic values, irrespective of political differences.
Delivering the keynote address, Sarod maestro Amjad Ali Khan emphasised on the role of music in fostering unity and instilling compassion among the people. Showering praise on Dr. Tharoor, former Minister O. Rajagopal said the MP has won over the people of Thiruvananthapuram and expressed doubt in jest on whether “another person will get an opportunity to represent the constituency in the near future”.
The award, instituted by the N. Ramachandran Foundation in memory of the doyen of Malayalam journalism, carries a purse of ₹1 lakh, a memento and a citation. Foundation president Prabha Varma, secretary P.P James, vice president and Kerala Kaumudi chief editor Deepu Ravi, and vice president Babu Divakaran also spoke on the occasion.
