On Wednesday, the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, said that the government should not interfere in the working of press. He stated that interferences in press from external sources can lead to chaos; however, he also talked about self-regulation and adjustments with the changing times.
PM Modi was addressing the audience at the golden jubilee of Press Council of India (PCI). He said,
“Mahatma Gandhi had said uncontrolled writing can create huge problems but he had also said that external interference would wreak havoc. Controlling it (press) externally cannot be imagined… Government should not do any interference. It is true that self-introspection is not easy… It is the responsibility of the PCI and those associated with the press to see to it that what appropriate changes you can make with time. Things do not change from external control.”
Modi termed the recent murders of journalists as “painful” and the “most dangerous” method of curbing the truth. He was indicating towards the killing of two journalists in Bihar.
He stated that due to fast-paced electronic and digital media, journalists are now left with almost no time to make corrections; however, earlier they had plenty of time for the same.
Talking about the Kandahar hijack incident which took place in 1999, PM said that by the 24/7 coverage of reactions of relatives of passengers, media unintentionally helped terrorists as they understood that the pressure from the public was very high so the government would have to agree to their demands. This led to introspection in the media and it resulted in setting up of norms dealing about the reporting of such incidents.
In his words,
“After the 26/11 terror attack in Mumbai, another moment of introspection came yet the matter is still incomplete. I believe mistakes are committed by us and by you… the media should not be assessed by its mistakes.”
He added,
“Till the time there is a section of responsible people, who want to remove the weaknesses and make it better, I believe it is a positive effort in this sector and it should continue.”
PM Modi also talked about the time when Press Council was shut down in 1975 as a result of Emergency and its rebirth in 1977 when Morarji Desai became the Prime Minister.
He said that PCI should also come up with methods on how to improvise things and advice should be given even to the government on how it can make its communication better.
He further said, “Unfortunately even the government sometimes indulges in selective leaking to favoured journalists.” Modi also added that any suggestions in the PCI regarding this should be shared with the government.
According to him, media should come up with ways to motivate states for a healthy competition by giving them ranks on the basis of cleanliness. Additionally, he laid emphasis on the need of communication to make changes in the institutions so that they can help more and more people.
Narendra Modi has spoken a lot of important things in his address. Which is the most necessary change according to you that should be made in our media? Let us know your views in the comments section below.