Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu has said that a democracy can thrive only when all shades of opinion are allowed to be expressed fully and freely.
‘‘Attempt to stifle or shut out contrary viewpoints is unhealthy in a democracy and will stunt intellectual development. At the same time, it should be remembered that the freedom of expression enshrined in our Constitution is not absolute, but bound by reasonable restrictions,’’ he said while inaugurating the golden jubilee celebrations of Kollam Press Club here on Saturday.
Calling journalism a ‘unique vocation,’ Mr. Naidu said Indian media had always been free and independent barring a few aberrations during Emergency. ‘‘In the past, journalism was a mission for fighting every ill that afflicted society and journalists used to work without fear or favour,’’ he said.
Mr. Naidu said the situation had now changed with business groups and political parties setting up newspapers and TV channels to further their interests. ‘‘The core values of journalism are getting eroded as commercial and other considerations are taking precedence over everything else.’’
He said that genuine reportage had become a casualty due to a cocktail of commercial interests, ideological leanings and insane scramble for breaking stories. ‘‘May be the time has come for media bodies to come out with a code of conduct for journalists. In view of the critical role journalism plays in protecting democracy and in serving the larger good of society, the profession must maintain highest ethical, moral and reporting standards.’’
He pointed out that sensationalism, paid news and biased coverage had become the bane of modern-day journalism. ‘‘In the present digital era, journalists will have to be extra careful in checking the veracity of information. Through social media, fake news tends to morph seamlessly into authentic news and gets channelised through respectable media platforms. This is dangerous and media need to be cautious,’’ he said.
Mr. Naidu urged the media to dedicate more space and time to challenges relating to agriculture, urban-rural divide, climate change, gender equality, women’s safety, impact of rapid urbanisation, illiteracy, poverty and delivery of health services, among others.
Governor P. Sathasivam presided over the function. Fisheries Minister J. Mercykutty Amma; Mayor V. Rajendrababu; N.K. Premachandran, MP; M. Noushad, M. Mukesh and N. Vijyan Pillai, MLAs; Press Club president Jayachandran Elankath, secretray G. Biju and Kerala Union of Working Journalists (KUWJ) general secretary C. Narayanan were present.