M. Gautham Machaiah
A group of JNU students are behind the bars under charges of sedition for allegedly shouting anti-national slogans. But how many are aware that the Press Council of India had warned the media against totally stifling the voice of militants and carrying official plants by the government?
At the height of separatism in Punjab, the PCI in its report "cautioned that it would not be desirable to shut out the point of view of the militants completely as the people in a democratic society have a right to know what the militants stand for and the basis of their arguments, but there is a point beyond which the state cannot abdicate. While it counselled the press to exercise due caution in disseminating the press notes of the militant groups, equal emphasis was laid on the need for the press to be vigilant against official plants to maintain its credibility."
Now, contrast this with the current situation. While the voice of the students has been shut, the media is busy peddling plants issued by the powers-that-be.
We, as a nation seem to have lost all sense of balance and proportion.
http://presscouncil.nic.in/OldWebsite/speechpdf/The%20Role%20of%20Media%20in%20Protection%20of%20Human%20Rights%20Visakhapatnam.pdf
A group of JNU students are behind the bars under charges of sedition for allegedly shouting anti-national slogans. But how many are aware that the Press Council of India had warned the media against totally stifling the voice of militants and carrying official plants by the government?
At the height of separatism in Punjab, the PCI in its report "cautioned that it would not be desirable to shut out the point of view of the militants completely as the people in a democratic society have a right to know what the militants stand for and the basis of their arguments, but there is a point beyond which the state cannot abdicate. While it counselled the press to exercise due caution in disseminating the press notes of the militant groups, equal emphasis was laid on the need for the press to be vigilant against official plants to maintain its credibility."
Now, contrast this with the current situation. While the voice of the students has been shut, the media is busy peddling plants issued by the powers-that-be.
We, as a nation seem to have lost all sense of balance and proportion.
http://presscouncil.nic.in/OldWebsite/speechpdf/The%20Role%20of%20Media%20in%20Protection%20of%20Human%20Rights%20Visakhapatnam.pdf
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