Internet challenge for print media: Minister

Akash Ghai

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 10

With raising the demand of a media protection bill, pension for mediapersons by the Centre and changes in the Working Journalists Act, the two-day national meet on ‘Challenges before media and media ethics’, organised by The Tribune Employees Union in association with The Confederation of Newspapers and News Agencies Employees Organisations, concluded at Panjab University, here, today.

The event witnessed three sessions, presided over by Punjab Governor and UT Administrator VP Singh Badnore, Union Minister of Steel Chaudhary Birender Singh and Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, respectively.

All three dignitaries not only discussed the current challenges and issues before mediapersons but also assured all kinds of help to deal with the same.

Earlier, in the first session of the day, Punjab Governor VP Singh Badnore termed the ‘innovative destructors’ as the biggest challenge to the media and other establishments as well.

“This is the age of ‘innovative destructors’ and only you have to find solutions to overcome those,” said Badnore, adding that those who have knack to write well, have no reasons to worry.

While touching upon the importance of local news, the Governor said now people were more interested in happenings in their areas and around them.

In his address to mediapersons, Chaudhary Birender Singh said with the development of the information technology, the traditional media had largely affected.

“Why I would read a newspaper this morning when I have read the news the previous night on my phone. This is the biggest challenge, the print media is facing today,” said the union minister, while suggesting the media to focus on creating top-class credibility and think anew.

In the final session, the Haryana Chief Minister said challenges before mediapersons and politicians in the country were nearly same.

While quoting an interaction between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and mediapersons, he said the biggest challenge for him was to improve the image of the politicians. The same applies to the mediapersons, he said.

He said the biggest challenge before the mediapersons was operating within the framework of ethics and objectivity.

Earlier, speakers from the media, included president of The Tribune Employees Union Anil Gupta, union’s general secretary Balwinder Jammu, Sarabjit Singh Pandher and general secretary of the confederation MS Yadav too raised issues of killings of certain journalists, low wages and their hard working conditions in the meet. It saw participation of nearly 120 delegates from 22 states, representing six national-level media organisations — All India Newspapers Employees Federation, Indian Journalist Union, National Union of Journalist (I), IFWJ, Federation of PTI Employees Unions, UNI Workers’ Union.