The changing role of news media in contemporary times

K Sarath Chandra
Chennai: The decadence in values and the growth of the modern media in adverse times was discussed at the Press Institute of India on Wednesday titled as the Good, the Bad and the Ugly of Madras Newspapers with some prominent media personalities in the city.
S. Muthaiah, a column writer in The Hindu and a founder member of the Madras Book Club moderated the discussion.
S.R.Madhu,an eminent Journalist said there had been an information explosion in the recent times. He said the city editions which cover local news were impressive, but were limited only to few issues like dance, music, books etc. He also pointed out that development reporting in India was not up to the mark.
Mr Madhu said with paid news element, the newspapers had become highly commercialized.He added that the lion’s share in the front page which used to carry only top news items were replaced by advertisements.
R.V.Rajan, a FormerManaging Director of WAN-IFRA (World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers) India,said that China and India are doing exceptionally well in the newspaper industry. He said the vernacular newspapers are making a lot of money these days and have highest circulation.
He added that new media would dominate the media world in the future by citing an example of Amazon.com founder and chief executive Jeffrey P. Bezos taking over the ownership of The Washington Post.
Shreekumar Varma, an author, a playwright, a newspaper columnist and a film criticshared his experience of interviewinga famous Malayali filmmaker John Abraham who made Agraharathil kazhuthai, which won a National Award and was also listed among the “100 Greatest Indian Films” of all time by IBN Live’s 2013 poll.
He added that a magazine called Trident, which he started in Madras had to be shut down within a span of one year due to lack of funds.
Dr. Jaya Shreedhar, a journalist, a consultant on HIV/AIDS and a health advisor with Inter News Network, said there had been an advancement in Health reporting in the recent past, due to huge consumer demands and privatization of health care. She also pointed out that there had been no proactive approach from the journalists to cover health issues plaguing the people in rural areas.
Mrs. Shreedhar also said that she had no objections with the concept of paid news and advertorials as long as they don’t affect the objectivity of the newspapers, as they were vital for its survival.