In a democracy, the role of the media is to inform, educate and entertain. The media reports and also critiques government functioning so as to enable the public to advocate for better governance or to vote out a government that has failed to perform and address public grievances. The media itself is a votary of responsible and transparent governance and accountability even as it also has to check its own ethical trajectory. In India today there are news channels and newspapers that have become the propaganda machinery of the party in power. This compromise by media barons and their readiness to toe the government line is a sad commentary of what is seen in India today. With the burgeoning of media channels and Youtubers, keeping a check on media is becoming a tall order. Youtubers earn per view so the more views the more is their income. This pushes such Youtubers to sensationalise news and sometimes to indulge in disinformation campaigns. This is a dangerous trend that needs to be arrested.
Another important role of the media is to act as the watchdog and to throw light on the personal and professional lives of politicians. Closer to elections the media also scrutinizes political parties and their mode of functioning – who they give tickets to and who they deprive and why. Two media channels here reported that the VPP would not be giving the ticket to a certain candidate based on their own news sources and it turned out to be a reality. However, the VPP chief castigated the two media channels and called them propagandists with an agenda. The Shillong Press Club and the Meghalaya Editors’ and Publishers Association (MEPA) took a dim view of this and in a letter asked the VPP Chief to apologise to the two media channels. The MEPA was represented by its Vice President Rajib Choudhury because the media in Meghalaya has never been communally divided. This resulted in the VPP youth wing threatening to take out a two-wheeler rally to question why the VPP chief should apologise to a non-tribal (mynder in Khasi).
The two media organisations reacted saying that Rajib Choudhury is an elected member of the MEPA and is not acting on his individual capacity but is representing an Association. This souring of relations between the media and a political party is unwarranted. Normally politicians take criticism in their stride and if they feel the need to contest what the media has reported they usually shoot out a rejoinder or call a press conference to clarify their points. No political party or politician in the past has ever differentiated between tribal and non-tribal journalists because the media in Meghalaya has embraced all with the passion, qualification and acumen to be a journalist. This fraternal spirit cannot be disrupted by political forces that seek to discredit the media instead of keeping their own house in order. In Meghalaya politicians and media persons have had a healthy respect for each other despite differences. This spirit should continue and attempts to sow the seeds of communalism and racism among media persons ought to be nipped in the bud.
