Credibility key issue for media: PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi Wednesday said credibility is the biggest challenge for media in the age of technology and it is important for media establishments to maintain it.

Speaking after giving away the Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Awards organised by The Indian Express, he said earlier people with certain training and qualification came to journalism but today anybody with a mobile phone can click a picture and upload it.

“People now have a lot of news. In this context, maintaining credibility is a big issue and the biggest demand of time,” he said.

In a lighter vein, the PM said while media had full freedom to comment on everything and everybody, it does not like others’ views on it.

Tongue-in-cheek, he said he must be the only privileged politician after Independence to have got so much of media attention and he is eternally grateful to it.

Setting two important matters before the media, Modi said he does not have any issue with the government being criticised by the media but there should be no mistake in reporting. National unity, he added, should be the priority as India is a diverse country.

“Any compromise is a news for you and you move on to the next news but such a compromise leaves behind deep wounds. We (politicians) may be making more mistakes than you but please strengthen forces of national unity.

Mr Modi also pitched for a world-class Indian media organisation to propagate the country’s view strongly across the globe and cited current debate on environment and global warming. He said such an organisation should not belong to the government.