Members of DPC along with media persons on the occasion of National Press Day held at Rotary Club, Dimapur on November 16.
Morung Express News
Dimapur | November 16
In commemoration of National Press Day held annually on November 16, members of Dimapur Press Club (DPC) organised an event at the conference hall of Rotary Club, Dimapur under the theme, “Media’s Role in Nation Building.”
Speaking on the occasion, Dr Naorem Nishikanta Singh, Assistant Professor & Head of Department (HoD), Journalism & Mass Communication, St Joseph University, Chümoukedima shared a brief message on the roles, responsibilities and ethics of journalism laid out by the Press Council of India (PCI) which needed to be followed with due diligence. He further noted that beyond the roles, functions and responsibilities, sensitivity matters while reporting on an incident. Citing key figures of Indian history, he mentioned how individuals such as Mahatma Gandhi, Raja Rammohan Roy, and Bal Gangadhar Tilak used their publications to fight social evils and bring about positive change in society.
“On the matters of circulation, at times we knowingly or unknowingly compromise ethics as such we need to review whether we are following the ethics of journalism and the code of the conduct of PCI,” he said.
Stressing on the notion of the press being the “fourth pillar of democracy,” Singh regarded the significance of the media towards building a nation. This he said, included the role it plays in bridging the gap between the government and the people, particularly in highlighting government policies or plans and public grievances.
Commenting on the state of the media in Nagaland, Singh reminded the need of the press fraternity to uphold ethical standards during the pursuit of greater volume of circulation and advertisements, as it could lead to bias reporting and suppression of truth above all else. In addition, he spoke upon the constitutional rights of Article 19 (1) (a) and in relation freedom of the press which needed to coexist in unison with the interest of sovereignty and integrity of India.
K Temjen Jamir, Editor of Tir Yimyim, who also spoke on the occasion, commented that apart from being the eyes and ears of society or the watchdogs, the media should be a platform of creating ideas to build the nation. At times, he also observed that the media fails in its role of being watchdogs as public leaders and the government is not held accountable for the injustices and negligence towards the public. Hence, he urged them to go beyond their traditional mindset and give more importance to what they see than what people say.
The programme was chaired by Kanili Kiho, DPC member while welcome address was delivered byTasungtetla Longkumer. At the conclusion of the event, vote of thanks was given by Akangjungla Longchar, DPC Information and Publicity Secretary.
