News media is an important element of a free and independent society. It is the mode of provision of all the necessary news and information to the general citizens.
What is Media
Basically, media refers to the communication tools to store and deliver the information or data.
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The above statement explains the basic role of the media. The components of news media are print media publishing, photography, cinematics, broadcasting, advertising etc. Thus, the media is a vast field and has the responsibility of communicating each and every necessary information to the public.
Importance of news media
In India, the media is the fourth pillar of democracy. It supplies all the political news to the citizens and helps the voters to make a fair and reasonable decision. Also, they identify the problems in the society and serve as a medium for deliberation. Media works as a representative of the group to raise voice for their well-being. It also keeps a check upon the different activities in the country to analyze the quality of the services being provided to the citizens. Therefore the media plays an important role in the free and fair play of the government and other authorities. It ensures the equal application of the principles of a democratic nation in a country like India.
The media is an important part of Indian Democracy because it is an ideal illustration to strengthen the concept/Right of freedom to speech and expression. It helps the citizen to act as an active participant in the Indian democracy.
It acts as a representative of the citizens and stands for their needs and demands in front of the government. In the similar manner, the media informs the government about the current requirements of the citizens.
The contribution of the news media in the democracy
Media has a huge contribution in bringing up the reforms in the nation. Media contributes through raising voice against the unjustifiable and illegal actions, whether the political leaders or a normal citizen. The media helps in exposing the corrupt individuals and allow the deserving hard working individuals to come forward and avail the opportunities.
The media is the voice of the marginalized people. They provide them with a platform through which they can approach the specific authority.
Shortcomings
The deficiencies and shortcomings of the media industry are follows;
Corruption
The Indian Media is an important part of the democratic system, whereas, it is characterized by corruption.
The World Press Freedom Index 2020 puts India at 142nd rank with respect to the freedom and fairness of the media. This highlights that Indian Media still has to go on a long track to achieve complete transparency.
The corrupt and biased actions of the Media hamper the smooth functioning of the democracy. The political leaders control the media industry in India. This leads to spread of fake news and misleads the viewers/readers.
Media accountability is reducing day by day as there is no coverage of any issues in a holistic manner.
The Indian Media is facing certain issues that are causing corruption and biases in the country.
Paid news
One of the problems is Paid News. The Press Council refers to any news or analysis that appears in the newspaper or media in return of the price paid for the printing of the same. In the last few decades, the cooperates, political leaders and other influencing personalities have started viewing news and media as an advertising agency.
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They are continuously making efforts to get their news printed through payment of some nominal amount. Also, due to the increasing number of news channels and outlets, some of them are falling prey to these corruptive activities. This is affecting the reality and truthfulness of the news and also misleading the innocent citizens.
Other than this, the media industry is also prone to other issues like Fake News, Sensationalization of news, declining press freedom, etc.
Conclusion
Therefore, it is the need of the hour to make policies and enforce laws to regulate and diagnoses the working of the media industry. This will help to ensure necessary development and application of the principle of free democratic society. The news media needs to perform their duties and responsibilities with honesty and commitment to gain and maintain the confidence of the citizens. The corrupt and biased news media will eliminate the necessary moral principles.