THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Veteran journalist T J S George on Sunday said corruption and bias have eroded the standards of contemporary journalism, with corruption tightening its stranglehold on the Fourth Estate.
In his acceptance speech after receiving the maiden Kesari Media Award instituted by Kesari Memorial Journalist Trust, T J S, who is Editorial Advisor,The New Indian Express (TNIE),said, “As in other spheres of life, the tentacles of corruption have spread to journalism too in a big way. We must understand this and concede it.”
“It has become a common practice to publish or suppress news in lieu of money. Not just in Kerala, but across India. Journalism is intended to expose social evils. But we have to ask what kind of journalism is being practised when the same evil affects us, or when we accept it or get enslaved by it,” he said. T J S cautioned journalists against the growing tendency of police and politicians to meddle in the media’s functioning. Citing the recent example of Samakalika Malayalam Vaarika, a sister publication of TNIE, which was hauled to court over an interview with former state police chief T P Senkumar, T J S said the problem was not confined to just one publication, but it affected journalists en masse.
Auteur Adoor Gopalakrishnan, who presented the award to T J S, condemned the practice of ‘public lynching’ by the media. “The media caters to the likes and dislikes of its audience. We are yet to learn how to respect talent. I don’t watch television anymore,” he said.The Kesari Media Award carries a purse of `50,000, citation and figurine. Shashi Tharoor MP and journalists, C Gouridasan Nair, M G Radhakrishnan, C Rahim, P Sreekumar and N V Ravindranathan Nair spoke.