NEW DELHI: “Media has a big contribution in empowering democracy” said Professor Yogesh Singh on Wednesday at a seminar organised by the School of Journalism of the University. The seminar was organised on the topic “ Media and accountability” on the occasion of celebrating the birth centenary of senior journalist K.R. Malkani.
During the seminar, the Vice Chancellor, in his presidential address, said that through this seminar, the students of journalism will get a chance to know about K.R. Malkani in depth. He said that Malkani was a journalist who was the editor of both Hindi and English newspapers.
Talking about the media’s accountability, Singh said that even in today’s era, print and electronic media have a lot of accountability, but there is a lack of accountability in social media. He stated that this, too, will be streamlined over time.
“If this streamlining does not happen, then such things will not last for a long time.” he added. The Vice-Chancellor said that journalists are not afraid of anyone, however they do feel afraid of the people of the country. They are accountable to the people here. They are afraid of their own credibility. Many systems have been weakened in a democracy, but journalism has stood firmly.
He called upon the students of journalism to become fearless and true journalists. This is a work of social service and a very good work. Recounting his days with Malkani, Rajesh Kumar Bhatia, the chief guest of the program and member of the Delhi University Executive Council said when Malkani was in jail during the emergency, Bhatia had spent 19 months in jail with him.
Along with this, the special guest of the function, Dr Mahesh Chandra Sharma, Chairman, R&D Foundation, Integral Humanism, presented details on the life of Malkani. He said that Malkani’s journalism has been a symbol of nationalism.
At the event, Ashok Kumar Tandon, keynote speaker of the seminar and a member of the Prasar Bharati Board also spoke about the norms of journalism with the help and examples of K. R. Malkani’s writings.