NEW DELHI: The government believes in press freedom but showing "provocative news" for the sake of TRP is not journalism and it must stop, Union minister Prakash Javadekar said on Wednesday.
Speaking at an event organised by RSS newsletter Panchajanya, he said after paid news and fake news, this is the era of "TRP journalism".
"There used to be paid news, fake news and now there is TRP journalism. The unnecessary burden of TRP must be stopped by the media. Someday they will have to improve themselves," the minister said.
He said there has to be a process for popularity measurement, "but showing provocative news is not journalism".
"The government believes in freedom of press. It does not want to take away anyone's rights, but journalism should be responsible and the media should do it itself," Javadekar said.
Referring to the Press Council of India, a quasi-judicial body that lays down regulations for the print media, he pointed out that some television channels have formed an organisation for self-regulation.
"But how effective is it? Those who are not part of it do not listen to it.
What should be done to bring everybody together?" the minister wondered while stressing the need for self-regulation.