THIRUVANANTHAPURAM : News has become a commodity today. Maintaining ethics in journalism is a struggle, Governor P Sathasivam has said. He was inaugurating the National Media Expo, ‘Kanakolsavam-2019’ at Sooryakanthi auditorium as part of the golden jubilee celebrations of Institute of Journalism of Thiruvananthapuram Press Club on Friday.
“We are living in an era where facts are being sabotaged. The circulation of fake news which is spreading largely in the nation could lead to communal clashes. Our constitution gives freedom of speech and press. But misusing it through online media should not be encouraged”, Sathasivam said. He also shared stories about his association with journalists during his tenure as a judge and law officer at the Chennai High Court.
“When I worked as a law officer, my official telephone was used by several journalists as a medium of communication. When I joined the Supreme Court, I opened separate rooms for accredited and non-accredited journalists”, he said. Sathasivam also appreciated the efforts of the Institute of Journalism in producing journalists of repute. He reminded that only news reports which are cross-checked and factually correct should be published.
“When the trial of the Mumbai attacks were proceeding at the Supreme Court, I had noticed a woman scribbling notes. However, she was preparing to give out news scrolls before I had finished with the judgement. I told her to stand close to my seat so she could hear my entire judgement before she published any news. So, it is always better for reporters to release news only when they receive the entire document in their hands,” he said.
G Pramod, president, Press Club presided over the function. Rishi K Manoj, director, Institute of Journalism, said they will introduce MOJO ( Mobile Journalism) courses from the next batch starting from June.