Thiruvananthapuram, August 27: Introspection and self-checks by journalists is vital in the current context to guard against undesirable tendencies like “paid news syndrome”, Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan said today.
Considering the critical role they were expected to play as the fourth pillar of democracy, it was important that journalists re-dedicated themselves to the values and social commitments upheld by pioneers in Indian media, he said.
He was inaugurating a seminar “ethical journalism– perspectives and practice” organised by Kerala Union of Working Journalists (KUWJ).
It would be quite wrong to say that crisis of values was a problem afflicting journalism alone at a time when all spheres of life were controlled by market forces, he pointed out.
–Agencies