Union minister Anurag Thakur on Sunday said the Indian media is strong enough and has the capability to set narrative across the world. He alleged that some foreign media houses carried “false” reports about India during the COVID-19 pandemic, and this agenda of spoiling the country’s image was not only being run from outside the country, but many Indian leaders used that opportunity for their self-interests.
The Information and Broadcasting Minister also said that Indian media was independent in the past and will remain so in the future as it is today.
Thakur was speaking at the Lokmat National Media Conclave on the topic ‘Is Indian Media Completely Polarised?’
The media conclave was organised to mark the birth centenary of freedom fighter and Lokmat Media Group’s founder editor Jawaharlal Darda, fondly known as ‘Babuji’, as well as the golden jubilee of the Lokmat Nagpur edition. Addressing a gathering of journalists and intellectuals, the minister said, “On the part of the government, I can assure that Indian media was independent earlier, it is independent today and will remain so in future also.”
“It is nobody’s intention to nail someone. But a question arises when some political parties use a huge proportion of their budget for their own welfare and self-praise rather than for the development and welfare of people. The effect of all this is sometimes seen in news reports, when eight to nine newspapers carry identical headlines and it happens not once but 50 times,” he said.
Thakur attacked some foreign media houses for their coverage during the COVID-19 pandemic, saying that dead bodies flowing in the Ganga river and lying on its banks were shown in reports.
“These reports were not true, but a large number of media houses without checking facts ran those reports. This does not spoil only one person’s image, but spoils the image of the entire country. And this agenda and propaganda is not only being run from outside the country, but many leaders from India also used this opportunity for their self-interests,” he said.