Freedom of press comes with responsibilities: CM
Staff Reporter
ITANAGAR, 17 Nov: The state’s press community observed the National Press Day with the inauguration of the Arunachal Press Club’s (APC) new building in Ganga here on 16 November.
The new APC building will also be the office and headquarters of the Arunachal Pradesh Union of Working Journalists (APUWJ).
After inaugurating the APC building, Chief Minister Pema Khandu stressed on the role of the media and journalists in disseminating unbiased information to the people.
“As we are celebrating National Press Day today across India, you must realise that freedom of press comes with responsibilities. Your role is important,” said Khandu.
“Journalists should not get instigated and carried away by people with malicious interests; a journalist should report the truth and the facts,” the CM added.
Stating that the public are confused about the veracity of information bombarded on social media, Khandu urged the journalists to “disseminate truth and guide the society and the government, as well.”
“With the advent of social media and digital technology, from a journalist’s point of view, you are also facing challenges regarding the information being bombarded through social media channels. The public are under pressure and confused. Your role as journalists is significant to tell the truth and guide the public in shaping the society,” the CM said.
“If the government does wrong, it is your responsibility to hold it accountable,” he added.
Information & Public Relations Minister Bamang Felix said that “the fourth estate is as important as the other three pillars of democracy.”
“The government does not expect the media to eulogise the government, but at least whatever policies and plans we rolled out for the welfare of the people should be informed to the masses,” said Felix.
“Let us all bind together, and we should work together to transform our state and the society to make a better place,” he added.
Nampong MLA Laisam Simai urged the press community not to indulge in “wrong journalism by propagating misinformation and disinformation.” He also appealed to the journalists to be “more responsible while carrying out their duties.”
In his keynote address, APUWJ President Amar Sangno highlighted the journey of the APC, and how the union and the club were founded by a miniscule group of journalists in Itanagar in 1981-82.
Sangno acknowledged the state government and individuals who played an instrumental role in the construction of the APC’s permanent office.
“The club is not only the working journalists’ home; rather, it is a temple of freedom of speech and expression, and a symbol of an intellectual community which helps to shape the society’s image with information,” he said.
“Our job is to ask inconvenient questions to those at the helms of affairs, and to hold them accountable. The APUWJ will continue to uphold this principle and will rise to the occasion whenever the freedom of the press is threatened by people in power or any external forces,” Sangno said.
However, he said also that the union would not hesitate to condemn journalists “who maliciously tow politically motivated lines and fan reportage with communal overtones.”
Later, the APUWJ and the Arunachal Electronic & Digital Media Association submitted a memorandum to the chief minister.
The APUWJ sought a separate corpus fund for DTP operators or non-working staffers in the media houses, and early resolution of the working journalists’ pension scheme, while the AEDMA demanded that the state government implement the Arunachal Electronic & Digital Media Advertisement Policy in toto.
The latter also sought allocation of separate budget for digital advertisements, and urged the government to direct the department concerned to release visual advertisements.
