Taking exception to what he described as huge importance being given to air programmes related to superstition and blind beliefs in the electronic media, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Saturday suggested presspersons to spread awareness about scientific reasoning among the public.
Mr. Siddaramaiah was speaking after inaugurating the 32nd State conference of the Karnataka Union of Working Journalists (KUWJ) here.
“Do you believe in the existence of ghosts even in the 21st century?,” he asked the presspersons and said the role of the media was to promote scientific reasoning among people. “If you provide undue importance to soothsayers, how can you bring about a change in society,” he asked.
In recent years, the media had been giving more space for imaginative reporting. “You are more interested in imagining what might have happened than what has actually happened. This is a bad trend and it affects both the media and the society. This cannot serve the media for long. People gradually lose confidence in media houses that attach undue importance to illusions and imagination,” he said.
In the pre-Independence era, newspapers used to focus on Freedom Movement. They played a major role in prompting the people to join the national movement. In the first two-three decades of post-Independence India, newspapers provided the much needed push for development programmes. “In recent years, however, corporate companies have taken over several media houses. Big companies hire journalists on a contract basis. In small organisations, journalists face many problems and hence they need job security,” he said and added that his government would soon launch a health insurance scheme for journalists and their family members.
A.S. Kiran Kumar, ISRO chairman, said that it was essential for journalists to keep updating themselves with the ever-expanding technology. “Nowadays, people access news through their mobile phones. This has become possible only because of the advancement being witnessed in communication technology. Media people should get used to the advanced technology to remain in the field,” he said. Veteran journalists and former presidents of the union H.S. Doreswamy, N. Arjun Dev, G.K. Sathya, Venkatesh and Gangadhar Mudaliar were felicitated. Information Minister R .Roshan Baig, Minister for Public Works H.C. Mahadevappa, Health and Family Welfare Minister U.T. Khader, Vijaya Karnataka Editor Thimmappa Bhat, KUWJ psresident N. Raju, Indian Federation of Working Journalists president K.Vikram Rao, Hassan Daistrict Working Journalists’ Association president Ravi Nakalgudu and others were present.
Hassan district Association of Working Journalists had organised an exhibition of photographs and cartoons. Photo journalists Ateek Ur Rahman, Janekere Paramesh, B.M. Ravish and Srinivas exhibited the photos taken by them. Noted cartoonist M.V. Shivaram displayed cartoons.
