The fourth estate: The cornerstone of Indian democracy

Pages: 57-59
Rajneesh Ahlawat (Department of Bus. Admn., Chaudhary Devi Lal University, Sirsa)

One of the greatest achievements of Indian democracy is its free, unfettered and vibrant press, an accomplishment of direct relevance to the working of any democracy. Authoritarianism flourishes not only by stifling opposition, but also by systematically suppressing information. The survival and flowering of a democracy depends a great deal on the freedom, vigour and professionalism of the fourth estate. Liberalization has led to the media targeting readers as consumers rather than citizens. The biggest challenges being faced by the Indian Media today is of enforcing more rigorous professional standards, of responding to the need for more serious reporting on governance issues and of upholding its own freedom to function in the face of browbeating by the government of the day. Equally bad is the spectre of media publications pandering to their business and political interests in the absence of proper watchdog bodies for media and the recent trend of “paid news”.