NEW DELHI : Hailing the role of media in upholding the individual freedom, President Pranab Mukherjee today said technology expansion will pose a problem to it but expressed confidence that it will succeed in overcoming the challenge.
Releasing the book ‘The Eighth Ring’, an autobiography of late Chief Editor of Malayala Manorama group of newspapers K M Mathew at Rashtrapati Bhavan, Mukherjee said the media, including newspapers and periodicals, have made immense contribution since the times of pre-Independence.
At the function attended by a host of dignitaries from various walks of life, Mukherjee paid tributes to K M Mathew whom he had known personally, highlighting the role he played in expansion of the Malayala Manorama group which was even inter-linked with the freedom struggle.
“I knew K M Mathew since early days of my life which is neither too long nor too short — in early 1970s,” he said.
The President said he salutes the media as it has “never compromised with the right of individuals to speak as per their conviction”, even though the degree of fight may have differed.
Tracing the growth of media in the country over centuries, the President said the newsapapers established since then are doing reasonably well.
“However, technology will pose a problem. But I do feel that the Indian journalists and editors have the capacity to adjust and will adjust…I am confident that the media will succeed in meeting the challenge posed by the technology. You may like it or not but it is going to be there,” he said.
He said while the old fashioned may feel threatened by the expansion of technology, there is no denying the fact that Internet has converted the world into a small village.
Mukherjee said the media is best in the private hands and even the die hard socialists will not want it to be under the Government.
While tracing the history of media, the President said political leaders had also played a role in its growth. In this context, he recounted how Jawahar Lal Nehru, some time in 1930s, had written an article about himself in a newspaper with a pseudonym, saying that he had the propensity to be a dictator.
Mukherjee released the English version of the book, whose Malayalam version was released in 2008 and has been a best-seller.
Chief Editor of Malayala Manorama Mammen Mathew gave a brief about the book which contains several anecdotes related to the author’s life and the circumstances in which it was written by his father.
He said K M Mathew wanted the English version to come out in his lifetime but sadly it could not happen as he passed away in August 2010.
Mammen Mathew said the book was an expression of “child like desire” of the author to share the memories, including the struggle against the then Travancore ruler in 1930s when the newspaper had to be shut down for a few years.
Renowned lawyer Fali S Nariman, while paying tributes to K M Mathew, expressed happiness that there are still people around who read books despite explosion of television and internet.
He also showered praise on Mukherjee, saying he “speaks his mind” and is “one of the most forthright and plain-speaking Presidents” that he has seen.
Talking about the struggle that media has faced over centuries, Nariman recalled the period of Emergency and said that Indian Express owner Ram Nath Goenka had been slapped with 300 criminal cases in different courts of the country where his personal appearance was made mandatory.
“I told him (Goenka) that you should call it a day as you cannot fight the government which is out to destroy you…But he refused. He had bull dog’s resistance,” Nariman said.
NDTV President Prannoy Roy described K M Mathew as a “towering figure” of journalism, who won the battles he had fought throughout his life.
He said K M Mathew was “fiercely independent and tech-savvy” who spearheaded “socially-sensitive and humane journalism”. “We learnt a lot from him about how to fight all kinds of discrimination,” Roy said.
He said the situation seen during the K M Mathew era has “intensified today, regardless of which party is in power. Roy talked about “McCarthyism”, the practice of making accusations of subversion or treason without proper regard for evidence. (PTI)
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