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Panel discussion on the Reuters Institute's Digital News Report 2021
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Rangoli
1:44
Panel discussion on the Digital News Report 2021 published by Reuters amongst prominent journalists.
1:46
Hello and welcome to the panel discussion on the Reuters Institute's Digital News Report 2021, featuring the director of Reuters Institute Rasmus Kleis Nielsen, journalist and media entrepreneur Shashi Kumar, the executive editor of Scroll Supriya Sharma, and the editor-in-chief of News Minute Dhanya Rajendran. The discussion is moderated by Manisha Pande, executive editor of Newslaundry.
1:53
Manisha Pande opens the discussion by introducing the panelists and asks Dhanya Rajendran about the neutrality of journalists.
2:00
Dhanya states that neutrality among journalists doesn't exist. Journalists just like humans inherit biases when selecting stories. Supriya adds to Dhanya's statement, "consumers should understand the mission of journalism, the aim is to hold the people in power accountable." The job of a journalist is tough as they have to ask tough questions to the government, Supriya adds.
2:07
Dhanya emphasizes on the need for neutrality among journalists by quoting the example of Hathras. "People expect neutrality but simultaneously seek opinion. Journalists should be objective and not pick sides while disclosing a story," she adds.
2:16
Sashi Kumar explains that neutrality as a whole makes no sense and objectivity exists as a fair-minded approach towards anything. He emphasizes on the issue of TRP and trust in the media. Sashi Kumar adds, "what I find intriguing is how Republic TV rates highly when it comes to trust, even though it is untrustworthy."
2:25
Do you consider Republic TV to be a trustable source of news?
Yes (0% | 0 votes)
 
No (0% | 0 votes)
 
Total Votes: 0
2:30
Manisha raises questions on media literacy and asks if it's the responsibility of journalists to explain neutrality. Rasmus answers and highlights the role of journalists as "watchdogs" in establishing trust. "If people are not taking journalists as watchdogs but as lapdogs, then it makes more sense for what people aren’t trusting," added Rasmus.
2:32
Sashi Kumar says that he started his career with Doordarshan. "Nobody believes Doordarshan, it is a propaganda arm of the government," says Sashi Kumar.
2:33
Do you consume news through Doordarshan?
Yes (0% | 0 votes)
 
No (0% | 0 votes)
 
Occasionally (0% | 0 votes)
 
Total Votes: 0
2:35
2:37
Supriya highlights the challenge to journalism, which is to generate more opinions. She talks about the use of investigative techniques on ground-level news. "The investigation news is widely read, especially the PPE kit stories during Covid-19." Each of the stories adds value to journalism, she adds.
2:42
Manisha highlights the importance of media in holding the government accountable and states that the mainstream media does not question the government. The media played a crucial role in handling the pandemic, "the people who were stuck during the second wave had to seek help from the media," added Manisha.
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