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The Future of Media in a Post-Truth Age| Oxford Union
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Sharnya Rajesh
3:59
Press Panel Discussion
Good Afternoon, ladies and gentlemen! 
Welcome to a panel discussion on "The Future of Media in a Post-Truth Age", hosted by the Oxford Union. 
Our panelists for today are Jeremy O'Grady, Editor-in-Chief of The Week, Robert Guest, Foreign Editor of The Economist and Jim White, Telegraph columnist, writer, and broadcaster.
4:02
The conversation on the panel starts with Mr. Robert Guest. He says, "We live in an era of fake news but it's not a first one!"
4:08
Mr. Guest recalls an anecdote about the New York Sun, whose buyers relied on their credibility to buy a set of disconnected stories.
4:09
4:10
Mr. Guest says, "If you want to find out what's going on in the world, it costs and someone has to pay." It can be the readers, advertising, the public or rich philanthropists.
4:15
Jeremy O' Grady then talks about the paramount importance of reputation when it comes to credibility. 
He elaborates by talking about the Reuters survey on digital news last year, where a very high percentage of people said that their issue was with the mainstream media and not the people in media.
4:17
4:19
Whom do you trust more?
Mainstream media (0% | 0 votes)
 
Social media (0% | 0 votes)
 
Total Votes: 0
Jim White recounts the revolutionary change that happened over the years. So much so that 'The Independent' is no longer printing the paper. He says, "The people who were certain that the newspapers would be printed are in uncertainties."
4:24
Mr. White further elaborates by saying that the problem with the existing media is that they refuse to change with the times. This shift was because, today, everyone has the opportunity to be a journalist in their pocket and the sophistication required for it.
"Now we have greater means in our pocket than we have collectively", he says.
4:26
4:31
Mr. O'Grady says, "Lack of trust in the main media is the most distressing aspect of contemporary times".
He exemplifies by saying that in Britain, the news is now mixed with commenting, therefore threatening its credibility.
4:39
4:41
Replying to the moderator's question on increasing levels of scepticism among the readers, Mr. O'Grady says that, " in this world of epistemic vigilance, it has become extremely dangerous at times especially when platforms take control."
4:42
Mr. Guest adds that a journalist's first responsibility is to get their facts right. "If you read a right-wing publication, you also need to read a left-wing publication", he states.
4:50
4:53
Further, the panel shifts its discussion to the media's move from the spectacular "post-truth age" towards a "more truth age".
4:55
In response to a question from the audience on the 'democratization of news', Mr. White says that social media has formed an intimate relationship with people in just five years.
"It is evident that entrepreneurs have understood the power of it. While we are still finding a middle ground to understand who's paying who", he adds.
5:00
To what extent do you gather news from social media?
Partly (0% | 0 votes)
 
Completely (100% | 1 vote)
 
Total Votes: 1
"The problem is not much with fake news. It is with the one who writes it and the people who want it to be the news", Mr. O'Grady adds.
5:04
In response to a question on the 'Cobra Post Sting Operation', Mr. Guest says, "There's a significant amount of complexity in certain media houses in India. It's perfectly possible to abuse the power of the press. The media is an institution like any other, and in some places, it can be corrupted".
5:07
5:09
Mr White thinks that the key concern is that we must figure out how to maintain the "air of vigilance". He then sums up the panel discussion saying, "It can only be maintained with proper scrutiny".
5:11
That's a wrap on this panel discussion. Thank you so much for tuning in. Good day!
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