We are in a milieu where the need to further strengthen democracy is a felt need and to do that, a good civilization is and will make its best efforts to make each of the pillars of democracy strong and equal.
On the back of a strong judiciary which has become not only its pillar but a strong unshakeable metal, the media in India too, will continue to protect its role, responsibility and duty as the fourth pillar to stand shoulder to shoulder with the other pillars as a part of the system of checks and balances which the Constitution, which is above all else, provides.
A healthy distance between the four pillars is the strength of democracy
The responsible media is keeping the flag of duty and responsibility flying, being one of the four pillars, and not beneath or below any of the pillars. Its responsibilities broadly are holding truth to power, being neutral and balanced, with the supremacy of the people and the Constitution lighting up its path; and maintaining a distance from the executive to allow a better and non-clouded assessment of issues and stories.
Another area where the responsible press gently prevents the executive from trying to become the giver and the press the receiver – which changes the equation of equality completely, is to avoid sponsored trips and study tours as a supposed exercise in receiving knowledge and information.
Responsible journalists do not undertake government-sponsored study tours
They realise that a junket (which government-sponsored study tours are) is like a well-arranged itinerary-based trip supervised by a travel agent where no invoices are given.
These journalists neither propose nor ever accept such journeys where on a ‘study tour’ you have to ‘study’ through the eyes of the executive, visit official institutions, do some sightseeing and visit holy places. Responsible journalists do not do this because they know they can never be the fourth pillar of democracy and serve the tax- payer if they undertake a junket at the cost of the taxpayer’s money.
Take for instance, if the government had arranged a ‘study’ tour for journalists to visit the scene of the year-long farmer’s protests on the Delhi-UP border and reporters saw the protests from the government’s eyes only and not from the farmers’ (where the story really was) would it have been a proper study? Would those journalists be called responsible? That is why responsible journalists would have never agreed to such a study tour.
No genuine journalist would like to put himself or journalism to shame by doing this. Nor would a government like to do it because it is people’s money
A responsible government will not spend on study tours but on more urgent needs like giving compensation to farmers whose fields are flooded with saline water or reimbursement for repairs of bunds, etc, or subsidies and financial help to sportspersons, etc.
The respectable way: Publications fund study tours of reporters
If an authentic study tour is needed to be undertaken to get a genuine view of a place, subject and issue, and a delegation of reporters across publications are needed, then the publications will get together under the aegis of the Guild of Editors, and each publication or media house will fund the trip of their representative on this study tour. That would be respectable and the right way for the fourth pillar to conduct itself. And when it comes to freelance and independent reporters, some publications can assign them the trip on a freelance basis provided they report on the study in their paper.
The Editors’ Guild can also look at building a corpus from public donations for learning and research and pay for or subsidise these trips. Is this not fair and just?
Universities and research centres can also play a role in fostering genuine learning for journalists
Why should the government be the source of funding for these trips? Universities, research centres and other academic and professional institutions have funds for academic exchanges. They can be approached to fund such visits on the condition that the learnings of these visits will be used to present papers, and hold workshops and deliberations. That does happen in many countries and even in India. In these cases, journalists fully exploit their true potential of not being just informers but researchers and opinion makers. This strengthens democracy.
A good press makes the other pillars more effective and stronger
Only distance can allow the press to do its role of being an informant, opinion maker, researcher and friend of democracy. In fact, a good press makes the other pillars more effective and stronger, and when those who control governance (the executive) disburses largesse in any form, a responsible media does its job of keeping that away and doing its job without giving the executive an upper hand or power over the media.
For instance, responsible journalists have avoided taking government benefits and gifts like official bungalows and flats. That was incidentally started in states like Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, especially during the Congress days in the late eighties when Arjun Singh, the CM of MP, used to provide apartments to mid-level journalists and ministerial bungalows to senior journalists and editors on literally free rentals, with the PWD department doing the repairs, maintenance and upkeep. In fact, one remembers that the daughter of a senior journalist in UP got married to one of the biggest stars of Indian cinema ever, in the government ministerial bungalow allotted to her father – a journalist in Lucknow.
All pillars of democracy should not only be strong but equal. One cannot be superior to the other or be in a position of higher authority. And if all pillars are like metal, democracy becomes unshakable. And when that happens, each pillar becomes more strengthened and carries the weight of responsibility each has with no favours asked for or given by one to the other.
