Don’t let capital dictate journalism, say CM, Dy CM

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM DK Shivakumar called upon mediapersons to not let large business houses and advertisers 'dictate' the slant of their reportage.

They were speaking after inaugurating Press Club Bengaluru’s annual award ceremony and releasing their 2024 Press Club Diary.

Shivakumar bagged Press Club Bengaluru’s ‘Person of the Year’ and Congress MLA from Davangere South Shamanur Shivashankarappa was given a special award on the occasion.

"Journalists should have the courage to point out mistakes of the government. In the pre-independence era, there was a discussion and dream of development of the country. Now the media is in the hands of entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs have no social concerns. Journalists should be careful about this,” Siddaramaiah said.

“Maintain the dignity of journalism. Use your pen according to your conscience and don’t bow to the pressure of businessmen,” Shivakumar said.

“Media can correct us politically. But, let us not try to bury the truth by handing over journalism to the clutches of businessmen. It poses a big threat to democracy. Media houses are running media trials in many cases. This should not happen,” he added.

Siddaramaiah called upon journalists to be factual while Shivakumar appreciated the media for giving him nicknames such as 'Kanakapura Bande' (The Rock of Kanakapura) and 'troubleshooter'.

He got the moniker troubleshooter when he managed to get fellow Nehru-Gandhi loyalist Ahmed Patel elected to the Rajya Sabha back in 2017.

He had done so by 'transporting' MLAs who were a part of the Rajya Sabha electorate to resorts near Bengaluru.