JOIN USPress Freedom Index: A worrying fall
India’s place in the latest World Press Freedom Index, brought out every year by the Paris-based Reporters Without Borders, has seen another fall from 142 last year to 150 now among 180 countries surveyed. India has consistently been declining in the index and this year has seen the steepest fall. The decline has accelerated ever since the Narendra Modi government came to power. The index tries to rank countries on the basis of the degree of freedom enjoyed by journalists, news organisations and netizens, and the government’s policies and actions to respect such freedom. India was listed under countries considered “bad” for journalism and was among the most dangerous places in the world for journalists last year. The situation may have worsened this year. At least 3-4 journalists are killed every year and many more are assaulted and threatened. There are some who face legal action and are arrested for their journalistic work. Presently, 13 journalists are behind bars, and one journalist has been killed already this year. At least 55 journalists were arrested, booked and threatened for reporting on Covid-19.
The government, its agencies and political groups and persons attached to it have attacked and put pressure on the media and journalists in various ways. The Prime Minister has been unwilling to talk to the media. The report says that “terrifying coordinated campaigns of hatred and calls for murder are conducted on social media’’. Such campaigns have a free run. Women journalists are especially targeted, and their personal data has been posted online. The report also says that the situation is very worrisome in Kashmir, where reporters are often harassed by police and paramilitary organisations. It is those who are critical of the government that suffer harassment and that is why press freedom is considered to be particularly in danger.
Press freedom has suffered in other ways, too. The report has said that the Modi government has “engineered a spectacular rapprochement between his party...and the big families dominating the media”. Though there are large numbers of news publications, including daily newspapers, weeklies and magazines in all languages, there is a tendency towards concentration of ownership. The report also says that media outlets largely depend on advertisements and so editorial policy gets subordinated to business. This vulnerability is exploited by the government, which has a large advertisement budget. The report’s conclusion is that the old Indian model of a pluralist press is being seriously challenged by a combination of harassment and influence. It says that Indian society’s diversity is not reflected in the mainstream media and that may have made it more vulnerable. There are challenges of many kinds for free media.