Media's self-regulatory mechanism poor: Prasar Bharati chairman

Expressing concern at the "inadequate" self-regulatory mechanism within the media, Prasar Bharati chairman A. Surya Prakash has suggested that the Press Council must become a 'Media Council' with adequate media representation and acquire more teeth.

Some private news channels have been creating noise during prime time shows ignoring news content, he said.

Surya Prakash, a veteran journalist, was addressing an open session at the 9th Global Communication Conclave organised by communication industry body Public Relations Council of India (PRCI) here.

"Each and every Indian is a stakeholder in Prasar Bharati since it depends on union budgetary support -- about Rs.2,100 crore out of its Rs.4,000-crore budget in the current financial year," he said.

"Its own revenue generation is around Rs.1,650 crore as of now. With increased focus on internal revenue generation, this is expected to improve," he said.

Earlier, Editors Guild general secretary Ajay Upadhyay said the entire media community need not be painted with the same brush just because of some perceived unethical practices.

Most media houses do have gatekeepers in the form of strong news desks and editors to check the flow of news into newspapers and channels.

During the two-day conclave that ended on Saturday, communication professionals took part in panel discussions on media and PR ethics, corporate social responsibility, financial inclusion, technology and sexual harassment at workplace.

Based on suggestions from the speakers, PRCI has decided to launch an awareness drive to adopt ethical practices among public relations practitioners and conduct skill development programmes for professionals to understand the functioning of the media and its information needs.

Prasar Bharati was also looking forward to a new rating agency as the present system of gauging TRPs was woefully inadequate.