Role of media important in democracy: Mamata

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today stressed the importance of media in democracy, saying it could play a vital role in strengthening the federal structure of a country.

"If the Federal structure is strong, everything is strong. If you want a strong democracy, then the role of media is very important," Banerjee said at the launch of ETV's 24-hour Bengali news channel.

Banerjee disapproved of potrayal of violence on news channels and said TV news must be "soothing as most people don't like bloodshed".