New Delhi: Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting Anurag Thakur Tuesday said, “presenting authentic information is the prime responsibility of media and that facts should be properly checked before they are put in the public domain”.

Speaking at the Opening Ceremony of the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union General Assembly 2022, the Minister said, “while speed with which the information is transmitted is important, accuracy is even more important and should be primary in the minds of communicators”.

With the spread of social media, fake news has also proliferated, the Minister added.

The Minister highlighted that for responsible media organizations maintaining public trust should be the highest guiding principle. He credited public broadcasters Doordarshan and All India Radio for having always stood by the truth and having won people’s trust for their truthful reporting.

He underlined that media’s role during the time of crisis becomes critical as it directly concerns saving lives adding that media is at the core of national disaster management plans.

Anurag Thakur also credited the media for coming to the aid of people stuck at home during the COVID19 pandemic saying it was media which connected people with the outside world.

Thakur invited media to become a partner in Governance and used the podium to reiterate the words of Prime Minister Narendra Modi that “Media should act as a link between government and people and provide continuous feedback, at both national and regional level”.