Prioritise truth over trends: Press Council of India chairperson Ranjana Desai
New Delhi, Nov 16 (PTI): Journalists should value accuracy more than speed and prioritise truth over trends, Press Council of India Chairperson Justice Ranjana Desai said on Sunday.
Addressing the National Press Day function here, Desai said that the press was facing several challenges and the most worrisome was the loss of press credibility.
"The arbitrary use of technology in mass communication has led to a growing spread of misinformation," she said, adding that the responsibility of journalists in such trying times has become more onerous.
"Their work does not end with reporting an event; it extends to verify facts, interpret them accurately and place them in perspective and not create news," Desai said at the function attended by Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and PTI CEO Vijay Joshi, among others.
"Accuracy should be valued more than speed, and truth should be prioritised over trends," she said.
Desai said the Press Council of India has updated the Norms of Journalistic Conduct and called for greater care and responsibility in reporting.
She also urged the press to show restraint while writing on matters relating to religion or the armed forces, where even a minor inaccuracy can have serious consequences.
Desai said the Council also believed that financial independence was directly connected to upholding press credibility and has advised governments of states and Union territories to develop and implement group insurance schemes for journalists.
She urged journalists to remain alert and thoughtful to the increasing role of artificial intelligence in the field of journalism.
"Technology should help us find the truth, not twist or overshadow it. However advanced these tools may become, they can never replace the human mind – the judgment, conscience and sense of responsibility that guide every journalist to prevent the spread of misinformation," Desai said.
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Two arrested in K'taka for assaulting minors, uploading CSAM content
Bengaluru (PTI): Two men were arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting two minor girls, recording the acts on mobile phones and uploading the videos online as child sexual abuse material, police said on Thursday.
The accused have been identified as Kiran Kumar (29), hailing from Chitradurga district, and Aditya M K (20), hailing from Shivamogga district, they said.
A probe was initiated after information was received from the NCRP portal regarding a suspected instance of creation of Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) for online dissemination, police said.
Accordingly, a case was registered at Kaggalipura Police Station under relevant sections of the IT Act on May 10, they added.
Investigation revealed that two minor girl victims were exploited and videos were created and uploaded to the internet. The child victims have subsequently recorded their statements as per procedure and further necessary legal steps have been taken, Pronab Mohanty Director General of Police, Cyber Command, said in a statement.
Based on the statements of the victims, the accused persons, who allegedly assaulted the minors, recorded the acts on mobile phones and uploaded the videos online, were arrested, he said.
Following the probe, sections 65(2) (rape) and 70 (gangrape) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, along with relevant sections of the POCSO Act, have been added to the FIR, police said.
Officials collected relevant information and on May 12, arrested the accused persons and seized three mobile phones belonging to them, in which the videos had allegedly been recorded, he said.
The accused were later produced before the court and taken into police custody for further investigation, he added.
According to him, in CSAM cases, police usually apprehend offenders who have downloaded such content or have kept them in their possession after obtaining them from elsewhere, usually the internet.
"The present case is one of the very few instances where content creators and uploaders have been apprehended," Mohanty added.
