Press should shun sensationalism :Speaker

New Delhi, Dec 8 (UNI) Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee today called upon the media to be fearless and unbiased abjuring mere sensationalism and projections based on its own predilections.

"In the media as indeed in any aspect of human life the truth should never be compromised nor should anybody indulge in half truths which will negate the ennobling principes which media is expected to follow," he observed while presenting the International Press Institute's IPI-India Award for Excellence in Journalism 2006 to the Indian Express at a function here.

Mr Chatterjee said "the Press rightly enjoyed considerable power in playing the role of a watchdog over the Government and the corporate world, in influencing decisions and setting trends, transmitting ideas and information and giving voice to the poor and the deprived." At the same time, the Press had to see that it excercised the power for the ultimate good of the society and not out of any personal vendetta, the Speaker added.

Praising the role of the Indian Express, Mr Chatterjee said it had been, for a long time, an important part of our national life.

The Award spoke of the high standing impeccable credentials of the paper which had earned recognition due to the dedication, commitment and integrity of a large number of men and women who had toiled to make the Indian Express what it is today.

The Speaker lauded the newspaper for its proactive campaign on a host of issues of national concern and on the ills affllicting the society.

UNI YS PA DB2118