As AI becomes prevalent, difficulties for the press will multiply: Sanjay Jaju

There are challenges in terms of sharing of revenues between publishers and intermediaries. There are instances around the world where issues of fair compensation are being addressed. Sanjay Jaju, Secretary, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, says that in a world where artificial intelligence will become more prevalent these difficulties will multiply significantly as AI models will be trained with a large amount of data and content, published by journalists themselves.

On the occasion of National Press Day, Jaju delved into the strengths of the Indian press and the initiatives that the government has taken to ensure that this institution is supported in letter and spirit. 

We have more than 100,000 registered publications in our country. We have close to 900-odd TV channels out of which roughly 450-odd TV channels are in the news sphere across the country in various languages. We also have a rapidly expanding digital ecosystem, said the minister. 

He said, “All this exemplifies the vibrancy of the media landscape of our country and it is this diversity and this landscape that ensures that every voice, be it coming from a very small village to any large metropolis, finds resonance and representation.”

And the good thing is that the press in this country does not just report on India, it also actually is truly a reflection of what India thinks. “It also reinforces the values that we all commonly share and at the same time it helps us break the cultural, linguistic and regional differences if there are any.” 

Be it the Swachh Bharat Mission, be it the Digital India Mission, all these stories have taken forward the narrative of Viksit Bharat. “It's not just a tool of social awakening and education but it's also been a great tool to serve us as bringing together the collective notion of our country as a whole. That's where the role of media and press can never be underestimated.”

According to Jaju, there are a large number of efforts and initiatives that we in the government are taking to provide support to the journalists in terms of the accreditation benefits that are possible, health benefits that are available to them under the Central Government Health Services Scheme, the Journalist Welfare Scheme, insurance coverage, a large number of capacity-building programmes which are run through our Indian Institute of Mass Communication and other organisations, modernising the media regulations that we have.

“We also have recently introduced significant reforms to the Press and Registration of Periodicals Act 2013 which has helped us remove the Colonial Era Act and now we have been able to build a modern streamlined framework for the press and periodicals. At the same time, we also make significant efforts, like in this premises itself, to allow access to information by holding regular press briefings, web streaming various press conferences,” he added.

But, there are pressures and there are challenges in terms of fake news, misinformation, disinformation. There are challenges in terms of economics and now there are challenges in terms of sharing of revenues between the publishers and the intermediaries. 

Jaju expressed, “In future also with the advent of AI, but the rich and the cultural history of storytelling that we have in our country, I think our journalists will be able to make use of that potential and will continue to retain the trust and credibility that they all have.” 

He urged all the stakeholders, all the journalists, the media organisations and all the policy makers, that it's important that everyone works together to build this ecosystem where the press is fair, the press is transparent, the press is sustainable.