The I&B ministry issued a fiat to penalize any reporting of fake news which drew sharp responses from the public and The Editors Guild, forcing the PM to order Smruthi Irani to withdraw the same immediately! The definition of fake news as opposed to inaccurate news needs to be defined! Donald Trump has defined fake news as any news not favorable to the government! That our government is trying once again to control the press is evident since even as the order has been withdrawn, it is reported that the Press Council has been reduced in number and re-constituted by the government with members, whom according to eminent senior journalists and editors, will not be able to act as a neutral empire and be fiercely independent and non-prejudicial as required of such a body! After the courts, the saviors of our freedom and democracy is certainly the Fourth Estate! Both the judiciary and the press need to deliver the truth without fear or favor if our nation is to survive as a thriving, vibrant democracy that refuses to be straight-jacketed by powerful prejudiced or vested interests!
John Eric Gomes, Porvorim
