How Indian Digital Media Is Treading A Fine Line Between Influence & Integrity

In the digital age, the delicate equilibrium between influence and integrity shapes the landscape of media trust. As information dissemination accelerates, media entities navigate the challenge of maintaining influence while upholding journalistic integrity. The constant barrage of news, often sensationalised for engagement, tests the public's faith in media accuracy.

“The internet has a funny way of portraying information but presenting it in a skewed way, for instance, in the incident in Mahabharata, the fact was that Ashwathama had died, but the reality was that the animal Ashwathama died, not the man. The information, however, travelled to convey that the man was the one who died,” said Former BJP Spokesperson and Author, Vinit Goenka.

Ethical reporting, fact-checking mechanisms, and transparency in sources are linchpins in fortifying media trust.

Integrity and Influence on a Digital Platform

Akash Banerjee, Social and Political Satirist, Founder, TheDeshBhakt (YouTube Channel) emphasised, “When dealing with satire, keeping the trust of the audience is 150 per cent more important. I take inspiration from the fact that the anchors at late-night American television have more of the American audience’s trust than the 9 PM prime time anchors. It’s imperative not to confuse that somebody sitting in a multimillion-dollar studio in a tie and suit commands more trust than somebody talking on a mobile phone standing on the side of the road.”

In an era when everyone is a disseminator of information with the increasing accessibility of the internet, trust and credibility take centre stage.

On the importance of trust when creating content on social media, Arvind Arora, YouTuber asserted, “We teach children to think before they speak, now it’s the time to think before you post anything on social media. You need to make sure that your content is truthful and trustworthy, helpful, inspirational, necessary to put out there on social media and above all, it needs to be kind. These are the parameters I operate my channel with. I refuse to post any negative content, any content that is posted is to be diligently researched and fact-checked.”

Arora insisted that trust factor is something every content creator should be mindful of.

Lack of Transparency and Faith

Meghna Bal, Head of Research, Esya Centre revealed, “There is an enduring trend that trust in media is going down. Pew Research Centre has found that people in the U.S. under 30 have an equal amount of trust in news they receive from social media and news they receive from regular media outlets. There’s research from the Reuters Institute and the Oxford Internet Institute, found that globally, in Southern countries such as India or Brazil, there is decreasing faith in traditional news outlets. People want the news to be fair, impartial and accurate, but solutions towards this end are quite challenging to implement because what is fair and impartial to me might be different for you, it’s extremely subjective.”

Bal noted that broadly, people want more transparency. If there are conflicts of information, they should be disclosed to the public. For instance, she mentioned, that the ownership structures of news organisations in India are very skewed and opaque, large news organisations in India rarely have trust and safety teams.

Regulatory Roadblocks

Apar Gupta, Lawyer remarked, “In the Digital Data Protection Act, there is no specific exemption for journalists which means that the personal information you gather is susceptible at a future date and time to a dispute, which may hold up a story which may be in public interest. This has also impacted the Right To Information Law by which now, third party confidential information which could be disclosed in the public interest, cannot be done any longer.”

The problem of trust gets enabled to a greater extent through regulation. The principal stakeholders which hold immense power, as well as incentives for data control, are the private Silicon Valley platforms which serve us content on our phones. Gupta asserted that transparency comes through disclosures such as the Frances Haugen disclosures.

In this dynamic era, media's ability to wield influence hinges on its commitment to truth and unbiased reporting, fostering a symbiotic relationship with an audience that increasingly demands both impact and authenticity.