Informatics Publishing Limited

Lakshmi L. Lund ¹, P. E. Thomas ¹

Affiliations
1 Department of Communication and Media Studies, Bharathiar University, Coimbatore-641 046, IN

Abstract

Print media in India have been witnessing a rapid boom during the last two decades. On the contrary developed nations like the United State of America and some European countries have recorded a steep fall both in newspaper readership and growth. The growth of newspapers in India is a positive sign of democracy. However, in recent past there are some instances of unfair and unethical means practised by certain sections of Indian media that undermine the public service value of journalism. The phenomena of paid news have acquired serious dimensions in the media world. Today, it goes beyond the corruption of the individual journalist and media company and has become pervasive, structured and highly organized. In this process it is undermining the Indian democratic value. The paper brings to light how candidate Ashok Chavan made advantageous use of the print media (in Indian languages and print) during the Maharashtra state elections in 2009. A lot of news stories and editorials, that were paid for were published with and without bylines in dailies. No mention of the words 'advt', 'paid for', 'advertorial' was made on the same. Paid news is not active during elections per se. Paid news has also taken the form of 'private treaty' where the media company enters into a contract with the corporate house and the company's equity shares are exchanged for advertising contracts. The authors have made an attempt to keep the trouble of paid news in the Indian print media under control, and indicated some remedial measures.

Keywords

Paid News, Media Ethics, Private Treaties, Fourth Estate, Corruption, Indian Print Media

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C. T. Sruthidevi ¹, P. E. Thomas ²

Affiliations
1 Department of Communication and Media Studies, Bharathiar University, Coimbatore-641 046, Tamil Nadu, IN
2 Department of Communication and Media Studies, Bharathiar University, Coimbatore-641 046, IN

Abstract

Online newspapers throw up numerous challenges for the print edition. The use of online newspapers is as common and invaluable as their conventional print version. The youth read less of print and more of online newspapers. This article aims to provide a comparative analysis of longitudinal and descriptive study of twelve English online Indian newspapers. The researchers checked out the common characteristics of these online newspapers and its perceived effects of readership among youth. The perceived effects mainly focused on reader's satisfaction, motivation and consequences. The study was carried out among a survey population of two hundred and fifty online newspaper readers in Coimbatore city of Tamil Nadu in Southern part of India. The research used website content analysis to assess the contents and design of the surveyed online newspapers.

Keywords

E-paper, Online, Youth, New Media, Effects, Content

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