Opinion: A Media House Should Come Under RTI On Its Own -- The 12 Commandments For A Trustworthy Press

The last influential editor of any Indian English daily was perhaps Girilal Jain during 1978-88. Frank Moraes (1957-72) was another editor to remember for not compromising editorial freedom. Even the ­gover­nments of the time that tried to dent the independence of the dailies met with little success because of the two editors. The idea of “free press” is in the context of ­constitutional provisions of the ­country and the way those provisions are used or violated to moderate or manipulate the media, particularly by governments and political leaders. While the First Amendment in the US has dir­ect reference to freedom of press, there is no such thing in India, where Article 19 of the Constitution encompasses media in interpretation.