Union Minister Anurag Thakur inaugurates 47th Annual Gathering of AIBD
Mayank Agarwal, CEO, Prasar Bharati conferred
Lifetime Achievement Award for 2022
Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting Anurag
Thakur today inaugurated the 47th Annual Gathering and 20th Meeting
of Asia-Pacific Institute for Broadcasting Development (AIBD) in presence of
Union Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting (I&B) Dr L
Murugan, Secretary, I&B Apurva Chandra and Director, AIBD Philomena
Gnanapragasam.
Speaking on the occasion Thakur has said that the biggest
threat to mainstream media is not from new age digital platforms, but rather
the mainstream media channel itself. He went on to say that real journalism was
about facing the facts, presenting the truth and letting all sides the platform
to present their views.
Inviting guests who are polarising, who spread false
narratives and who shout at the top of their lungs damages the credibility of a
channel, the Minister remarked. “Your decisions regarding the guest, the tone
and visuals - define your credibility in the eyes of the audience. The view may
stop for a minute to watch your show, but will never trust your anchor, your
channel or brand as a trusted and transparent source of news”, he further added.
The Minister exhorted the broadcasters present on the
occasion to not to watch the narrative be defined by soundbites but redefine it
yourself and set the terms for the guests and the channel.
Posing prodding questions to the audience the Minister
asked “Are you going to watch as the younger audience switches and sweeps
through the shrill on TV news or are you going to bring back the Neutrality in
NEWS and Discussion in DEBATES to stay ahead of the game?”
Anurag Thakur credited the AIBD leadership during the
COVID pandemic for keeping the member countries connected online and
maintaining a constant dialogue on how media can mitigate the impact of the
pandemic. He noted “member countries were immensely benefitted through sharing
of information on the latest developments in the medical field, positive
stories of Covid warriors and more importantly in countering fake news which
was spreading faster than the pandemic.” Thakur congratulated Director of AIBD,.
Philomena, President of AIBD General conference,. Mayank Agrawal and the member
countries who worked together in building a strong media response to Covid
pandemic in the Asia Pacific region.
Speaking on the theme of the event ‘Building a stronger
future for broadcasting in the post pandemic era’, the Minister remarked that
“though broadcast media is and has always been in the mainstream of journalism,
the COVID-19 era has shaped its structure in a more strategic way. Covid pandemic
has taught us how the right and timely information can save millions of lives.
It is media which brought the world on one platform during this difficult phase
and reinforced the spirit of one global family. “Presenting the role of Indian
media during the pandemic as a success story, he said that the media ensured
that COVID-19 awareness messages, important government guidelines and free
online consultations with doctors reached everyone in nook and corner of the
country.
Thakur prodded the member countries to set up cooperation
in the area of good quality content exchange. Programme exchanges through such
co-operation bring the world cultures together. Such media partnerships between
the countries help in building strong people-to-people bonds, he said.
In conclusion, the Minister underlined that media, in all
its forms, has immense ability to shape public perceptions and perspectives as
an effective tool of empowerment. “It is imperative to create an enabling
environment for our journalists and broadcasters friends for making the space
of media more vibrant and rewarding”, he added.
Mayank Agarwal, Chief Executive Officer, Prasar Bharati
and President, AIBD, in his remarks said that AIBD continued its training and
capacity building programmes even during lockdowns. 34 training programmes were
conducted in last year alone and were focused on tradition as well as emerging
issues like climate change, green technologies, sustainable development, faster
reporting, programming for children etc.
Agarwal highlighted that with increase in use of internet
in broadcasting, training of journalists in cyber security journalism has
become imperative, he said. He added that AIBD is the first set up to take this
up as part of its training programmes.
Philomena Gnanapragasam said that content is going to
determine the future of media and how the content is shared and monetised will
determine the future of broadcasting. She also thanked all the delegates and
representatives of various organisations for their presence.
During the event, Union Minister Anurag Thakur presided
over the award presentation for 2021 and 2022. The Appreciation Award for 2021
was conferred on Radio Television Brunei. The Appreciation Award for 2022 was
shared by Ministry of Economy, Civil Service, Communications, Housing and
Community Development, Republic of Fiji and Fiji Broadcasting Corporation.
The Lifetime Achievement Award for 2021 was given to Khieu
Khanharith, Minister of Information and Communication, Cambodia. The Lifetime
Achievement Award for 2022 was conferred on Mayank Agarwal, CEO, PB and
President, AIBD.
Heads of various foreign missions in India, delegates
from the AIBD member countries, Officers from Prasar Bharati and different
wings of Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, Government of India were
present at the occasion.
AIBD
The Asia-Pacific Institute for
Broadcasting Development (AIBD) was established in 1977 under the auspices of
UNESCO. It is a unique regional inter-governmental organisation servicing
countries of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the
Pacific (UN-ESCAP) in the field of electronic media development. It is hosted
by the Government of Malaysia and the secretariat is located in Kuala Lumpur.
The AIBD currently has 26 Full Members (countries),
represented by 43 organisations, and 50 Affiliate Members (organisations) with
a total membership of 93 representing 46 countries and regions and over 50
partners in Asia, Pacific, Europe, Africa, Arab States and North America
The AIBD General Conference (GC) and its Associated
Meetings is the annual official gathering of the Institute. The General
Conference is open to member countries, affiliates, partners, observers and
leading broadcasters by invitation only. Member Countries, Affiliates and
partners would have the opportunity to review the number of activities and
projects that AIBD has implemented for the past year and also look into the
future projects. Also discussed are the developmental needs of the member
countries.
Ministry of Information & Broadcasting holds the Full
Membership of the AIBD. Prasar Bharati , being the public service broadcaster
of India utilizes the various services of the AIBD.
India has hosted the Governing Council Meetings
(GC) in 1978, 1985, 2003 and has been honoured again to host the 47th Annual
Gathering/ 20th AIBD General Conference and Associated Meetings 2022 in India
from 19-21 September, 2022 in New Delhi.