News Industry in India and its Fallouts

Most people would think that the current decline in news values, particularly in a country such as India where religion and politics is the favorite talk of people in housing societies, is taking place due to government takeover of big media houses.

However, the reality as I see it, lies in Indian media losing its prominence mainly due to its inability to cope with the onset of changing communication technologies, in the form of social media and other subsets.

Anybody can start a blog or a social media page, and although there are lesser chances of a new blogger getting views right from the jump without a fair backing in terms of advertising revenue, acclaimed journalists such as Faye D’ Souza have shown the power of news objectivity and timeliness. Faye’s massive following and engagement has continued despite her having left the support of a big media conglomerate.

The only change for consumers of unbiased and unabashed hard news is that, they too, now need to adapt to social media, whether it be in the form of the recently launched WhatsApp Channels or any predominantly popular platform, in order to get their daily dose of truth.

WhatsApp is a mobile app that has become almost indispensable in the present times, at least in India, where communication for both business and family happens mainly through this utility.

The launch of WhatsApp Channels, therefore, is a great development for both news readers and bloggers, who are now able to start their own channel where they can provide real-time updates to followers and notification subscribers.

The future of news in India is still bright, albeit with a few changes, that both the present and old generation must quickly adapt to.