Contending that the Indian media space does not have an appetite for external regulation, I&B Minister Manish Tewari has said that media whether electronic, print or social, should find solutions to its problems on its own.
"Does the Indian media space have an appetite for regulation? I think the answer is no. The moment the government makes even a bonafide attempt even in the financial space, you will have a demonstration from the press club to the portals of the South Block," Tewari said in Delhi.
The minister was asked whether he thought news related to markets should be regulated as any misinformation in this domain affected many people.
He further said that the role of the government and the media is complimentary, yet by the way they are constituted, a certain adversarial relationship also exists.
"Now how do you maintain the balance between the two. The moment I cross the line, you will accuse me of being the big brother. Even if that is not my intent. Therefore, we have to maintain that equilibrium and both of us have to stay within our 'lakshman rekhas'. It is for the media to really introspect and find solutions to those aberrations," Tewari said.
Tewari said the government was administering regulation but with a soft touch.
"Neither am I in the business or nor as a vocation or hobby, do I think that its possible to tame tigers. And that is not a delusion from which I suffer from," the I&B minister further said.
Tewari said that he also felt that when it came to social media, the quantum of activity was so huge that he did not think it was possible to regulate it.
