Role of Indian media

The role of the media in a democracy is to question authority, expose wrongdoing, and amplify voices that are otherwise drowned out by the machinery of power. Yet, in India today, particularly during elections, much of the mainstream-especially electronic-media appears to have abandoned their watchdog role and embraced the role of cheerleaders for the ruling dispensation. The very institutions meant to scrutinize power have become instruments that serve it. Across television channels, what passes for debate is often a carefully orchestrated theatre of bias. Government narratives dominate primetime discussions, with anchors turning into political spokespersons. Instead of holding the government accountable, many channels target the opposition with relentless hostility, often using sensational or misleading framings that echo the propaganda lines of the party in power. The effect is both deliberate and devastating as it creates a lopsided political discourse where dissent is demonized, and criticism is equated with disloyalty. It may be recalled that the Supreme Court on January 14,2023 came down heavily against incitement of communal hatred and bias against minorities that have become the mainstay of majority of TV anchorpersons. Taking a dig, the bench comprising of Justice K.M. Joseph and Justice B.V. Nagarathna asked that offending anchors should be “taken off air” and hefty fines should be imposed on channels which are violating the program code. This was a scathing attack on the mainstream Indian media, which has led many politicians and parties to accuse it of having evolved into an arm of the government’s propaganda wing. Particularly, during election coverage, the imbalance becomes glaring. The focus shifts from policy critique to personality worship, with the ruling party receiving disproportionate airtime, often in carefully curated settings. Opposition leaders are either mocked, misrepresented, or restricted. The tone of questioning also reflects this bias-deferential when directed at those in power, accusatory when directed at those who challenge it. This climate of conformity has chilled genuine journalism. Reporters who try to probe uncomfortable truths face trolling, legal intimidation, or loss of employment. Many media houses, dependent on government advertising and owned by politically connected conglomerates, find it safer to parrot official narratives than risk financial or legal retaliation. The result is a media landscape where public perception is managed, not informed. The World Press Freedom Index 2025 ranking of 151 out of 180 countries reinforces global concern about India’s shrinking media space. Reporters Sans Frontières (RSF) international non-governmental organization (NGO) based in Paris that works to safeguard press freedom and protect journalists worldwide, specifically noted that “the media are used as a tool for political propaganda” and that the government “exercises considerable influence over mainstream media narratives.” Such conditions do not just threaten journalism-they undermine democracy itself. When the press becomes the mouthpiece of the state, citizens are deprived of informed choice, which is the very foundation of free elections. The media’s complicity in manufacturing consent and suppressing dissent has reduced political discourse to a one-sided monologue of power. India’s press, once a proud institution of resistance and reform, now risks being remembered as a casualty of its own compromises. The nation deserves a media that reflects reality, not one that rehearses propaganda but one that questions authority when it does wrong, not one that flatters it. Until that independence is restored, India’s elections will remain vibrant in spectacle-but hollow in substance.