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Majority of Indians Believe News Is Fair, News Organisations Favouring One Political Party Acceptable To More Indians: Pew

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‘Fake news’, ‘paid media’ and ‘presstitute’ are terms one comes across frequently in India. However, while bias in news reporting and political lineage of media organizations are areas of serious debate in India, a survey conducted by American think tank Pew Research Centre says , a significant majority of Indians believe that news reporting by their mainstream media is fair and objective.

Also, Indian media performs well in terms of almost all parameters compared to their counterparts in the US, said the survey.

Releasing details of its survey, Pew said as many as 65 per cent of Indians consider that their news media is covering political issues ‘fairly’.

The figure stands 72 per cent for government leaders and officials, and 80 per cent believe that the media is “accurately” covering the news and 72 per cent of them believe the most important news of the day are being covered fairly by the Indian media.

That, however, is qualified by another aspect brought out in Pew survey. India also stands out as the one country where more say it is sometimes acceptable for a news organization to favour one political party than those who say it is never acceptable. Among adults Indians, 41% say it is acceptable for news organizations to, at times, favour one political party, compared with 25% who say it is never acceptable. A third of Indians express no opinion on the matter.

This compares unfavourably with global outlook. Despite differences in news media and political structures, clear majorities in 35 of the 38 nations surveyed agree that it is never acceptable for a news organization to favour one political party over others when reporting the news. Globally, a median of three-quarters (75%) say such media bias is never permissible, compared with 20% who say it is sometimes acceptable.

While Indians consider the media to be more or less fair in covering political issues, the people of the US showed distrust in the coverage of political issues by the media. This is evident in the survey whereas 65 percent Indian respondents consider the media to be fair, while only 47 percent of Americans trust their media in political reporting.

In the area of news about government leaders and officials, 72 percent Indians believe media is doing a good job whereas only 58 percent Americans think so.

About 80 percent people in India believe that the news media in the country are accurate, while only 56 percent of Americans believe so.

In the coverage of most important news events, 72 percent Indians are satisfied with the news media and 61 percent of Americans also shared the same view in the survey.

While 47 percent people of the US agreed that the news media in the country is doing well at reporting, 65 percent of people in India agreed with the media in the country in terms of their reporting.

The survey was conducted among 41,953 respondents in 38 countries from Feb. 16 to May 8, 2017. In addition, the study also focuses on individuals’ use of the internet and social media to get news, as well as the types of news people, follow.

“Digital technology is influencing news habits across the globe, though its use is still far from universal. Overall, a median of 42% among the 38 countries surveyed says they get news on the internet at least once a day. In 14 countries, half or more adults get news online daily,” said the report.

Pew said a global median of 35 per cent say they use social media to get news daily, while 13 per cent use it less than once a day to get news. About half (52 per cent) say they never use social networking sites to get news.

In India, notably, only 15 per cent said they use social media to get daily news. There is a disparity in the gender: Only eight per cent of the women in India said they rely on social media to get daily news, as against 22 per cent by men.

The survey also found that people are much less interested in news about other countries (global median of 57 percent). In only six countries do more than two-thirds say they pay close attention to news about the rest of the world. People outside of the US express a similarly low level of interest in news specifically about the US.

According to the latest Pew survey, across other regions, India stands out for its percentage that follows local news very closely (61 per cent), against 40 per cent in the US and the global median of just 37 per cent.

In most of the countries surveyed, interest in local news is equal to or lower than interest in national news. People follow local news more than national news in just two countries – India and Indonesia, Pew said.

On the other hand, a global median of 57 per cent say they follow international news closely, and just 16 per cent follow it very closely. In India the figure stands at 53 per cent and 20 per cent respectively.

Only 16 per cent of the Indian respondents said that they follow the US news very closely, against the highest 28 per cent by people in Canada.

India News

Gold smuggling case: Ranya Rao alleges ill-treatment by officers in custody, says she was slapped multiple times, forced to sign papers

Ranya Rao, originally from Chikmagalur, Karnataka, pursued engineering before venturing into the film industry. She made her acting debut in 2014 with the Kannada film Maanikya. Her current legal troubles have cast a shadow over her career, raising questions about her future in the entertainment industry.

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Kannada actor Ranya Rao has retracted her earlier admission of guilt in the high-profile gold smuggling case, claiming innocence in a letter addressed to the Additional Director General of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI). Rao alleged that she was forced to sign confessional statements under duress following her arrest on March 3 at Kempe Gowda International Airport in Bengaluru. She was apprehended for allegedly smuggling over 14 kg of gold from Dubai.

In her letter, Ranya accused DRI officials of physically assaulting her and coercing her into signing documents. “From the moment of my arrest until I was presented in court, I was physically assaulted and slapped 10-15 times by officers whom I can identify. Despite the repeated assaults, I refused to sign the statements they prepared. However, my signatures were eventually obtained under intense pressure,” she stated. Ranya claimed she was made to sign 50 to 60 typed pages and 40 blank sheets. These allegations, however, have not been independently verified.

The DRI, opposing her bail application, argued that Ranya had traveled to Dubai 27 times since January 2025 and was allegedly part of an organized gold smuggling network. The agency claimed the operation utilized state police protocol officers to bypass security checks. The court denied her bail, citing her extensive travel history, the involvement of a sophisticated smuggling network, and the risk of evidence tampering.

Investigations into the case have uncovered allegations of Hawala transactions for fund transfers and the concealment of gold bars worth Rs 12.56 crore. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) are also probing the matter. Additionally, the Karnataka government had initially ordered an inquiry into the potential involvement of her stepfather, senior IPS officer Ramachandra Rao, but later withdrew the order.

Ranya Rao, originally from Chikmagalur, Karnataka, pursued engineering before venturing into the film industry. She made her acting debut in 2014 with the Kannada film Maanikya. Her current legal troubles have cast a shadow over her career, raising questions about her future in the entertainment industry.

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India News

CEC Gyanesh Kumar calls for discussion with Home Secretary, CEO UIDAI on linking of EPIC and Aadhaar

Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi recently echoed similar sentiments in the Lok Sabha, highlighting the issue as a significant concern for the integrity of the electoral process.

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Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar has called a high-level meeting with the Union Home Secretary and the Legislative Secretary to address the ongoing debate surrounding the linking of voter identity cards with Aadhaar. The move comes amid allegations of electoral roll data manipulation, with opposition parties accusing the Election Commission of India (ECI) of irregularities in the voters’ list.

The Trinamool Congress (TMC) has raised concerns over duplicate voter card numbers being allocated to electors across different states, alleging that the poll authority is tampering with the voters’ list to benefit the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi recently echoed similar sentiments in the Lok Sabha, highlighting the issue as a significant concern for the integrity of the electoral process.

In response, the Election Commission has described the duplicate card numbers as a “legacy issue” and assured that the matter will be resolved within the next three months. The ECI has clarified that duplicate numbers do not necessarily indicate the presence of fake voters and emphasized its commitment to ensuring the accuracy and transparency of the electoral rolls.

The meeting, scheduled for March 18, will include discussions with the Home Secretary, Legislative Secretary, and the CEO of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI). The focus will be on addressing the technical and administrative challenges associated with the Aadhaar-voter ID linking process.

Under the current legal framework, the seeding of voter rolls with the Aadhaar database is voluntary. The government has informed Parliament that the linking exercise is “process-driven” and that no specific targets or deadlines have been set for its completion. It has also assured that the names of individuals who choose not to link their Aadhaar details with their voter IDs will not be removed from the electoral rolls.

The legal basis for the Aadhaar-voter ID linking is provided under Section 23 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950, as amended by the Election Laws (Amendment) Act, 2021. The provision allows electoral registration officers to request Aadhaar numbers from existing or prospective voters on a voluntary basis for identity verification.

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Amit Shah inaugurates Lachit Barphukan Police Academy in Assam, lays foundation for next phase

Amit Shah inaugurated the revamped Lachit Barphukan Police Academy in Assam, featuring cutting-edge police training facilities, smart classrooms, and weapon training simulators.

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Union Home Minister Amit Shah inaugurated the first phase of the Lachit Barphukan Police Academy at Dergaon in Golaghat district on Saturday. The academy, spread over 340 acres, is undergoing a major revamp at an estimated cost of ₹1,024 crore in two phases.

Accompanied by Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal, Shah also laid the foundation stone for the second phase of the project.

State-of-the-art police training facilities

Officials stated that the ₹167.4-crore first phase includes a five-story building with modern police training infrastructure. Key highlights include:

  • Smart classrooms with interactive digital boards and personal computers.
  • Weapon training stimulator to enhance combat preparedness without real-world risks.
  • Research labs, administrative offices, and a library.
  • A modern parade ground and a museum showcasing law enforcement history.

The academy aims to provide a seamless blend of theoretical and practical training to recruits. The weapon training stimulator is particularly designed to train officers in real-world combat scenarios, enabling cost-effective and risk-free firearm practice.

Second phase to boost housing infrastructure

The second phase, estimated at ₹425.48 crore, will focus on housing infrastructure for personnel. It will include:

  • Residential quarters for 240 families.
  • Hostels for 312 officers and 2,640 trainees.

The revamped academy is expected to significantly strengthen Assam’s police training capabilities and provide cutting-edge resources for law enforcement personnel.

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