Journalism in India

Newspapers

India is one of the countries with the largest number of newspapers in the world. The newspaper in India, the ' Bengal Gazette ', was published on January 29 , 1780 , from Kolkata. Bengal Gazette was published by James Augustus Hickey. The newspaper is also known in the name of 'Calcutta General Advertiser'. It was published in English Language. However, due to criticism of the British government, the publication of the newspaper was banned in 1782. The first newspaper in Indian Language is Samachar Darpan (Bengali language). First issue released on May 23, 1818. The first vernacular newspaper in India is Bombay Samachar ( July 1, 1822 - Gujarati). Bombay Samachar was published from Bombay and was founded by Fardunjee Marzban. India's oldest existing newspaper is Bombay Samachar. Bombay Samachar is published in Gujarati and English. The ' Madras Mail ' , published in 1868 , is the first evening newspaper in India. Most newspapers and periodicals in India are published in Hindi. The Grand Old Man of Indian Journalism is Tushar Kanti Ghosh. The father of Indian Journalism is Chalapathi Rao and the father of Indian Press is James Augustus Hicky. The World Press Freedom Day is celebrated in May 3. Whereas National Press Day is November 16 and Indian Newspaper Day is January 29. Some of the prominent english newspapers in India are The Statesman, The Times of India, The Telegraph, The Economic Times, Indian Express, The Hindu, The Tribune etc.

Facts about Indian Newspapers

• The first Marathi Newspaper is Darpan (1832).

• The first Marathi monthly is Digdarsan (1840).

• First newspaper in Hindi-Gujarati is Vartaman (1849)

• The largest number of newspapers are published in the State, Uttar Pradesh.

• The language in which the maximum number of newspapers are published is Hindi.

• No Newspapers are published from Arunachal Pradesh & Lakshadweep.

• The Hindu Newspaper was founded in 1878 by G.S. lyer, M. Veeraraghavachari and Subha Rao Pandit.

• First Tamil language newspaper in India is Swadesamitran.

• First News paper in Malayalam language is Rajya Samacharam (1847).

• First Hindi language newspaper in India is Udant Martand (1826).

• The first newspaper from Bombay is Bombay Herald (1789).

• The Times of India was founded in 1838.

• The Times Group publishes, The Economic Times (launched in 1961), Navbharat Times (Hindi language) and the Maharashtra Times (Marathi language).

• The main regional newspapers of India are Malayala Manorama, Dainik Jagran (Hindi - Uttar Pradesh), Anandabazar Patrika (Bengali - Kolkata).

• First financial daily news paper of India is The Economic Times.

• The leading business newspaper is The Economic Times.

• The first Indian newspaper to secure foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is Business Standard (Financial Daily).

• The Anandabazar Patrika (Bengali daily) was founded by Prafulla Kumar Sarkar & Suresh Chandra Majumdar (1922).

• The largest selling English daily in India is Times of India (1838).

• The oldest existing English daily is Times of India.

• The Newspaper having largest circulation in Hindi is Dainik Bhaskar.

• Largest selling Malayalam daily is Malayala Manorama.

• The weekly newspaper having the largest circulation is Ravivasriya Hindustan.

• The largest selling magazine is Jagran Josh Plus (Hindi).

• Largest selling magazine in Malayalam is Vanita.

National Movement and Newspapers

The Indian national movement and its leaders relied on newspapers as the main medium to convey their ideas to the masses. Publishing newspapers was recognized as a social service from the very beginning. The main functions of newspapers during the national struggle were:

• Made people aware of social reforms against evils and immoralities in Indian society.

• Informed the people of India about the oppression , tyranny , and massacres taking place in every part of India .

• Motivated people to protest and respond against British rule and social evils in India.

• Provided information about the struggles people are waging for freedom, democracy, and equality in various parts of the world.

• Made people aware of the economic exploitations of the British rule.

• News of thousands of deaths in various parts of India due to plague and famine spread throughout India.

Sambad Kaumudi

The first newspapers with a nationalist outlook in India were started by Raja Ram Mohan Roy. His Bengali-language ' Sambad Kaumudi ' and Persian-language ' Mirat-ul-Akbar ' emphasized the ideas of social reform , nationalism , and democracy. Following their footsteps, many newspapers were launched in different languages. Most of these were published by leaders of the social reform movement and the nationalist movement.

Vernacular Language Newspaper Act

Realizing the power of newspapers, the British government made several attempts to control them. The most important of these was the Vernacular Press Act, enacted by Lord Lytton in 1878. This imposed strict restrictions on newspapers published in the vernacular languages ​​of India. Following a strong protest against this, the British government withdrew the act. At that time, people considered reading newspapers, spreading news, and protecting newspapers as part of the freedom struggle.

Social reform newspapers and their leaders

• Sambad Kaumudi , Mirat-ul-Akbar - Raja Ram Mohan Roy

• Shomprakash - Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar

• National Paper , Indian Mirror - Debendranath Tagore

• Voice of India - Dadabhai Naoroji

• Prabuddha Bharat , Udbodhan - Swami Vivekananda

Major newspapers and leaders during the National Struggle

• Amritbazar Patrika - Sishirkumar Ghosh , Motilal Ghosh

• Hindu , Swadeshi Mitra - G. Subrahmanya Iyer

• Bombay Samachar - Fardurji Marzban

• Kesari , Maratha - Bal Gangadhar Tilak

• Bengali - Surendranath Banerjee

• Voice of India - Dadabhai Naoroji

• New India , Commonwealth - Annie Besant

• Young India , Harijan , Indian Opinion , Navajeevan - Gandhiji

• Al-Hilal - Maulana Abul Kalam Azad

• Vande Mataram (in Urdu) - Lala Lajpat Rai

• Vande Mataram (English) - Bipin Chandrapal

• Vande Mataram (Paris India Society) - Madam Bikaji Cama

• Nation - Gopalakrishna Gokhale

• Bahishkritha Bharat , Mooknayak - Dr. B.R. Ambedkar

• Comrade - Maulana Muhammad Ali

• Bengal Gazette (Calcutta General Advertiser) - James Augustus Hickey

• Bombay Chronicle - Firoz Shah Mehta

• Karma Yogi - Aurobindo Ghosh

• Leader - Madan Mohan Malviya

• Yugantar - Barindra Kumar Ghosh , Bhupendranath Dutta

• National Herald - Jawaharlal Nehru

• The Bengali - Surendranath Banerjee

• Banga Darshan - Bankim Chandra Chatterjee

• Gyan Prakash , Induprakash - Gopal Harideshmukh

News Agencies in India

There are four main news agencies in India. They are Press Trust of India (PTI), United News of India (UNI), Samachar Bharati , Hindustan Samachar. PTI and UNI supply news in English and the other two are operating through the medium of Hindi and other Indian languages. PIB is Press Information Bureau.

Press Council of India

The Press Council of India (PCI) is a body that aims to protect press freedom in India and to raise the standard of news publications and news agencies. The Council consists of a Chairman and 28 members. The Press Council was first established in 1966 through an Act of Parliament . In 1979 , the Council was reformed through another Act. The headquarters of the Press Council is in New Delhi. Justice J.R. Mudholkar was the first Chairman of the Press Council. The PCI is a quasi-judicial body with independent status.

Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC)

The Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC) , established in 1948 , is an association of publishing houses , advertisers and advertising agencies. ABC publishes figures on the number of copies of newspapers and periodicals every six months. ABC's registered office is in Mumbai.

Registrar of Newspapers for India

The Registrar of Newspapers for India came into existence on 1 July 1956, on the recommendation of the First Press Commission of 1953. The RNI, commonly known as the Registrar, submits an annual report on newspapers to the government. Its headquarters are in New Delhi.

Publications Division

The Publication Division is headquartered in New Delhi. The Publication Division publishes ' Bal Bharati ' , a Hindi publication for children . It has been publishing since 1948. ' Aajkal ' is a literary magazine published in Hindi and Urdu. ' Yojana ' published by the Publication Division is published in 13 languages. ' Kurukshetra ' ( English & Hindi) is a publication aimed at rural development . Employment News/Rozgar Samachar , which publishes job opportunities in government , semi-government public sector undertakings , banks and universities, is published in English , Hindi and Urdu.

Press Trust of India

The Press Trust of India (PTI) is the largest news agency in India. The Press Trust of India was established on 27 August 1947 and started its operations on 1 February 1949. The Press Trust of India was established in Chennai. Its headquarters are in New Delhi. PTI's services are available in English and Hindi. ' Bhasha ' is the Hindi news service of PTI. Press Trust of India has bilateral news exchange arrangement with several news agencies of countries of Asia, Africa, Europe & Latin America. The first news agency in India is The Press Trust of India. The only news agency in South Asia which operates its own communication satellite, an INSAT, to broadcast news and information is Press Trust of India.

United News of India

United News of India (UNI) is the second largest news agency in India. Bidhan Chandra Roy is the founder of UNI. United News of India was established on 19 December 1959 and started its operations on 21 March 1961. It was incorporated under the Companies Act. UNI is headquartered in New Delhi. United News of India launched its Hindi news service ' Uni Vartha ' in 1982. UNI Photo Service was launched in 1987. United News of India also launched the world's first Urdu news service (1992) .