Abstract:
Covid struck almost the entire humanity with so many theories floating around regarding its origin and causes, without any definite information regarding the same. It’s the media which brought to global attention the lightning-like speed and spread of the virus. In this contribution we would like to look at the positive and negative influence of the media in reporting various aspects of the Covid pandemic – how the media responded in alleviating the miseries of the people by providing proper and timely information; how it acted as an agency of the government, Non-Governmental organizations in framing helpful policies; how at times media acted as a vehicle of rumour mongering, misinformation, spread of fear; how it colluded with big and powerful pharmaceutical companies in furthering their business interests; how it almost acted as a lapdog and not a watch dog (which supposed to be its role) in hiding and distorting facts and data to suit the government agenda; how it acted as a tool of government’s false propaganda and so forth.
Cost: Full paper (6555 words) is available for Rs 300 (available only from November 2023)