Union Minister Prakash Javadekar on Saturday said that fake news is a bigger problem than paid news and the press should discuss ways to curb it.

"The press should discuss ways to curb fake news. It is a bigger problem than paid news," Javadekar said while addressing a gathering on the occasion of National Press Day here.

"A fake news was spread that some people are child-lifters which led to the killing of 20 people. When discussions are held on lynching then one lynching is discussed but these 20 people also died of lynching which is not discussed", he added.

Javadekar also said that freedom of the press was curbed during the British regime and the two years of emergency in independent India during 1975-77.

"Today is National Press Day. Whenever the word- press comes up, the idea of freedom comes along with it. Before independence, the Britishers curbed the freedom of the press. After independence, only once during 1975-77, the freedom of the press was curbed again due to emergency," he added.

Javadekar further stated that the press should understand its own values and responsibility on this day as news is different from views.

"People have the right to get news. Freedom has to be in the form of responsible freedom," he added.

-ANI

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