The speakers, while discussing the changing media paradigm and communication challenges, said the media should have a self-regulatory body to oversee its functioning.

The conference was organised at the 50th anniversary of the Public Relations Society of India (PRSI), the apex body of public relations practitioners in the country, at CII on Sunday.

The experts felt that “nowadays some of the channels are going overboard whereas very few them are acting responsibly towards building a healthy society. Besides, the inaugural function, several sessions were conducted to discuss the challenges faced by the media and PR sector.

Vipin Pubby, Resident Editor of The Indian Express stressed on the paramount importance of credibility in the media industry.

Endorsing the view, the editorial head (Punjab) of Dainik Bhaskar, Uttam Sen Gupta, remarked that the media is going through a transition phase and there is a dire shortage of quality reporters and sub-ediors.

“These days trivial issues are being shown on the news channels due to their sensational approach. The question is whether these news channels are mere to inform or entertain. I would say that both infotainment and news are important. Infotainment is here to stay,” opined Vivek Atray, Director PR and Tourism, UT.