12. WhatsUp With Media

Journalist Krishna Prasad talks to Ravichandar about the disturbing present and future of news media in India.  India needs better news now more than ever, but media houses have been struggling with business models and with credible journalism well before the COVID-19 pandemic and the lockdown. Reporters without Borders ranks India at 142 out of 180 countries on press freedom in 2020.  KP discusses challenges such as regulated newsprint, disappearing ad revenue, reduced readership, poor pricing and choked distribution networks. He discusses how Indian news outlets can remain relevant in 2020 and beyond, how they can shift online, invest in good journalism and more.  Krishna Prasad is a journalist and was the Editor-in-Chief of Outlook Magazine from 2012-2016. Since 2006, he has been the force behind Churumuri, Indian Journalism Review and Kosambari, some of India's most popular and insightful blogs. Churumuri and Indian Journalism Review (formerly, Sans Serif) remain active to this day.  He recently started J-POD, a podcast on journalism, with 17 episodes with a host of journalists and editors across English, Hindi, Kannada and other language media, till date. You can follow his work on Twitter at @churumuri, and at churumuri dot blog. Visit the Bangalore International Centre website to stay up to date on livestreams, upcoming podcast episodes and future events.