The media wish list for 2018

Less hate and fake news, a more growth-oriented ministry and a benchmark for the Indian media industry are my new year wishes

A dozen news channels in English, Hindi, Kannada and other languages actively spread hate and false information. Whether Rahul Gandhi saw a movie is more important than the distress at banks, stalling Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth, unemployment, the burning and lynching of ordinary Indians or rising corruption. Scores of websites spread false news through WhatsApp, Facebook et al. My first new year wish then is that advertisers, investors and audiences should shun these in national interest.

There is a huge amount of concern (and research) globally about fake news, its amplification by social media and what it is doing to