Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar said on Thursday fake news, deliberately fed wrong and mischievous information, political ambitions and preferences, tendency to play power brokers and monetary considerations, have eroded the people’s faith in the media.

Addressing the National Press Day, he said the expression “fake news” has never been heard so loudly before as it is these days.

“The advent of artificial intelligence (AI) has transformed the way we receive and consume news,” but it has created fresh challenges, like the spread of misinformation at nuclear speed, deep fakes, creation of echo chambers and micro targeting of information to influence the democratic process, he said.

The Vice President said “I think role of editors has become even more challenging and important, as they now have to act as a gatekeeper and remove any false and doctored information before it poisons the sea of information.”

“You have to engage into reality check to see whether this has been done or not. I leave it to your wisdom to assess the current situation,” Mr Dhankhar said.

The Vice President said credibility is the biggest challenge that the media is facing today. “I put it as existential challenge. It is surprising that this aspect is being blissfully ignored in some quarters,” he said.

Though AI has the potential to harm, the technology is here to stay, he said. “This is one technology in respect of which concerns has been raised from the top in technology world for regulation, but one thing is certain that it will stay with us. We have to adapt, regulate and deal with it,” he said.

“We must adapt to the changing landscape, employing the transformative potential of AI as a tool to improve our capabilities, while also safeguarding against its misuse,” he said.

“As we celebrate this National Press Day with the theme Media in the Era of Artificial Intelligence, I want to reaffirm our commitment to a free and responsible press,” he said.

The Vice President said “media is not a power centre or stakeholder in realpolitik. Ground reality is, it is doing everything under the sun to be a power centre — not only a stakeholder, it seems to control it, seems to infuse it. It is so painful that some journalists have taken on themselves to change the course of democratic process contrary to the ground sentiments. We need to be alive to such dangers.”

The Press Council of India should take quick action against those deliberately spreading fake news and compromising professional ethics, Mr Dhankhar said. “It is not the time to show teeth but a time to bite. And the bite must be strong because those who are serving with high ethical standards must be encouraged only by those not doing so being visited with exemplary consequences,” he said.

Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur extended his warm wishes to the media fraternity on the occasion of National Press Day.

Speaking at the event organized by the Press Council of India on “Media in the Era of Artificial Intelligence,” he said that “today was a day of reaffirmation of our collective commitment to responsible journalism.”

He said that as Bharat was poised to become the third largest economy in just a few years from now, he looked forward to the media playing an increasingly constructive role in not only in highlighting the story of transforming India, but also the hopes, aspirations of a billion voices from across various regions and sectors.

Highlighting the significance of the day Mr Thakur said the National Press Day honours the tireless commitment of journalists dedicated to strengthening of the democracy.

G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant, speaking on the occasion, said that media entities that view tech as an enhancement to human talent and not its substitute, have been able to rejuvenate investigative and documentary journalism.