Journalism is considered the fourth pillar of democracy and the United Nations General Assembly declared May 3 as the World Press Freedom Day, also called World Press Day in 1991. The intent was to raise awareness of the importance of freedom of the press and keep reminding the governments of their duty. And also to respect and uphold the right to freedom of expression under Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948. The recently released 2020 World Press Freedom Index has ranked India at 142, down two places from 2019.
In a message on World Press Freedom Day 2021, UNESCO Director-General, Audrey Azoulay, said, "The theme of this year's World Press Freedom Day, 'Information as a Public Good', underlines the indisputable importance of verified and reliable information. It calls attention to the essential role of free and, professional journalists in producing and disseminating this information, by tackling misinformation and other harmful content."
The highlights of World Press Freedom Day 2021
- Steps to ensure the economic viability of news media
- Mechanisms for ensuring transparency of Internet companies
- Enhanced Media and Information Literacy (MIL) capacities that enable people to recognise and value, as well as defend and demand, journalism as a vital part of information as a public good.
Every year, UNESCO also marks World Press Freedom Day by presenting the UNESCO-Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize on individuals, organisations or institutions that have made outstanding contributions to the defence and/or promotion of press freedom anywhere in the world — "especially when this has been achieved in the face of danger".