Feel like slapping young journalists with no respect for seniors: Revanth Reddy

Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy stirred controversy with his comments about young journalists, accusing them of lacking basic respect for their senior counterparts.

Speaking about the media’s role in society, Reddy said, "To analyse, they (journalists) keep their health and families at stake. To understand the problems of people, they go to remote areas for days and stay in public to publish their findings."

He then went on to criticise the younger generation of reporters, saying, "Now, young journalists don’t even know about those senior journalists. They don’t even have the common sense to stand up when those senior journalists come. And they sit in the front rows when we do press conferences and look at me as if I am not greeting them and bowing my head."

The Chief Minister added, "I sometimes feel like slapping them. But circumstances and position come in between."

The comments quickly drew criticism, with BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla posting on X, saying that Revanth Reddy’s remark shows Congress has the "DNA of Emergency" and is a "dhamki ki dukaan," (shop of threats).

The Chief Minister expressed concern that journalism is losing its credibility, with some outlets functioning as extensions of political parties to protect their interests and cover up wrongdoing.

“Political parties are now running newspapers not to share ideology, but to protect ill-gotten assets,” he said, adding that only a handful of media houses today maintain ethics and truly serve the people.

He slammed the misuse of social media as well, saying, “Unscrupulous elements are exploiting social media in the guise of journalism. Some of them don’t even know the basics of journalism, yet they conspire to destabilise the system.”

Revanth called upon journalists to introspect and set clear boundaries in their practice, urging them to draw a “Lakshman Rekha” for responsible journalism. He cautioned that unless media credibility is restored, the country’s security could be at stake.

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With inputs from ANI