Bengaluru, August 8: At a ceremony inside Sheshadripuram College's conference hall, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah handed the annual Khadri Shamanna Journalism Award to Udaykumar, retired assistant editor of Prajavani, honouring a career built on upholding press values — and used the occasion to deliver a pointed defence of press freedom and a sharp critique of journalism that serves the powerful over the public.

Udaykumar's recognition and what it stands for

The Khadri Shamanna Trust presents the award annually in the name of the late freedom fighter and Kannada Prabha editor Khadri Shamanna. This year's selection of Udaykumar was made in recognition of his 'unique service to journalism and his work in upholding the values and dharma of the press,' as Siddaramaiah described it. Udaykumar spent his career at Prajavani, one of Karnataka's most widely read Kannada-language dailies.

Siddaramaiah spoke warmly of the legacy the award carries. 'Khadri Shamanna worked to uphold the dignity and values of journalism,' he said. 'His editorials were written in the simplest language, even on the gravest subjects — and because of that, they reached people quickly.'

A socialist editor Siddaramaiah knew personally

The Chief Minister recalled a close personal familiarity with Khadri Shamanna. 'I knew him very well. He was a socialist — and because of that, I used to meet him often on various matters,' Siddaramaiah said. He described Shamanna as a freedom fighter rather than a politician, a man of deep democratic conviction and 'immense commitment to the Constitution.' He was not a partisan figure; he was a principled one. That distinction matters.

Siddaramaiah reflected that had Shamanna been alive today, he would have continued to champion constitutional values and press integrity. 'There is the strength of journalism in his name,' he said. 'He was a model journalist and a guide.'

Journalism as democracy's lifeblood — and its current failures

The CM's address turned pointed when he moved to the state of contemporary media. 'Journalism is very important — it is the lifeblood of democracy,' he said. 'But in recent years, the path of journalism is changing. Some journalism institutions have failed to uphold its values.'

His critique was specific: newspapers must place real, impartial facts before the public, not work to make the already-wealthy even wealthier. 'Media must not promote divisive content or false news,' he said, adding that superstition and blind belief — which he argued entrench caste hierarchies and inequality — must not be amplified. 'If we want to eliminate the caste system, journalists must work in a secular manner.'

Siddaramaiah's personal pledge on press freedom

The sharpest moment came when Siddaramaiah turned the lens on himself. He noted that declining youth interest in journalism poses a structural challenge to the profession's future. But he also made a personal commitment: 'I give great importance to press freedom. For this reason, no matter what anyone writes about my party or even about me personally — criticism included — I have never called a single media organisation or journalist to this day, and I never will.'

It is a pledge that carries weight in a media environment where political pressure on newsrooms is a documented concern across India. He called on every journalist — especially the young — to understand the Constitution deeply: 'The Constitution has given you freedom. Using that freedom on the right path is absolutely essential. Without it, the aspirations of democracy cannot be fulfilled.'

The award ceremony at Sheshadripuram College was, in the end, more than a felicitation. It was a reminder — delivered by the state's most powerful elected official — that journalism's oldest duty is to the powerless, not the powerful. Whether that reminder lands is now journalism's own test.