Kanimozhi Karunanidhi. File | Photo Credit: The Hindu Sustaining independent journalism has become a major challenge, with newspapers across the world facing mounting economic pressures and growing restrictions on the expression of independent opinions, Member of Parliament Kanimozhi Karunanidhi said here on Friday (November 6, 2026).Speaking at the 70th anniversary celebrations of The Hindu Office and National Press Employees’ Union, she said journalists were now working in an environment where having an independent opinion was viewed as an issue.
Referring to the challenges confronting the newspaper industry, she said running a newspaper while upholding its journalistic values had become a major challenge in the present, across the world.At a time when it was believed that journalists should not have opinions and rather agree with everything, The Hindu Group stood out as an organisation that had a distinct point of view, she said.Fond memoriesRecalling her association with the organisation, Ms. Kanimozhi said every visit to the office brought back fond memories of her time working there.
She described the workplace as an example of how employees should be treated. She also appreciated The Hindu Group Publishing Pvt.
Ltd. (THGPPL) for accepting the Union demands.Pointing to the dramatic transformation of the newspaper industry over the years, THGPPL’s Chairman N. Murali said declining print advertising revenues and growing competition from digital platforms posed significant challenges to traditional media organisations. “Today, it is difficult to define what constitutes news media and what does not,” he observed, pointing to the rapid expansion of social media and digital news platforms.
However, proliferation of fake news had also reinforced readers’ trust in established publications.He said newspapers such as The Hindu could not afford to stay away from digital platforms, although the revenue generated through them remained a small fraction of print revenue. While it was difficult to predict how the newspaper industry would evolve in the coming years, he said there would be a place for credible publications such as The Hindu and expressed confidence in the institution’s ability to navigate the challenges posed by the changing media landscape with the support of employees and union.
He also appreciated L.V. Navaneeth, Chief Executive Officer, THGPPL, and Editor Suresh Nambath for their efforts to sustain the newspaper and navigate the challenges.Mr.
Navaneeth said only a few organisations had managed to survive for 150 years while continuing to uphold their founding principles. Acknowledging that the organisation was facing a period of uncertainty, with more questions than answers, he said the near future could be more challenging.
The collective responsibility was to safeguard the institution’s future for at least another 25 years, taking it towards its 175th anniversary. General Secretary M.
Kamalanathan recalled various achievements of the Union since its inception.Ramesh Rangarajan, Chairman, Kasturi and Sons Limited; THGPPL directors N. Ravi, K.
Venugopal, Vijaya Arun, Rohit Ramesh, Nalini Krishnan and Narayan Lakshman and THGPPL vice-president-Human Resources, R. Subramanian, participated in the event.
Published - November 06, 2026 09:49 pm IST