• Dr. Jai Kumar Sharma(Associate Professor)

Media is the most important vital element for dissemination of information. The role of media has become extremely critical for smooth functioning of democracy as it helps in forming public opinion on vital topics. This is the reason why Media is termed as the fourth estate as it is not a non state element aimed at protecting citizens. All forms of media have a specific set of followers and therefore, they together ensure better governance. The active and vigilant participation of mass media is essential in a democratic society. It is an important assumption that the Media speaks for the people, represents the interests of the society, and serves as a check on the government. Independent, free and pluralistic media have a crucial role to play in the good governance of democratic societies, by ensuring transparency and accountability, promoting participation and the rule of law, and contributing to the fight against poverty. Good governance may be impeded by the blight of corruption, which disrupts the free flow of information, undermines accountability for decisions and discourages greater participation in the decision-making process. Accurate and professional reporting is often the only recourse that society has to combat corruption. Journalists need the support of the larger society to eliminate hindrances to accurate reporting. Government measures to control the media, either directly or indirectly, have many motivations but ultimately they have a common outcome, namely, democracy as a practice or an aspiration is undermined. This paper aims to make an attempt to highlight that the role of media is vital in ensuring democracy and good governance and also explain the key aspects and its challenges .

Good governance, democracy, media, accountability and corruption.

"THEROLE OF MEDIA IS VITAL IN ENSURING DEMOCRACY AND GOOD GOVERNANCE ", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.5, Issue 4, page no.291-296, April-2018, Available :http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR1804057.pdf

"THEROLE OF MEDIA IS VITAL IN ENSURING DEMOCRACY AND GOOD GOVERNANCE ", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org | UGC and issn Approved), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.5, Issue 4, page no. pp291-296, April-2018, Available at : http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR1804057.pdf