WORLD PRESS FREEDOM DAY AND 'HICKY'S BENGAL GAZETTE'

4th May, 2024 Economy

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Context

On World Press Freedom Day, the Indian Express featured the tale of India's inaugural newspaper, 'Hicky's Bengal Gazette'.

World Press Freedom Day

The World Press Freedom Day is annually commemorated on May 3, in recognition of the importance of journalism in society.
The United Nations General Assembly declared May 3 to be World Press Freedom Day.
It is observed to raise awareness of the importance of freedom of the press.
The day also serves as a reminder to governments of their duty to respect and uphold the right to freedom of expression.
This right is enshrined under Article 19 of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
World Press Freedom Day marks the anniversary of the Windhoek Declaration. This declaration is a statement of free press principles. It was put together by African newspaper journalists in Windhoek in 1991.
The 2024 World Press Freedom Day theme is: “A Press for the Planet: Journalism in the face of the Environmental Crisis”.

Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize

UNESCO marks World Press Freedom Day by conferring the UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize on a deserving individual, organisation, or institution. This award recognizes those who have made an outstanding contribution to the defense and/or promotion of press freedom anywhere in the world. Created in 1997, the prize is awarded on the recommendation of an independent jury of 14 news professionals. The Prize is named in honour of Guillermo Cano Isaza, a Colombian journalist. He was assassinated in front of the offices of his newspaper, El Espectador, in Bogotá, on 17 December 1986. Cano's writings had offended Colombia's powerful drug barons.

'Hicky's Bengal Gazette'

Hicky's Bengal Gazette or the Original Calcutta General Advertiser was an English-language weekly newspaper published in Kolkata (then Calcutta), the capital of British India.
It was the first newspaper printed in Asia, and was published for two years, between 1780 and 1782, before the East India Company seized the newspaper's types and printing press.
Founded by James Augustus Hicky, the newspaper was a strong critic of the administration of Governor General Warren Hastings.
The newspaper was important for its provocative journalism and its fight for free expression in India.
The idea of printing a newspaper in India had been floated twelve years earlier by the Dutch Adventurer William Bolts, but Hicky was the first to execute the concept.
Hicky's Bengal Gazette was renowned for its sarcastic and provocative writing style. Unlike its contemporaries, the newspaper boldly addressed taboo topics such as female masturbation and proto-class consciousness. It advocated for the rights of the poor and opposed taxation without representation. Additionally, it took a strong stance against war and colonialism, frequently mocking the East India Company leadership for their expansionist and imperialist goals.
As 'Hicky's Bengal Gazette' became famous for its brave reporting, it made some powerful people angry. Governor General Warren Hastings and missionary Johann Zacharias Kiernander didn't like the newspaper criticizing them, so they took legal action against it.
Although Hicky won some court cases, the constant lawsuits cost him a lot of money and eventually led to his downfall.

William Bolts

William Bolts (1738–1808) was a Dutch-born British merchant active in India. He began his career as an employee of the East India Company, and subsequently became an independent merchant. He is best known today for his 1772 book, Considerations on India Affairs, which detailed the administration of the East India Company in Bengal which began shortly after their victory in the Battle of Plassey in 1757. The observations and experiences he recorded offer a unique resource for scholars inquiring into the nature of Company rule in Bengal.