The Press Council of India (PCI) on Sunday said paid news was dangerous for the survival of democracy and the system of monopoly rights over media should be abolished.

“An investigation conducted by the PCI found that many big newspaper houses had indulged in paid news which is dangerous for democracy,” PCI chairman Justice G N Ray said here at a seminar organised by the Tripura Journalists Union.

He deplored media’s involvement in the paid news scandal and said a sub-committee of the council had carried out intensive investigations into the allegations and came out with a detailed report.

Ray said the media enjoyed legal rights and privileges because it contributed to the society.

“Media cannot be viewed from the perspective of mere capital or ownership,” he said while hinting at journalists to take an initiative in launching newspapers and electronic channels on a co-operative model to save the profession.

“In order to insulate the profession of journalism from pollution of big and ill-gotten money, working journalists must come out into the open, otherwise the profession itself will be destroyed. Apart from this, the system of monopoly rights over media should be abolished,” said Justice Ray.

Chief Minister Manik Sarkar, however, said despite all these concerns, many scams including the latest 2G scam were exposed by the media.