Like many other days, January 29 too this year passed many Advertising and Media professionals quietly. But, it has lot of significance to Indian Media and Advertising industry which many publications, media houses including many trade publications have ignored it. January 29 is  ”Newspaper Day”.

January 29 every year is observed as “Newspaper Day by Indian Newspaper Society (INS), the apex body of India’s advertising and media industry. On this day in the year 1780 India’s first Newspaper “The Hickeys Bengal Gazette” or “The Calcutta General Advertiser” was started by James Augustus Hicky, an Englishman. The Gazette, a two-sheet newspaper, was specialised in writing on the private lives of the Sahibs of the Company.

He dared even to mount scurrillious attacks on the Governor-General wife, which soon landed “the late printer to the Honourable Company” in trouble.

Hickey was sentenced to a 4 months jail term and Rs.500 fine, which did not deter him. After a bitter attack on the Governor-General and the Chief Justice, Hickey was sentenced to one year in prison and fined Rs.5,000, which finally drove him to penury. These were the first tentative steps towards independent journalism in India.

January 29 also has an another significance. It is also a Day observed by Advertising Industry as “Indian Advertisement Day” that is because the first advertisement was published on this day in Hickeys newspaper. Since then January 29 every year is observed as Indian Newspaper Day as well as “Indian Advertisement Day”. That is how Indian advertising began. But it is sad to note such a significant day is totally ignored by many Indian media.

It is not just Newspaper day. There are many other significant days such as the  WORLD AMATEUR RADIO DAY(April 18), “NATIONAL PUBLIC RELATIONS DAY(April 21)”, WORLD BOOK AND COPYRIGHT DAY(April 23), “WORLE PRESS FREEDOM DAY(May 3)”, SPORTS JOURNALISTS DAY(July 2), WORLD PHOTOGRAPHY DAY(August 19), WORLD TELEVISION DAY (November 21) and other.

PRINTERS DAYS(February 24)

The year 2003 is marked by a new direction to the activities of all the Printing associations of printers in India when 24th February, the birthday of Johannes Gutenberg, Father of the Art of Printing, was declared as Printers’ Day. This is being observed across India. This was an opportune moment for Delhi Printers Association(DPA) to fulfil its moral obligations to the society, especially the downtrodden people with meagre resources.

Since 2003, on 24th February, DPA has been organising free general health, eye, heart and dental check-up camps as well as langar for workers and general public. In addition, educational tours to big printing units are also organised for students of local printing technology institute

WORLD AMATEUR RADIO DAY(April 18)

Each year on the anniversary of its founding, 18 April, the International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) marks World Amateur Radio Day. On this, the 78th anniversary of its inaugural meeting in Paris, the IARU dedicates World Amateur Radio Day to the radio amateurs, educators, and administrators who use Amateur Radio to support technology education in the classroom.

Despite the Internet and cellular phone, Amateur Radio continues to attract people world-wide by providing free international communications and friendships. Because it does not need pre-established supporting infrastructure, Amateur Radio reaches into every corner of the world – andeven into space.

The IARU is the worldwide federation of national Amateur Radio organizations representing radio amateurs in 158 countrie

NATIONAL PUBLIC RELATIONS DAY(April 21)

According to Public Relaitons Society of India(PRSI) April 21, is a red-letter day in the history of Indian public relations. It is because the National public Relations Day is celebrated on this day all over the country since 1986. The First All India Public Relations Conference was organised in Delhi on April 21, 1968.

WORLD BOOK AND COPYRIGHT DAY(April 23)

By celebrating this Day throughout the world, UNESCO seeks to promote reading, publishing and the protection of intellectual property through copyright. 23rd April is a symbolic date for world literature for on this date and in the same year of 1616, Cervantes, Shakespeare and Inca Garcilaso de la Vega all died. It is also the date of birth or death of other prominent authors such as Maurice Druon, K.Laxness, Vladimir Nabokov, Josep Pla
and Manuel Mejía Vallejo. It was a natural choice for UNESCO’s General Conference to pay a world-wide tribute to books and authors on this date, encouraging everyone, and in particular young people, to discover the pleasure of reading and gain a renewed respect for the irreplaceable contributions of those who have furthered the social and cultural progress of humanity.

WORLD PRESS FREEDOM DAY(May 3)

The United Nations General Assembly proclaimed World Press Freedom Day in 1993, following a recommendation adopted at the twenty-sixth session of UNESCO’s General Conference in 1991. World Press Freedom Day is celebrated every year on 3 May worldwide. It is an opportunity to celebrate the fundamental principles of press freedom; to evaluate press freedom, to defend the media from attacks on their independence and to
pay tribute to journalists who have lost their lives in the line of duty. It serves as an occasion to inform the public of violations of the right to freedom of expression and as a reminder that many journalists brave death or jail to bring people their daily news.

The way the media influences thought and action and its capacity to foster dialogue, understanding and reconciliation was the focus of discussions at a UNESCO conference marking World Press Freedom Day 2009, which concluded inDoha (Qatar) on 2 and 3 May, 2009Celebrating the Fundamental Principles of Press Freedom

SPORTS JOURNALISTS DAY(July 2)

We all salutes the Sports Journalists on the occasion of the World Sports Journalists Day on July 2 for the pizzazz they add to their articles that entices us to read even after watching the event live on the TV. Sports journalism is an essential element of any news media organization. Sports journalism includes organizations devoted entirely to sports reporting. Sports journalism has been traced all the way back to the time of 850 B.C.E. when the great Greek Homer wrote about the first known draw in Wrestling, as Achilles raised the hands of both Ajax and Odysseus in victory. The sports of wrestling, throwing, boxing, and racing were all wrote on in early Greece.

It all started when various sports journalists assembled at a game show during the twentieth century. World Sports Journalists Day took place during the Olympic Games at Antwerp in the year 1920. The requirement and plan for uniting sports journalists from the entire globe firstly took place from this event. The International Sports and Press Association (AIPS), a body was established in the year 1924 while Olympic Games took place in Paris Why World Sports Journalists Day celebrated is to urge members of the sporting media to strive for excellence in their professional work.

One should grab hold of every opportunity to use sport as a vehicle for world peace, and to be fair and impartial goal. World Sports Journalists Day is the responsibility as journalists to set an example to the world. A journalist can add value not only to the world of sport, but to the world at large – to culture, to peace, and to good values.

WORLD PHOTOGRAPHY DAY(August 19)

The World Photography Day is celebrated every year all over India ever since the India International Photographic Council first celebrated the World Photography Day on 19th August 1991. It is also observed by many Press Photo Bodies, Department of Public Relations of several state governments in India as Press Photography Day also and Photo Journalists are given away awards for the best professional work. Photojournalism is an art of news communication by visual image. Photo Journalists have been disseminating news through their eye catchy visuals. You know a picture is worth thousand words.

NEWSPAPER BOY DAY

Early morning at about 5am or so the time when most people will still be lying in bed the Newspaper Boy’s work starts. He pics up the papers and delivers at several homes. Can you enjoy your morning tea without a newspaper? If he is just late by few minutes you will wait for him. In olden days these carriers of newspapers were the employers of the newspaper. Today they are little merchants of their own. Different countries observe Newspaper Boy Day on different days. There is no special day dedicated for them universally. In America October 4 has been set aside as The Newspaper Boy Day.

WORLD TELEVISION DAY (November 21)

Telivision is an important medium. World Television Day that was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in 1996 to encourage global exchanges of television programmes focusing on peace, security, economic and social development and the enhancement of cultural exchange. On December 17, 1996, UN General Assembly proclaimed November 21 as World Television Day to commemorate the date on which the first World Television Forum was held earlier that year. The day recognizes that television plays a major role in presenting different issue that affect people.

UNESCO recognizes the significance of television broadcasting as a primal means of communication and a standard gateway of information for the masses, most importantly in least-developed countries. Television plays an effective role in disseminating information and knowledge and serves a powerful tool for reflecting and shaping human conditions and aspirations.

There could be many days such as Cartoonists Day, Editors Day and other relevant to Media and Public Relations industry. Such information can be passed on to me or posted in your comments to this article for the benefit of others.

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