India Today News Director and journalist Rahul Kanwal
On Wednesday, India Today News Director and journalist Rahul Kanwal faced online backlash after posting a message on his social media handle. In his post, Kanwal took an indirect jab at media outlets using AI to forecast exit polls and election results, stating, “Trust can’t be a ‘bot’, it must be earned.”
Kanwal also highlighted that India Today saw the highest number of concurrent users on counting day.
However, many netizens criticized Kanwal for what they described as biased journalism during the election period. They argued that his reputation and the concept of trust were incompatible, reflecting widespread dissatisfaction with his coverage.
Additionally, Kanwal and his channel were reprimanded for inaccurately predicting the election outcome. India Today’s exit polls had suggested a clear majority for the ruling BJP, but the actual results showed that the party fell short of securing a majority on its own, necessitating support from allies to potentially form the government.
