Indian Media and Indian people! What should I say about both? Particularly, when I am an Indian myself and proud of being one.
Our media clearly is an armchair media. Do people like it that way? I have always argued, poor authorship is as much to blame as poor readership or viewer-ship. Media will show quality, if the viewers would demand it. If trash is generating cash, and trash being created and televised, then there is somewhere an audience that is lapping up that trash.
Well the fourth estate world-wide takes some liberties. In the late 1800s in the US, to drum up support for the war and for many sundry political issues, and of course for ramping up circulation to keep in step with the increased productivity due to mechanization of the industry as a consequence of the industrial revolution, Yellow Journalism evolved and soon became rampant.
License to Concoct
I must be pursuing 10+2. One day my mother was on her routine morning walk. Some miscreants on a Vijay Super scooter snatched her chain. Indomitable as she is, she tried to chase them. The thug riding pillion fired a shot at her from his country made hand gun. Next day Dainik Jagran carried a completely novel version with even a wrong name. If you are creative journalist, then lack of facts should not deter you in your reporting magnificence.
License to Exaggerate
I had just about become CEO and was still learning to handle the media. Often, my most innocuous discussions with some media people on the sidelines of a pharma-conference, made news the next day about which was so far removed from reality that I had a tough time answering a stream of calls from my friends in the industry who called in to verify.
License to Neglect
Of 1999, I remember, when Pakistani army rangers had crept into Kargil / Drass / Tiger hill, Indian media and lot of my friends were busy tracking a cricket match. To the media the losing Indian cricket team was more important than the soldiers dying to win the ground back from the enemy.
License to Negate
Surprisingly, the whole world has been concerned about the nuclear status of Pakistan saving those who assisted them in getting one or those still clandestinely assisting them to remain one. But the Indian media has never treated an unstable Pakistan sitting on a pile of nuclear warheads a cause for concern or alarm. We tacitly believe, Pakistan will promote terrorism but exercise restraint and responsibility as far as nuclear weapons is concerned. Nuclear weapons perhaps will not be the even the last resort. We are happy having a hot line between India and Pakistan. How counterintuitive?
Our media clearly is an armchair media. Do people like it that way? I have always argued, poor authorship is as much to blame as poor readership or viewer-ship. Media will show quality, if the viewers would demand it. If trash is generating cash, and trash being created and televised, then there is somewhere an audience that is lapping up that trash.
Well the fourth estate world-wide takes some liberties. In the late 1800s in the US, to drum up support for the war and for many sundry political issues, and of course for ramping up circulation to keep in step with the increased productivity due to mechanization of the industry as a consequence of the industrial revolution, Yellow Journalism evolved and soon became rampant.
License to Concoct
I must be pursuing 10+2. One day my mother was on her routine morning walk. Some miscreants on a Vijay Super scooter snatched her chain. Indomitable as she is, she tried to chase them. The thug riding pillion fired a shot at her from his country made hand gun. Next day Dainik Jagran carried a completely novel version with even a wrong name. If you are creative journalist, then lack of facts should not deter you in your reporting magnificence.
License to Exaggerate
I had just about become CEO and was still learning to handle the media. Often, my most innocuous discussions with some media people on the sidelines of a pharma-conference, made news the next day about which was so far removed from reality that I had a tough time answering a stream of calls from my friends in the industry who called in to verify.
License to Neglect
Of 1999, I remember, when Pakistani army rangers had crept into Kargil / Drass / Tiger hill, Indian media and lot of my friends were busy tracking a cricket match. To the media the losing Indian cricket team was more important than the soldiers dying to win the ground back from the enemy.
License to Negate
Surprisingly, the whole world has been concerned about the nuclear status of Pakistan saving those who assisted them in getting one or those still clandestinely assisting them to remain one. But the Indian media has never treated an unstable Pakistan sitting on a pile of nuclear warheads a cause for concern or alarm. We tacitly believe, Pakistan will promote terrorism but exercise restraint and responsibility as far as nuclear weapons is concerned. Nuclear weapons perhaps will not be the even the last resort. We are happy having a hot line between India and Pakistan. How counterintuitive?
Propensity to Deny
Similarly, there is no channel which reports the situation simmering in the North East. The nation may well be caught unawares in a Naxalite like cauldron. Naxalism brewing for decades was never highlighted by media. For the media like so many of us, NE is mentally perhaps not a part of India.
License to Omit
When China was creeping into parts of Arunanchal, the media was busy covering frivolous controversies about the newly nose jobbed Shilpa Shetty’s ouster from Big Brother. A turn off from such programming can be the best reprimand to a media with completely skewed priorities. But we don’t do that. We lap up all the frivolous content they create. We prefer to hear the abusive language that a demented Salman uses for a compromised Aishwarya, his ex-girlfriend on a phone tap.
License to re-define Mores
Pelvic thrusts are no longer considered vulgar. Item numbers can be shown in news hours. Sexual innuendos don’t suffer the scissors of the editors. Family talk shows like Coffee with Karan could have embarrassing anecdotes and awkward questions. The latest obsessions of all channels today is a gyrating Sheena (the item number of Ms Kaif ), or Liz Hurley - Shane affair.
License to Judge a-priori
The media is very quick to pass judgements even before having facts in place. The assumptions used are simple. All politicians are corrupt. Their kids are always delinquent. Men in uniform are higher on integrity than civilians. Doctors are in sensitive. South Indians a black. Punjabis are aggressive but good at heart. Hindus are communal. Muslims are terrorists. Bigger vehicles will mow smaller ones. American are high handed.
License to Sensationalize / Jeopardize
The media greatly comprised the Indian commandoes’ strategy by showing minute details on television which greatly helped the Pak based handlers of terrorists holed up in Taj on 26/11. Very recently, the media also sensationalized the story of a Sikh diplomat being subjected to pat down search at an US Airport. Barkha Datta was made famous by her Kargil coverage. But we here she had compromised the safety of an infantry unit by her reporting.
Power of Media : I don’t believe media has power per se. It is the power of the mass opinion they can mobilize or sometimes the mass hysteria that they can whip up. The power of media is power of that anonymous man who is actually on his own is quite powerless. But the opinion of this common, faceless man living in anonymity somewhere has immense power.
But often media personalities, who are merely carriers of this opinion feel they themselves wield the power. Barkha Dutts beware. Ramchandra Shukla and Shyamsunder Dass were pioneers of Hindi journalism. They died paupers. How come modern journalists have so much money?
Similarly, there is no channel which reports the situation simmering in the North East. The nation may well be caught unawares in a Naxalite like cauldron. Naxalism brewing for decades was never highlighted by media. For the media like so many of us, NE is mentally perhaps not a part of India.
License to Omit
When China was creeping into parts of Arunanchal, the media was busy covering frivolous controversies about the newly nose jobbed Shilpa Shetty’s ouster from Big Brother. A turn off from such programming can be the best reprimand to a media with completely skewed priorities. But we don’t do that. We lap up all the frivolous content they create. We prefer to hear the abusive language that a demented Salman uses for a compromised Aishwarya, his ex-girlfriend on a phone tap.
License to re-define Mores
Pelvic thrusts are no longer considered vulgar. Item numbers can be shown in news hours. Sexual innuendos don’t suffer the scissors of the editors. Family talk shows like Coffee with Karan could have embarrassing anecdotes and awkward questions. The latest obsessions of all channels today is a gyrating Sheena (the item number of Ms Kaif ), or Liz Hurley - Shane affair.
License to Judge a-priori
The media is very quick to pass judgements even before having facts in place. The assumptions used are simple. All politicians are corrupt. Their kids are always delinquent. Men in uniform are higher on integrity than civilians. Doctors are in sensitive. South Indians a black. Punjabis are aggressive but good at heart. Hindus are communal. Muslims are terrorists. Bigger vehicles will mow smaller ones. American are high handed.
License to Sensationalize / Jeopardize
The media greatly comprised the Indian commandoes’ strategy by showing minute details on television which greatly helped the Pak based handlers of terrorists holed up in Taj on 26/11. Very recently, the media also sensationalized the story of a Sikh diplomat being subjected to pat down search at an US Airport. Barkha Datta was made famous by her Kargil coverage. But we here she had compromised the safety of an infantry unit by her reporting.
Power of Media : I don’t believe media has power per se. It is the power of the mass opinion they can mobilize or sometimes the mass hysteria that they can whip up. The power of media is power of that anonymous man who is actually on his own is quite powerless. But the opinion of this common, faceless man living in anonymity somewhere has immense power.
But often media personalities, who are merely carriers of this opinion feel they themselves wield the power. Barkha Dutts beware. Ramchandra Shukla and Shyamsunder Dass were pioneers of Hindi journalism. They died paupers. How come modern journalists have so much money?
