That journalism and media in India has plunged into an abyss of mediocrity over the last decade or so is no secret. This is especially true of the electronic media which is full of ridiculous news channels(so called) and even more ridiculous reporters. Doordarshan, for all its failures surely did a much better job of covering news than any of the scores of channels we have today. Media is supposed to play a very pivotal role in nation building, but in India, it is doing exactly the opposite. Sensationalizing trivial pieces of info into huge controversies has become the norm while they keep on ignoring real issues of importance. In fact the media has played a key role in strengthening the hands of the likes of Raj Thakrey and Varun Gandhi.
Yesterday, I was watching Barkha Dutt’s (highly overrated) program on NDTV. It was a panel discussion on the shoe throwing incident that happened yesterday. What really disappointed me was the fact that the whole of the discussion was focused on a trivial issue (whether any journalist had the right to behave in such a manner in a press conference?) while completely ignoring the much more pertinent issue (why did the journalist do what he did?). I am absolute sure that the journalist should not have behaved in the way he did, but it’s also important to note that we cannot look at this incident in black and white. A journalist, no matter how experienced, is ultimately a human who is bound to be influenced by emotions like everyone else. That the whole debate was focused on analyzing his behavior on account of him being a journalist rather than focusing on the reason for his outburst is hugely disappointing and symbolic of how the media focuses on the sneeze and ignores the cancer.
Also saw some news about Punjabi secessionist groups raising their heads once again. The injustice meted out to the families of the 3000 odd killed in the 1984 pogrom by India’s dysfunctional judicial system, has given a fresh lease of life to these groups and handed them an extremely emotive issue to strengthen their base.
Yesterday, I was watching Barkha Dutt’s (highly overrated) program on NDTV. It was a panel discussion on the shoe throwing incident that happened yesterday. What really disappointed me was the fact that the whole of the discussion was focused on a trivial issue (whether any journalist had the right to behave in such a manner in a press conference?) while completely ignoring the much more pertinent issue (why did the journalist do what he did?). I am absolute sure that the journalist should not have behaved in the way he did, but it’s also important to note that we cannot look at this incident in black and white. A journalist, no matter how experienced, is ultimately a human who is bound to be influenced by emotions like everyone else. That the whole debate was focused on analyzing his behavior on account of him being a journalist rather than focusing on the reason for his outburst is hugely disappointing and symbolic of how the media focuses on the sneeze and ignores the cancer.
Also saw some news about Punjabi secessionist groups raising their heads once again. The injustice meted out to the families of the 3000 odd killed in the 1984 pogrom by India’s dysfunctional judicial system, has given a fresh lease of life to these groups and handed them an extremely emotive issue to strengthen their base.
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