Journalism is a happening career these days and "News" the most happening business. Note that i say it is a "business". They have performance criteria to evaluate a journalist on the "explosiveness" of the news he gets! (Reporting "fast" is just an operational issue these days with all the advanced technology!) More people should tune to your channel and once in, they shouldn’t be able to switch to any other channel!!! That’s it! That’s what generates revenue, increases TRP and makes one the best news channel. Ditto with news magazines and news papers as well. With the 24X7 news channels I somehow have a queer feeling that someone out there is actually happy and relieved when some calamity strikes or a bomb explodes! Of course in pure professional sense! Feeling "Cool! No need to scavenge for news for the next one week. We have loads to cover one month and not to speak of "one month after" and "one year after" shows!!) The race is on to give the "right from the site" and "fresh" scenes to the viewer. The more ghastly the details, and the more clearer and fresher the blood stains, the better! Of course this is just the "selling" part!

Now let’s come to the "views" part! If there is something that the politians dread, it is the word "press". Their phobia for the Fourth Estate is understandable from the fact that they have a separate post called "spokes person" to "tackle" the media! One of my friends is a senior journalist at one of the leading daily's and he says "Just have the sticker "press" on you vehicle and no traffic police will ever stop you or ask you for any documents!!! Everyone talks to you with respect aka fear and things happen in a jiffy." Now, why is that!? Because "Press" has the power to make or break a person/party. Be good to press and you will be extolled. Your "blunders" are toned down to "mistakes" and you can even better, be portrayed as "the unsuspecting victim" of someone else's plot!!! It can make or break a person’s life or career! Don’t trust me? Look at the examples, look what the publicity thru various channels and press has done to Shilpa shetty! (Of course it was not premeditated, but nevertheless sudden "celebrity" for no great reason!)

Take the case of "security concerns of minorities" in India! One fine morning all the major news papers flash "A Lady from Missionary brutally molested by a gang of 11 men". The article goes on to explain how she was dragged from the bus shelter into a secluded place and brutally assaulted. The church is aghast at the dastardly act and it concludes saying "As you already know Graham steins was burn alive and now this. The minorities are being terrorized by "certain" forces." Ok, Graham Steins burn alive, that’s true. But how on earth is that related to this molestation??? Lot of things are implied by that ONE comparison! It is a subtle hint to the reader. That ONE sentence gets processed in the reader's brain as "the 11 perpetrators were Hindus or even better must be from the saffron brigade. Poor and innocent minorities (that too a church father and a nun) have become victims of fanatic Hindus." Well, the article didn’t say any of these, it only subtly hints and prods the reader to draw the "involuntary" conclusions. Latter reports appeared in papers somewhere in the corner of the middle pages, that 9 of the rapists were Christians! But is appears at a place where you are sure to miss! Now, who will undo the damage done to "certain” groups??? They remain stained forever and nobody believes even if they plead ignorance! After all who would come forward and say "we did it"!


It is such "views" the press is capable of pushing that gives it the "power" to manipulate the peoples opinion. It is this power that the politians fear! Now a days the Media has become so biased and intent at pushing the "views" down the throats of unsuspecting viewers, that one look at the headlines is all that takes to identify the party to which that particular channel or news paper is affiliated to! For Example, when Saddam was dethroned, CNN-IBN showed the video of Saddam's statue being pulled down in Baghdad and people beating it with slippers etc. It declares that "U.S dethroned a much hated dictator and the citizens are celebrating it. (View pushed: US "the savior")" Another news channel (that belongs to a different country, of course) shows people in Iraq carrying anti US posters and photos of Saddam and chest-beating and crying at what befell Saddam and Iraq!! (View pushed: US “the unwanted invader/intruder/perpetrator, whatever) The actual "news" would be simple, "Sunnis moan Saddam’s fall and Shias celebrate it!!" (This doesn’t give any "view" about the role of US!) Whether US was a savior or invader has to be discussed separately, isn’t it?

It has been long since the press has stopped "reporting news" and started "selling views". So as readers, we should try to read between lines, or rather stop reading between lines?:-) We should realize that something is in "print" doesn’t mean it is "authentic". Read with "awareness" so that we don’t make any involuntary conclusions. Do not form opinions from a single article of a single news paper! Read the rivals news paper as well to get the "complete" picture. It is good to have an opinion, but make it a well informed one! Finally awareness and objectivity should prevail!!




Note: This does not mean i ignore the positive role played by media in the great balancing act of the Indian Democracy. I do accept that press has played great role in delivering justice to Matto or Jessica and checking the devious plots of certain powerful people lot of times. Due credit has to be given wherever deserved!