Having grown as a impressionable youngster with keen interest in world happenings, i was always interested in reading news and following it on TV. In the 1990's when cable TV was still a distant dream for many people in India, i got my share of TV news from our national broadcaster and state broadcaster which were funded by taxpayers money. It consisted of a smartly dressed with slight make up news reader (mostly women or at least thats whom i remember) reading through pages of news without barely any emotions was quite a sight. Then as i grew up we started subscribing to English newspapers which always had genuine headlines with ads thrown in between very sparsely. The more i think about it, the more it sounds very boring, dull but substance oriented with no frills.
And i am now in 2010 when news channels and newspapers keep sprouting in equal ratio to our ever increasing population and corruption scandals. The highest selling newspaper in India : http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/
and most watched news channel : http://aajtak.intoday.in/ have changed things so drastically that it is unbelievable. Both of these news companies 15 years ago were what i described previously. Now our beloved TimesOfIndia (TOI) has been able to churn news headlines which bordered on absolute ridicule like Sachin Tendulkar (world's greatest contemporary batsmen in Cricket) being hit on helmet by a ball in practice (because its something that is totally unthinkable) to direct insult to a self-respecting person's intelligence with news headlines like Amitabh Bacchan (Bollywood's iconic actor) getting cold has brought the levels of news reporting seriously down. On the other hand i have seen Aaj Tak reporting news about how Salman Khan (another Bollywood actor) was chased by dogs in his locality for a 30 minute long programme which consisted of his photos being displayed repeatedly to different songs of his movies and being commented on the background by a guy who reiterated himself saying that his car was chased by a couple of dogs when he drove into his locality. Hardly "news-worthy" is an understatement to such reporting is what i would say.
So why do such reputable companies indulge in such mockery of freedom of press? One of the most common arguments given by people is that because people watch it and love it which brings them money. However i have always found this argument faulty. One of the reasons why people follow this is because they really have no alternative. One would say that this statement contradicts my above observation of us being "blessed" by numerous sources of news via print and TV. However what one misses the point is that every news channel and most of the newspapers come out with the same strategy so it doesn't even matter if you change your channel or your newspaper, you are still going to be bombarded with the same stuff with different brand name. It amuses me how everyone who starts a new venture just wants to follow a tried-and-tested formula instead of being a bit more adventurous and try something new. Of course in today's capitalism driven world where profit drives everything, people may not afford to mess around with a successful combination but why not do it in an intelligent manner and start a possibly slow but eventually long journey with some sense of pride than follow mindless buffoons with a false self satisfaction that you are giving what people are wanting.
Why cannot our foreign-educated, high college fees paid media students think of this angle and do something new in it? Is it really that complicated to follow it?
6 comments:
Hi Gururaj,
I am glad to see you on the blogospot. The topic discussed was relevant and shows the anguish of the youth. while most papers in India have become tabloids, there are exception like The Hindu, from Chennai, which still stick to the traditions of news report. Check it on hindu.com and you will realise the difference. Looking forward to read all your blogs.
with blessings
Ram, Moscow
Hi Guru...
I loved what u wrote and here's what i think if it makes any sense at all....
people are what they read and what they watch. i have a few indian friends and this is my view on 99% of them: the north indians are indulged in their so called "kuch kuch ho ta hai" undying love for their other halves, because that's what life's about (so they say), while the south indians always believe that the person standing next to them has every intention in robbing them of everything it is that they own (as they see all the time in the Tamil movies).
in malaysia the news is always about rapists, murderers, maids being ill treated and ill treating children in their care, that most Malaysian moms dread every time their children get out of their sight.
in Indonesia, the news is always about how Malaysia has stole their limelight by proclaiming traditions, which the Indonesians believe belong to them ONLY, not realizing that Malaysia and Indonesia were bared from the same roots. and as a result, the Indonesians just hate the sight of Malaysians. They have been trying for yonks, and are still trying to bring Malaysia down. When will they learn to look at their own issues and help their own people??
we are what we read and we are what we see. but then again, can we really blame the media? if we should believe what we read then why aren't we communist?
this is all too confusing...
Agree with Ram Kumar...
Hindu should be read if you are tired of non sense media information - TV/Print...
Prime time news on Times Now is quite good actually though...
And i think you should get hold of local/regional newspapers...
They are a lot more bold and are getting international news too...
Editorials of Sakal (A marathi print) are something worth reading, for ex.
Hello Mr.Ram,thank you for stopping by and leaving your input. Yes, i agree with what you say and Sarang about The Hindu and that is one news i do read because it always seem to have slightly different stories than what TOI or Indian Express carry even on daily basis along with excellent articles on health care in India, which particularly is more of interest to me.
Seinfeld - People are what they read and what they watch because we have been flooded with the idea that a true democracy is functional and credible if it has a good media ;which is why people follow it and sometimes rather too badly by believing in everything shown. However i blame media for this because even though there is a freedom for them to show and earn from whatever they want to, they seem to be forgetting that there is an additional responsibility and this is what they should realize and carry out.
If the newsreader talk about real news all the time, its going to get way too serious! To keep the young ones glued on to the news, they need crap like this!
@ Binola : What you say is true and sad at the same time.
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