IS THE INDIAN MEDIA JUST ABOUT SENSATIONALISM?
By Shehjar Bhat
Dave Brat once said, “The media does play a vital role in our democracy and if we cannot depend on journalistic ethics, the nation is in trouble.”
The media, considered as the “Fourth Pillar” in a secular and democratic framework, has been instrumental in reaching and equipping masses with the needed knowledge ever since its advent. It plays an important role in shaping not just perceptions, but also the national agenda.
Besides several ethics and principles, a Journalist must refrain from getting their prejudices and biases into forefront or in their coverage while reporting. The Indian Media has been a constant source of information for citizens’ since the colonial period and still is one of the most dependable sources. From the old age days of Newspaper, Television and Radio-to- the present era age of Mobile phones, IPads and SNS— it has undergone a lot of changes.
The Indian media industry has grown tremendously in the past few years, but the corporate and political influence on journalists has also increased manifolds. Journalism in India is facing a serious crisis and the industry is in an upheaval.
Indian Media has been in everyone’s eyes and diaries for all the wrong reasons and is often accused of being involved in corrupt practices and in favor of certain publishers, political parties, business houses and religious institutions. The media is believed to be engaged in yellow journalism or dramatization of events and news rather than reflecting the informative part. There are numerous instances that are symbolic of its bend towards sensational, political, catchy and made up content that does nothing, but just shoots up the TRP and profits for that organization or media house. Not only distorted or falsified content, media has often used and targeted religious groups to make appeals, arouse emotions and spread hatred amongst the society.
From Rohit Vemula’s over-sensationalized and poorly covered suicide case-to-the 2016 viral videos of JNU wherein news anchors engaged in character assassination of three students; media’s coverage and reporting style has ended up creating a rift across nation and groups.
The Indian media mostly lives under the influence of those in power and who have the ability of controlling all the processes—from what gets reported, who gets presented positively to who gets flaked. The overpowering sway of the moneyed on editorial policies; media house’s commercial orientation; and Government’s control over resources such as newsprint, communications and advertisements are some of the few examples of how media’s true power and strength are often hampered and this results in the production of skewed reporting.
So how can media live up to its functions of maintaining checks and balances and acting as a watchdog of the democracy when it itself is producing favored, buyable and sellable content?
If there’s any time to conduct a reality check and ask whether all is well with the profession of journalism and media, it is not tomorrow or later but Now.
Disclaimer: Views expressed in the article are personal and those of the author.
Bravery & Responsibility: A Journalistic Reality or a Mere Illusion?
By Anushree Mukherjee
Courage has popularised itself as the antidote of mundane news in the modern journalistic sphere. Our society has tilted its attentive bias to measure the risk value of a story way before it even considers the other values it inhabits.
Lance Morrow accurately noted-“Seventy-three journalists have died covering the war in Iraq; elsewhere 171 journalists have died doing their work in the past six years.”
The ‘sensationalistic’ tendency of news cycles in the 21st century has normalised reporting that takes place in dangerous and life-threatening physical, political and corporate arenas. The life of a reporter is inevitably linked with severe risks such as psychological trauma, the lack of guarantee to safety or protection, and the fears of ostracization sanctioned by the powerful executives at work.
One would argue that essence of journalism has always been in uncovering the truth and digging the concealed layers and presenting the reality. However, the virtue of truth has somewhere gone out of focus in this quest of journalistic gallantry. A reporter needs to be characterised by his devotion to the ethical obligations of fact-checking, accountability, objectivity and integrity and must stay true to his virtues.
The test of fearless reporting lies equally in questioning the status quo, amplifying the public interest and verifying prejudices that encourage day-to-day discrimination, as it does in sting operations and war coverage. A brave journalist may flaunt the medallions of self-interest, but a responsible journalism always goes beyond the one-dimensional newsroom process. Unless this aspiration is embodied in the new-age reporting sphere, journalism will lose its relevance as the fourth estate and thereafter, the estate will lose its most valued democratic agency.
FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION IN THE INDIAN DYNAMIC
By: Samridhi Chug
I opened my mouth, but the law sealed my lips.
Since time unbeknownst, man has attempted to use his voice to speak his mind, his hands to jot his philosophy, tiny gestures that morphed his mental aerobics to tangible manifestations. The political state was well aware that “a pen is mightier than the sword,” but still actively sought to drain the common man’s ink and grip his tongue with their unruly and unbalanced ways. The contemporary Indian imagination rests well on this predicament.
While the Constitution of India in Article 19(1)(a) guaranteed every Indian citizen “the right to freedom of thought, speech and expression,” it was furtive in veneering it with the disclaimer of “reasonable restrictions” under the same Article. It cited a nation’s sovereignty and integrity, public order, security, and morality as some of the very ambiguous grounds that could put your liberty on hold. And why not, after all, the bottom-line of our fundamental rights does swear by Holmes’ Adage-“Your freedom ends where my nose begins.” And so it was clear that the Right to Freedom of Speech, just like any other right was never meant to be absolute, in principle, or in practice.
Legally speaking, the Indian Penal Code, 1860, criminalises ‘Obscenity’ under Section 292, while Section 298 bars individuals from “uttering any word or making any sound with the deliberate intention of wounding the religious feelings of another person.” Section 124A of the IPC, a colonial remnant that defines Sedition, still remains a concrete bone of contention among the members of the civil society and the political state.
The post 1990s era has recorded the murder of at least 48 journalists, with only one case in the purview of prosecution which is a reflection of the grim media scenario in the country. According to the 2019 estimates of Reporters without Borders, India ranked 140th worldwide in Press Freedom Index. Censorship on press and other forms of mediated expression remains a reality well-lived through the 70+ years of the country’s independence.
Voltaire famously said, “I may not agree with you, but I will defend to death your right to speak.” As contemporary India turns septuagenarian, youthful and defiant, but still maturing in its tryst with destiny, it is time that the citizens are given free wings, a tongue without restraint, and a space that allows dialectical exchange of ideas. Only when the freedom to be free and independent will be given can the nation step towards pinnacle.
Surge, evolution, liberty!
Disclaimer: Views expressed in the article are personal and those of the author.
ARE THE JOURNALISTS IN DANGER?
By: Palomi Gupta
Lord Macaulay once said, “Media is the forth pillar of democracy.”
But is this statement true and applicable in the current scenario?
The mission of journalists is to seek the truth and help people understand the world. The quest of informing people comes in many forms. From investigations on sexual abuse that sparked the ‘#MeToo movement’–to- a fact-based reporting on how technology is reshaping every facet of modern life or a consequential and hard-hitting commentary on the political landscape of the country; the field of journalism is continuously evolving.
But at a moment when surging nationalism is leading people to recede inward, one of the most consequential jobs of our journalists is to shine a light outward.
Journalists, serving at the frontline of the Right to Freedom of Expression and access to information, must be able to carry out their work without trepidation of reprisal or dismay.
Over the last few years, however, things have dramatically transmuted. Around the globe, a relentless campaign is targeting journalists because of the fundamental role they play in ascertaining a free and apprised society.
The first ever assassination of an Indian journalist—Bakshi Singh Tirath, which occurred on the dreadful 27thFebruary, 1992 was no less than a nightmare to all and what followed after that is nothing, but more bloodsheds and killings.
To stop journalists from exposing uncomfortable truths and holding power to account, a growing number of regimes have engaged in overt and truculent efforts to discredit their work and daunt them into silence.
In India, 18 journalists were murdered between 2008 to 2018. One of the victims of such cold-blooded murders was journalist Gauri Lankesh, who was shot near her Bangalore residence on September 5, 2017. Her assailants haven’t been identified yet. Another journalist Shujaat Bukhari, was shot and killed on June 14, along with two police officers assigned to him for protection, for his reporting on the situation in Kashmir.
These ruthless murders are symptomatic of a more immensely colossal quandary of silencing journalists. Both journalists and journalism are made to suffer. Truth be told, till date there is no countrywide legislation to forefend journalists, though Maharashtra in 2017, became the first ever state to have passed the journalists’ protection law in the country.
All in all, the space for journalistic freedom seems to be shrinking with each passing day. It’s a country bereft of laws to protect the fourth pillar of our democracy. It is pertinent that media must be made secure, independent, and fearless for the protection of not just our greater societal ethos, but to safeguard our democracy, our nation and the people who best define the nation itself.
Disclaimer: Views expressed in the article are personal and those of the author.
ROLE OF MEDIA IN CHANGING THE SOCIETY
By Harshita Solanki
“WHOEVER CONTROLS THE MEDIA, CONTROLS THE MIND”- Jim Morrison
Media today is everywhere and has become an inseparable part of our lifestyle and routine. It also plays a dominant role in the learning process and has the potential to shape personalities, change the way we perceive & understand the world, and also helps us form our opinions. Media is the eyes and ears of the people and it surrounds us from all sides and spheres. We may not be able to travel the whole universe but media shows us what it’s like to be everywhere virtually.
Media is the supper a society cannot live without. It is the media which allows people to think and expand their horizons and thinking patterns about the happenings and burning issues. Media is the sword and arm of Democracy and is expected to be unbiased and transparent. It is responsible for bringing out and uncovering the truth boldly and fearlessly because the readers, viewers, listeners and citizens have the right to be informed in the best possible and correct way. It should not only make the society aware of their democratic rights, but also enable them to exercise the rights they are bestowed with. It plays a dual role as the watchdog of the democracy that protects public interest against malpractices, and as a facilitator of information and public awareness.
With the mainstream media constantly bombarding the society with pro-government issues, media users now yearn for a different point of view and as a result are shifting towards alternative and more diverse sources of media.
Media at times has ignored stories of importance. It has ignored stories that ought to be heard, seen and attended to. It has often shown us just a part and not the whole picture or the reality. Media needs to cover everyone and everything. It needs to fairly cover all that happens in order to sustain its viewers.
Media needs to objectively cover everything that happens in order to sustain itself.
Editing: Sanjana Chawla
Editing: Sanjana Chawla
Disclaimer: Views expressed in the article are personal and those of the author.
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