'Media today is much different from what we always thought it should be. I have spent decades with print and electronic media as a member of the Indian Information Service, one of the Central Civil Services which handles information and publicity for the Government of India. By training and by profession, I have been a keen observer of media.
When I began my career way back in 1986, neutrality used to be regarded as the biggest virtue of media. It was expected to report facts without expressing opinions. Taking sides was a taboo. If a report seemed to be going against a particular individual or organization, efforts used to be made to obtain the version of the other side and include it in the same report. If for some reason, this was not possible, the version of the other side used to get space at the earliest available opportunity. No excuses used to be made about lack of space, etc.
Newspapers used to play their role as a watchdog and an integral pillar of democracy. They used to express opinions, but such opinions never used to be masked as news reports. If any opinion was to be expressed, it used to be done through editorials and signed articles. Even articles and editorials were expected to be fair and balanced.
The second requirement for media was accuracy. Any factual inaccuracy in reporting was frowned upon. Since people believed what media said, it was considered sacrosanct for media to check and cross-check facts. Any factual inaccuracy used to be seen as a big source of embarrassment for the reporter as well as the newspaper. This was considered totally unprofessional and unacceptable.
The third requirement for media was social responsibility. Media was not supposed to report facts in a manner which could create social tension and divide the society. When I was posted in All India Radio and Doordarshan, we never named any community in our bulletins. It was not considered necessary for viewers to know the caste or religion of those involved in an incident.
If we look at today’s media, we find that by and large, it has no regard for these fundamental principles. Balance is something no one bothers about. In fact, one version is deliberately promoted to the exclusion of other versions. No one is held accountable for factual inaccuracy and an apology is not considered necessary for inaccurate reporting of facts. Sometimes, it does appear that inaccuracy is resorted to as a part of some strategy. Reporting of facts in a selective manner is the norm. Castes and religions are named with impunity. Media does not see any role for itself in maintaining social harmony. Often, something gets reported because of its potential to create social disharmony.
Media has no time to find out what the masses think and want. They have no ears to the ground. For them, it is the vociferous section which represents the masses, however miniscule it may be. They are more than eager to be part of the crowd. This is applicable to the media at the national as well as the regional level.
When in the eighties and nineties, I was posted in the All India Radio and Doordarshan, we often used to get instructions from the Information & Broadcasting Ministry on what to include in the news bulletins and what to omit. Often, the treatment of a story used to be dictated. We used to try and fend off the pressure as much as possible, because we were very keen to uphold the fundamental values of media. In the process, we used to suffer a lot of tension and guilt. Looking at today’s media, I feel, it was not worth it.
It is hardly surprising that media is gradually losing the trust of the people. Now-a-days, prime time news is seen more for entertainment than information. There is usually a biased anchor, surrounded by 5-6 people who all speak at the same time and at the top of their voice. We consider this good entertainment even if we can’t make out what is being said. Lying on our sofa with a mug of coffee, we are grateful that we can enjoy prime time news without the compulsion to try and understand anything.
In today’s nuclear families, this is a good way to drive away loneliness and boredom. You know that the main door of your flat is securely bolted and you can see the ongoing fight on your TV without the risk of losing a tooth. What more do you want?
Onkar Kedia
Onkar Kedia has been a career Civil Servant who retired from the Central Government Service in February this year. He has been writing poems in Hindi and English on his blogs http://betterurlife.blogspot.com/ and http://onkarkedia.blogspot.com/
(डिस्क्लेमर : इस लेख में व्यक्त विचार लेखक के स्वयं के हैं। रागदिल्ली.कॉम के संपादकीय मंडल का इन विचारों से कोई लेना-देना नहीं है।)
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