If a news channel ran 63 stories on a single issue in a week, you won’t be mistaken in thinking that it is an overkill – unless of course the aliens landed on earth or the PM got assasinated or the US invaded yet another country – something earth shattering. But, the Samajwadi party does not seem to think so. It has accused Doordarshan of having sparse coverage on "Bachcahn in Hospital".
The Samajwadi Party’s Amar Singh had accused Congress chief Sonia Gandhi of getting DD to black out news of Bachchan’s health and treatment at Lilavati Hospital.
The last few weeks you couldn’t move without seeing something on Bachchan in Hospital. There is of coure the invasion of privacy issue – let the man recover in peace, but above that it is the a weightage issue. I know and appreciate that Mr.Bachchan is a superstar, and millions if not billions care about him – but inundating the pages with stories on him seems to be a very lazy way of getting away from reporting news. I kind of empathised with Amitabh Chakrabarti’s (head of DD news) statement on the affair:
The ferocity with which these (private TV) channels raise hypes — perhaps with an eye on Television Rating Points — goes close to the culture of tabloid journalism. “It was conscious decision by the editorial hands (at DD) that while presenting news on Bachchan’s illness, we should not create any hype so as to raise unnecessary scare among millions of viewers.”
It’s almost as though Mr.Bachchan has pushed away all other news that are equally important. Winter is here – even in Mumbai, and the quake victims are slowly succumbing to hypothermia. A nation that has fought 4 wars and spent billions on staking claim on this state – are doing woefully little in terms of helping its people rehabilitate with dignity after the event. Even in India the quake does not seem to occupy as much mindspace as the Tsunami. The only news that Indian papers found worthy of carrying is that on Sonia Gandhi’s visit to Kashmir on the event of her 60th birthday. The personality somehow has become more important than the event. Today’s ToI’s entire front page is take up with only Sachin and his 35th century. Entire front page. Every single story. It is a world class achievement, but the entire front page is a bit too much. Having said this, i know that if i was looking for news on the net – i am more likely to click on the contreversy overSania’s pronouncements on sex rather than detailed reports on the WTO fracas in Hong Kong. I might come to the latter story later, but it is the former that attracts attention. I see colleagues pouring over a Mid Day or a Mumbai Mirror or the Bombay Times with more interest than more serious papers. Fashion tips make for more involved reading than the what’s what of the Volker report. Editors claim that they give viewers/readers what they want. And if they (the TG) want celebs more than anything else, that is what they will get. Another chicken and egg syndrome. So, what came first the dumbing down of the news or the dumbing down of the audience?
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on Dec 12th, 2005 at 2:07 pm
well mam i think the serious readers are still there and growing at a steady rate but what has happened now is that Television is largely percieved as a medium for relaxation.. this perception has spilled over towards the print medium too and people look at it more as a mode of entertainment and relaxation rather than information..
cheers
[Reply]
on Dec 14th, 2005 at 11:39 pm
To add to Harsh’s point, i think it is also the apathy that makes us not delve into the serious,heartbreaking,recuperating stories becoz it requires strength,it requires courage and for that to happen,your own life has to be filled with love and happiness so u can empathize and do something about those stories instead of just feeling helpless. The Celebs are easy on eyes,easy on ears and u dont end up ‘worrying’ for them.No wonder Internet and Blogs have become the main media for serious news and thank god it is not just CNN and Fox as your only source!I think the chicken and egg are in two different parallels now.As usual refreshing post.
[Reply]
on Dec 15th, 2005 at 11:42 am
[...] Film and entertainment invariably are an important part of many Indian blogs. If you have not heard as yet the big story in India for the past few weeks has been superstar Amitabh Bachchan’s surgery and Gargi wonders if the Indian media is overdoing its coverage of Mr. Bachchan’s health issue. Jai Arjun Sing talks about the a new book out by Madhu Jain on the famous Kapoor family of the Indian film industry. [...]
on Dec 18th, 2005 at 12:04 pm
[...] Harini is unhappy with the Indian media, for its poor standards of Journalism. Coincidentally, a media related matter was one of the most heavily discussed things in the Indian Blogosphere this week; An expose on Bribe Taking MPs, “Operation Duryodhana”. Ajit Chauhan muses in its afermath; about how it has truly served as the end of all innocence, expressing worries about increasing skepticism and disbelief in the Indian political system, it has triggered. If you want to read more about Operation Duryodhana, DesiPundit is where you should be headed: You will find a good collection of posts about it. Next to Operation Duryodhana, the most interesting blogosphere buzz this week is a variant of the eternal capitalists vs socialists theme: A debate about regulations vs free-markets covered in detail, at DesiPundit again. [...]
on Feb 27th, 2006 at 9:48 am