The person i feel sorriest for in 24 hour news channels is the Sound Recordist. Having to hear our esteemed ‘news anchors’ screech their way through various issues – must deafen the strongest of ear drums.

Of all the news channels, there is none more screechy than CNN – IBN – i can hear it 2 rooms away – when my mother has it on in the hall. i keep wondering why they don’t use an audio limiter .

Over the weekend, they – like every other news channel – milked the SRK controversy for all it was worth, and the decibels were higher pitched than normal. Wall to wall discussions on a non-issue – with the view of boosting up their TRPS’. Nothing wrong in that – so long as we, the audience understand that they are in the business of making money -and take everything that they say with a bag of salt. They want higher TRPs because that means more money.

But, that is not the problem. The problem is hypocrisy. Look at todays’ blog by Sagarika Ghosh, No checks please, I’m a Bollywood star –

Perhaps the wonderfully talented Shah Rukh Khan, beloved of millions, should limit his superb skills to doing what he does best: making great movies and enhancing the silver screen. His lectures on geo-politics, America’s role in the world, security procedures and international diplomacy are a little bit hilarious. So you endured a bit of questioning at Newark because your baggage hadn’t arrived on time, Shah Rukh? So what? As Meghnad Desai said on Face The Nation, what’s the big deal? Be like APJ Abdul Kalam and just get on with it.

I take it that “Face the Nation” is a programme on their channel. and they get Meghnad Desai on – he btw is an Academic, Historian, Economist & widely read – to comment on this ????

Now, given that she and her fraternity & sorority – across news channels – had blanked coverage on this- made SRK into some sort of a martyr, and vilified some poor immigration clerk – i find it kind of absurd that she is trying to take the moral high ground by attacking Shah Rukh Khan. So, they are using him for two days to rail at the American system. And, then they are using him to rail against the Indian system. Manufacturing News if not Consent !

Maybe, Mr.Shah Rukh Khan – or any other celeb- ought to take the Paris Hilton route with news channels. You have used my image, and my name to make money – pay me ! Seriously.