Media Watch

It is the time of self- introspection.

Mamata Banerjee and her partymen’s high handedness in dealing with media personnel in Kolkata has definitely created enough ground of debate but before that it is adequate an opportunity for self introspection of the media themselves. Self-introspection about what has the media in a democratic nation as ours achieved in all this sixty two years of Independence and where are we heading. I personally as a journalist would like to generate opinion about our fate and would request all of my fraternity to opine on our future.
Mamata Banerjee is known for her whims and fancies. The channel where Mamata holds a live show taking call-in questions from general public almost every weekend says it overtly that it has got the greatest trps because of the exclusivity it enjoys with their accessibility to the railway minister’s sound bites and interviews. So claims the other channel 24 Ghanta of exclusivity about the left leaders who would otherwise not appear usually on any other tv or give interviews to any other channel. The rest of the organisations would then pressurize their reporters for being useless in forging alliances with the respective political bigwigs. Here the question comes in as to how free does one believe are these shows as a part of free and fair media and is the media some way or the other in the name of exclusivity not becoming a complete propaganda tool in the hands of these politicians. And here comes the big question as to why should the public not consider the media as mere propaganda medium rather than the free press.
It is not about just West Bengal. It needs to mention here during the time of the Singur crisis the same media house for speaking their free and balanced mind was targeted by the Trinamool Congress party workers for not speaking the language of Mamata Banerjee then. And on the other hand, was the target of Left activists in Nandigram for taking on the ruling left government. Field reporters were beaten up, cameras broken and none with a critical analysis of the situation was allowed to work freely. Now the same leaders are ok with getting in the open platform to speak their minds for hours altogether in their respective platform in the name of the media. In an open forum if questioned would belittle, humiliate or even physically manhandle journalists completely convinced that such demeaning behavior would never come out in public through our so-called free press.
The reason behind is that our media seems to be out of the track and dependent on these political propaganda for content. Hence we need the self introspection now….
We have a reached a situation where the role of the media has been criticized for the kind of coverage it gave during the 26/11 Mumbai terrorist siege. Although, all those working out there gave in their twenty four hours and hundred percent of their hard work and efforts on that one coverage. Yet, the purpose lost its way in the rat race of exclusivity. In a similar way media’s role was questioned when a women was stripped in a main road of Patna in broad day light and camera people took in their time to shoot the unfortunate incident rather than do sometime about it. The women later confessed in front of the Human Rights Commission that what traumatized her more, was that she was made to parade on TV the whole day rather than the single criminal act of occurrence. Incidents of mobs been incited by the media for mere proper footages are just but common these days. And, all in the name of exclusivity, special reports and good visuals. Media’s role is thus, being questioned by everyone as to how can it take the moral high ground and how seriously it should be considered.

It is high time that we have to self introspect as to why should we be called the fourth pillar of democracy. Are our efforts changing anything for the good or are we here to just pass on time.