M Arslan Jamal Ghauri
The Fourth Estate’ is a popular adage used to signify the news media of a nation. It was made popular by Edmund Burke, an English philosopher and politician, who used it to denote the power of the press due to its sway over popular opinion. The press, Burke believed, was more powerful than the branches of the government (the first three estates), and was fundamental to the functioning of a democracy. In India newspaper, service in the late 18th century transformed into radio broadcasting and television news programs in the 20th century, before the boom of the internet. The internet provided a strong platform for everyday Indians to voice their opinions on practically any topic. Services like Facebook and Twitter are today at the heart of national news distribution. India is having a news market of approx 82,000 newspapers, 690 satellite channels and 250 million internet users.
A prominent Indian journalist known for her outspoken criticism of rightwing Hindu nationalist politics has been shot dead outside her home in Bangalore, highlighting deepening social polarization. Gauri Lankesh, 55, had worked in New Delhi for leading English language newspapers and was more recently editing her own Kannada-language weekly, which was critical of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata party and rightwing Hindu nationalist ideology. Gauri Lankesh was very active in bringing many Naxals into the mainstream, and all of them are now (gainfully involved) in social activities. She was called a Naxal sympathiser, but she was never bothered by what comments were being made. She also wrote strongly against and fought extreme Hindutva forces. She wrote openly and fearlessly about organizations like the RSS, Hindu Jagaran Vedike, Vishwa Hindu Parishad, and their leaders.
Stunned journalists gathered in cities across India to protest against the killing, which was also condemned in formal statements by media bodies as an attack on press freedom. Meanwhile, rival political parties traded recriminations over who was responsible. M.M. Kalburgi, former Vice-Chancellor of Kannada University and a scholar of ancient religious texts, was gunned down at his residence in Karnataka. Kalburgi’s murder came after he drew the ire of rightwing Hindu groups for a speech in which he cited the work of another prominent Kannada author.
However, today the fundamental definition of journalism is under attack from private bloggers, reporters and writers who turn hunches into facts, gossip into evidence, and falsehoods into breaking news. We can all agree that nothing is more important to a democracy than a well-informed electorate. However, sadly the agents of this information are today the creators of a polarization that is slowly corrupting public opinion. India ‘Journalists’ are mocking the meaning of evidence, and major news outlets are making soap operas of news stories. Furthermore, opinionated anchors, selective coverage, and ideological loyalties are hurting the fundamental rule of journalism, to provide all the news to all the people with no distortion. Media bias through omission or selection of facts is a dangerous thing, because media outlets formulate public opinion largely.
On the other hand, the quality of coverage by India media is deteriorating to such an extent that (ironically) on World Press Freedom Day ??GoHomeIndianMedia? was trending on Twitter. Thanks to the dramatized coverage of the Nepal earthquake by Indian news channels. Journalists are today ridiculed as “presstitutes”, a derogatory term to signify that they will go to any lengths for a story.
A South Asian media watchdog, found that although it is difficult to trace the complex paths of media ownership in India, political parties and individuals with political affiliations own and control increasing sections of the press. According to a report by Business Standard, politicians or political affiliates, who use their channels as “political vehicles” to influence the course of local elections, own more than a third of news channels in India. This is particularly evident in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, where regional politicians and their family members have launched television channels that are used for political purposes to use the news broadcasts to provide favorable coverage to one party or another. Some of these channels have also refrained from coverage of issues that may cast the party with which they are affiliated in a negative light.
Indian journalism is swiftly becoming a competition between news agencies. It is turning into a series of attractive headlines with little or compromised content, endless advertisements and fact adulteration or selective reporting. Sensationalism has become the rule of the day. Even state is dictating Indian media to craft anti-Pakistan contents, ignoring all the norms of media ethics. There is an ocean of content but a misguided direction that has diluted national debate. This is perilous especially when one considers the irreversible implications of the concept of ‘trial by media’. According to their 2017 index, India ranks a pathetic 136 out of 180 countries when it comes to freedom of the press. Reporters Without Borders previously called India “Asia’s deadliest country for media personnel, even ahead of Afghanistan”.
