Please get Indian news journalists off air
We have blamed politicians, we have pointed fingers at cops, we have asked questions about fire-fighters reaching late, and we have wondered who to blame for the security lapses. But have any of the TV news channels been chastised for being one of the biggest reasons behind the ordeal lasting for 59 hours?
Every move that the NSG commandos made, every tactical position that they took up, every detail of the hotel guests hiding, every arrival of fresh commandos and back-up was revealed with accurate detail by every journalist present at the Terror-Venues. In their bid to out-do each other, in the mad-rush to be first, some channels even gave out wrong information creating panic amongst citizens, only to retract it later with a lame apology. As representatives of the Nation’s News brigade isn’t there a code of conduct that they follow? Don’t the journos ratify the information they get? And one Hindi news channel even showed images of a head separated from its torso – one of the victims of the CST attack – on TV!!! What kind of journalism is this?
The Hindi news channel India TV (that recently did a news story about whether aliens too drank cow’s milk) had or claimed to have one of the terrorists calling them up LIVE on air. See it to believe it.
http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=CVI4Mdf1tE4
The militants followed every bit of news on TV, followed every Twitter update, visited web pages on their blackberrys – they knew every tactical detail that they required to know to aid them attack better. The news that NSG commandos were on their way to Mumbai just helped them to plan much in advance. This is what The Times of India had to say on their online edition http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Mumbai/Blow-by-blow_breaking_news_breaks_viewer_patience/articleshow/3785897.cms
And no one delivered tactical info better than one of the most senior and Padmashree Award recipient television journalist – Barkha Dutt. She was in your face – loud, frothing, sensationalist and irritating. She did her walk-through the crowd, pointing the camera to them, pulling bystanders for sound-bites, and pointing to broken glass and curtains. When the NSG chief asked the crowd at Nariman House to disperse and be quiet as the operation was still under-way, Ms. Dutt pointed the cameras on the crowd and got them excited. Does every bit of news that she reports has to have a sensational angle? And at one point after the Taj ordeal is over she urges the commandos to give thumbs up sign and then shouting and asking him – “are there any more terrorists?” The NSG chief already told the world that... and then she turns to cam and says “I have just heard from the commando that there are no terrorists inside!!”
It seems that the online community is united in its opinion on the shoddy journalistic ethics of not only Ms. Dutt but of all the news channels. There are groups on Facebook like “Barkha Dutt for worst senior journalist on the planet” which has 834 members and growing - http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=37072947818
Yet another group on Facebook that boasts of 2409 members is called “Can you please take Barkha off air” http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=37072947818#/group.php?gid=37165432771
Chyetanya Kunte on his blog - http://ckunte.com/archives/shoddy-journalism has this to say about Ms. Dutt’s reportage:
“In another instance, a General sort of suggests that there were no hostages in Oberoi Trident. (Clever.) Then, our herione of revelations calls the head of Oberoi, and the idiot confirms a possibility of 100 or more people still in the building. Hello! Guys with guns, you’ve got more goats to slay. But before you do, you’ve got to love NDTV and more precisely Ms. Dutt. She’s your official intelligence from Ground zero.”
There is Raaj who reacts to Cheytanya’s blog with his comment http://ckunte.com/archives/shoddy-journalism#comment-16494
“I guess she made more damage (if there can be something like that) during her reporting in Kargil. My Brother-in-law was fighting in one of the operations ‘exposed’ by Barkha Dutt (the terrorists stooge in the media) and his blood boils at the very mention of this women as he says a lot of our brave jawans were lost because of this channels greed for TRP’s. The greatest irony is that she got an award for this ‘reporting’.”
And for all wondering if there are any rules and regulations that the News Broadcasters have to follow – there is. http://www.thehoot.org/web/home/story.php?storyid=3296&pg=1&mod=1§ionId=7&valid=true
Take a look at it for yourself and see how many of these rules and guidelines were broken during the onslaught of the media while Mumbai burned
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