Daijiworld Media Network – Mangaluru (ANK)

Mangaluru Nov 5: Acclaimed journalist and founder editor of 'The Wire', Siddharth Varadarajan spoke on the topic ‘What is happening to the media?’ at ‘BV Kakkilaya Oration' at St Aloysius College on Saturday, November 4.

In his address Siddharth Varadarajan said, "We need to discuss the state of the media in the country, that is, what is happening to the media? It is question of all that virtually occurs every day. It wasn’t like this earlier. We need to analyze the different aspects of media functioning. When RSS and Sangha Parivar started a movement against Babri Masjid at Ayodhya, we as journalists and readers asked questions on why a section of media has become pro-communal.

“Even during the Gujarat riot, some section of Gujarati press used to justify the killing of people. Editors were grilled, investigated, produced to the court which indulged in abusing the trust of the people by so called fourth estate, by setting communal poison and failing the people,”

Priority not given to focus issues

"The problems which the people face, that are meant to be discussed and raised, analyzed and reported are ignored. Issues which are irrelevant are given prominence. Media is always been a business and there is nothing new in it.  We are not organizing debates, discussion on which government feels embarrassed and we are going by what the government wants us to do. There is large section of media who don’t bother about editorial standard, public interest, and not covering the focus issues,” he added.

"Smrithi Irani is more concerned about managing the reporting and wants news to be reported as she wants it. She even pulled up Press Trust of India for their tweets and stories issued,” he said.

“Since 2014 because of caste, religion, gender, somebody is attacked and lynched. Examples are Dadri and Rajasthan. Why should this bother the government? There have been target killings just because of the caste and religion, something that needs to be condemned in strongest terms.  There were several occasions when some good reports have been taken down. This has been routine part of media functioning. There has been close monitoring by the government, which has been negative. TV channels decide to have a discussion on a serious topic, but at the last moment the topic will be changed," he opined.

Pressure tactics of PMO

He further said, "There is an active media department in the PMO and government, but their job is not to answer questions. Their job is not to provide information to anybody, but their job is to monitor, put pressure. Their job is to lean on proprietors because they know that leaning on proprietors is most effective way for ensuring you get right kind of coverage. Journalists are unreliable. Proprietors are very reliable because most of them have multiple business interests beyond the media. So if you want to put pressure on the media house, you need not put pressure on media company, but  you need to catch hold of other departments of government to look at their business,”

CBI - a caged parrot

"In the year 2014, the major scandal that went completely uncovered, unreported, not discussed and not debated in the media was the manner of CBI which the BJP when it was an opposition used to run down as the 'caged parrot' because it was always functioning as loyal of the government. In 2014 the CBI decides, after Amit Shah managed to discharge from CBI special court on the murder conspiracy charge of Kausarbhi and Suhabuddin. Amith Shah and lot of CBI police officers were charge sheeted by the CBI on the basis of an investigation ordered by the Supreme Court and yet CBI special court had judged in its own wisdom decided in December 2014, despite all the evidences that no case has been made out that Amit Shah did not even stand  trial,” he felt.

“This hardly ever happened in the history of India that somebody, who is charged by the CBI for murder, is declared innocent before the trial took place. Did you read editorials about it? Did you see discussion, why CBI is not bothered to appeal that decision?  That is a case where you worked for years under the supervision of Supreme Court, you file a charge sheet. I understand why CBI is not going to appeal because the CBI is a 'caged parrot'. But why the media has become the caged parrot? In not asking the question, complete absence of the media to have a discussion on this which went unreported till date,” he said.

“We are repeatedly being assured that there is no corruption, is it the failure of CBI of not going to appeal such cases. There are some sections of the media who present themselves as fighter for justice, as outliers, there are other media make anti-national and present themselves as nationalist media. This section of media, loves to speak as voice of nation, loves to say we are the media who put India first.

“Those who do not sing their tune are labelled as unpatriotic and anti-national. This is dominant section today because of rich and advertise and fits like a hand in the glove of government agenda. What the government wants these channels to focus on and they loyally focus on the topics. Make excuses to the government presenting fake news that came during demonetization that a special chip is fixed in new 2,000 currency notes to help find unearthed the black money,” he explained.

"When demonetization was announced and said it was a move to curb black money, counterfeit notes, terror financing, cashless economy, less cash, finally Modi and Jaitley settled down as it will emerge income tax payers. So different story was conveyed by the government. There are different section of media which are in the lap of the government, one section  of media are those on whom there is pressure of one kind or other, one section of media like Republic and times now which is emerged as cheerleader of the government.

“The other section which goes on the floor, that does not want rock the boat, there would be happy to take potshot once in a while on minor players in the government likes of Smrithi Irani, General VK Singh and Sangeeth Som. When Sangeeth Som criticized Taj Mahal, media had no eagerness to force BJP to introspect their own spokesperson, who defended Sangeeth Som for what he had commented, there was no force made for BJP to apology for tarnishing the great monument. This is what they wanted and went according to their script to make media shut,” he continued.

The stone pelter issue

“The undisputed issue was when the army men tied a stone pelter to the jeep and drove him around for three or four hours over a distance of 40 km. We were made to believe and even the army claimed that he was a stone pelter. As there was immense threat to Jawans' life, he had been tied  to the jeep. You need atleast 10 minutes to catch hold of someone and tie him to the jeep and do you think the crowd who were throwing stones kept quiet and stayed calm without interfering? There is no answer till date.

“Army claimed that he was stone thrower. If it is so, why he was not charged, this was the basic question that remained unanswered. Being a reporter we need to be aware of asking such questions. Some section of media was busy in highlighting huge amount of disinformation and changed the narrative completely." he concluded.