So, the cat is out of the bag. David Headley has reaffirmed what we already knew. But YOU heard it straight from the demon's mouth. LeT did make use of YOUR live coverage of 26/11 to guide the attackers, alter instructions and make the attack more effective.
What strikes me about this matter is the way YOU played right into LeT's hands. LeT knew YOUR greed in such matters, and knew that YOU would even pimp yourself for a chance to get those exclusive visuals. I guess that using the live coverage as a tool to adapt the attacks – that was a key part of the plan. They knew YOU would cover it live. In short, the LeT used YOU in a manipulative way, without YOU even realizing it (although practically everyone else did!). Even LeT deserves credit for this shrewdness.
So, can YOU finally come round and issue a collective acknowledgement that YOU were wrong? That YOU were irresponsible in YOUR coverage that day? An apology, and a commitment that YOU will be more responsible in the future? Just so that We The People are reassured that there is at least an iota of ethics retained in YOUR highly esteemed self?
Check out this headline at ToI [link] which screams “Forces bigger killers than terrorists”. This is in reference to Kashmir valley. According to ToI, since five civilians fall prey to forces' bullets for every two that are slain by terrorists, that automatically makes the forces the bigger killers.
Dear dimwits @ ToI, I wonder whether the following questions so much as even crossed your mind:
What is the difference between the “civilians” killed by security forces and those killed by the separatists?
Why are armed forces left with no choice but to fire at crowds? (Hint: the answer involves the terms “stone”, “violence” and “danger to innocents” in no particular order)
If the “civilians” killed by men in uniform, are instigated to resort to violence by the terrorists, ultimately who shoulders the blame for the death?
Of course, exploring non-lethal ways of controlling crowds is a step in the right direction. That still doesn't explain why ToI has to make this heading look more like Hurriyat propaganda than a news item.
During the past few weeks, you have raised a big hue and cry; wasted newsreel by the kilometers; (and tripped and fallen over each other in a bid to prove your one-upmanship) regarding the following matters:
25th “anniversary” of the Bhopal Gas Tradegy
25th “anniversary” of Indira Gandhi's assassination
1st anniversary of 26/11 (if you remember – you started hyping this up more than a week in advance)
Liberhann committee report.
... and the list goes on.. and on .. and on..
Now, if you could be kind enough to publish the results. What did you achieve by doing this? What improvement/betterment has your several-pages-long worthless junk on these topics brought about?And oh, how come you have already forgotten about the incidents now that the “landmark date” has passed?
Waiting to hear from you.
Yours Sincerely,
Disgusted Consumer of your Disgusting Sense of “Reporting”
You never know when youtube videos suddenly become “no longer available” - so let me also put into words, what this video is trying to say. This minute-and-a-half clip shows a video grab of a news item shown on India TV in the immediate aftermath of the 26/11 attacks. The reporter is making a complete fool of himself in his attempt to draw the attention of the nation to the plight of the pigeons who had made the Taj their home (and who were supposedly the “pride of the Taj”, according to IndiaTV). There are several melodramatic phrases used by the reporter (which I'd rather not translate).
This clip is too stupid to even warrant a comment. All I want to say is – guys @ India TV – please see this news item and look back at what exactly you were trying to prove by airing this clip (at a time when one billion people were terrorized; and awaiting news of their near and dear ones in Mumbai, hoping the terrorists had been captured, praying that the victim count had stopped rising)
Really, what's with nutcases who take something obvious and package it as news, announcements, surveys and more?
Just pick up the newspaper following any terrorist activity – and you'll see politicians right up to the Honorable Prime Minister giving statements like “Prima facie, it appears to be the handiwork of terrorists”. Oh REALLY?? Damn .. and here I was, thinking that the strays were celebrating animal Diwali!
Then, we have a new survey almost every day in the newspaper – which claim to have unearthed some sacred truth – like this survey which has reached a conclusion that dudes driving and text-messaging at the same time are more likely to meet with an accident than those who don't. Oh bloody freaking WOWWW!! Who would've figured THAT out?
I can clearly see where this is heading. The day is not far when we will see a news report that will read something like this:
The Bangalore-based company “Ridiculous Surveys” has published the findings of its latest study titled “Study on Human Reaction, Resistance and Resilience to Head-Smashing”. In the report released today, the company claims it has found that Nine million, Nine hundred and ninety nine thousand, nine hundred and ninety samples out of the 10 million surveyed, died when their heads were smashed with a 30-kilo block of stone or concrete.
It has also revealed that the 10 who survived were empty-headed and hence their skulls acted like an elastic band; thereby absorbing the energy. George Bush, former president of USA, is reported to be one of the survivors. So, is a certain Mr. Saif Zali(m) Ardari, who is also a President just like George Bush (not to be confused with the honorable President of Pakistan – Mr. Asil Ali Zardari – whose mention in this article has nothing to do with this news) but the country over which he presides is unknown. The study concludes that beating a person's skull to pulp will almost definitely kill him or her.
Any similar news items/surveys you have come across (or foresee ;) ?
“Zee News ka pardaafaash”.. “Prince ko Bachaana hai”… “Ye aaj [xyz] kesaath hua hai..kal aapke saath bhi ho sakta hai”…
The newsreader’s voice screams at you in a sinister voice.. the creepy feeling that you get is worse than any “Aahat” or “Zee Horror Show” … and I ask myself: “Whatever happened to good old news reporting??” Gone are the days when news reporting used to be just that – reporting the events and occurrences worldwide to the viewers. In today’s competitive world, news channels attempting to capture market share are taking the fun out of watching news.
Instance 1:
A couple of days after the Bombay blasts, I saw a reporter in a private news channel (don’t remember which), outside the house of one of the victims. There were all mourners dressed in white and the reporter asks one of the kin of the deceased: “Kaisa lag raha hai aapko? Kya kehna hai aapko is haadse ke bare me?” What the hell does she expect the reply to be? “Ji bahut khushi ka mauka hai.. hum mithai baatne waale hain..aap khaayengi?” I mean how bloody ridiculous can you get? Cant you leave the bereaved family alone in the moment of grief? What exactly are these news channels trying to prove?
Second thing that strikes me about this is the double standards that the journalists follow. I know that the reporters would be under pressure from above to do this, so I’l target the big bosses instead. I challenge them to give an interview during the funeral of one of their dear ones. Chances are that the reporter will end up in jail!
Instance 2:
A 5 year old kid had fallen into a 60 ft deep pit in Haryana. Many news channels made most of the situation. They covered the entire thing LIVE.. 60 hours of rescue operations et al. Lets give them the benefit of doubt. There were people who actually watched the entire thing. People from all walks of life and all faiths offered prayers for the child’s safety. So maybe, just maybe they were justified in airing the thing live. But some channels like Zee News were more keen on marketing themselves than in the well-being of the child. They repeatedly kept boasting that they had coined the phrase which supposedly united the whole country “Prince ko bachaana hai”. And wherever they interviewed people, the public started off with “Hum Zee News ke aabhaari hain” message.
This IMO, illustrates another example of bad taste as far as reporting and journalism is concerned. I was afraid some other news channle might push a kid into a well twice as deep as this one; and then rescue him just to have the upper hand!
Instance 3:
The way celebrities are treated by the media always scares me – it always reminds me of Princess Diana. I mean agreed that they are public figures, but they should be given atleast some space. Some stars are so worried about their children that they have kind of a pact with the media – you promise to stay away from my child and we promise to present ourselves to the media periodically. This is not the way they should be treated.
I have made this point before – every right is accompanied by a corresponding duty. The media has freedom of expression, but its their duty to use this freedom responsibly. Somehow someone has to put a stop to all this madness before things get out of hand. The ridiculous and double-standards must all be stopped. It only harms the societal fabric.
Disclaimer: This is my personal blog. All the views and opinions expressed on this blog are entirely my own and do not reflect the views of my employer, organization, relatives, friends, acquaintances or any other person/entity.
