Challenges remain in the Indian media

BY IMPACT Staff

We feel great when Arnab Goswami is able to verbally engage a Pakistani General and give him a lesson on a free and vibrant Press that is democratic. We also feel great when the Indian media is able to play a decisive role in the people movement against atrocities and violence against women. And yes, we do feel a touch of indignation when the Press is barred from covering rape proceedings in a court.

But as Nobel laureate and economist Amartya Sen says, “Despite the limitations of the Indian news media, we have every reason to applaud our free media, including our largely unfettered Press, as a hugely important asset for democratic India. And yet the celebration of the Indian media can go only so far — and no further. There are at least two huge barriers to quality that are very worth discussing: one is concerned with the internal discipline of the media and the other relates to the relation between the media and society. The first problem is that of some real laxity in professionalism in achieving accuracy, which can be harmed even without any deliberate intention to mislead or misinform. The second is the bias — often implicit — in the choice of what news to cover and what to ignore, and the way this bias relates particularly to class divisions in India.”

There have been a slew of rapid and unfathomed changes in our society in the recent past, changes that reflect upon the society, economy, and polity. This in turn has had a huge impact on how we communicate, how we see our mass media system. At the same time, it is pertinent to note that such a growth – in scale, reach and influence -- has not necessarily gone hand in hand with our sensitivity towards non-commercial and non-market dimensions.

Further, with the increases in per capita income, discretionary spending capability, attractiveness of India as a market and as a destination of foreign investment have contributed to enhancing the ability of the Indian mass media system.

We must understand the relevance of this, considering that we are talking of the media -- the fourth estate in a democracy.

Not only does it have a huge role to play in carrying to the public information from the other three estates – Legislative (lawmaking); Executive (policy execution) and Judiciary (reviewing the law) – but also in shaping perceptions and thereby, form a national agenda. A good example to this is the recent national outcry against rape which is making the government think of harsher punishments in such cases. Further, the gravity of the situation is further enhanced manifold as has been the case with India, as literacy rates increase and technological manifestations in the past three-decades or so have revolutionized the way we process, disseminate, and consume news.

At the same time, the media must take into account the lapses in reporting. In fact, one is forced to ask what it can do to deal with the malaise. I, for one, wish I knew – I have seen newspapers – and the Business Standard and The Hindu leading the way – in being pretty upright about it and publishing corrections and clarifications over misreporting or information that is not factually correct. I wish this would be done by more and more newspapers, even news channels, but then would that clear the air for all and everything? I wonder.

I guess to a certain extent, things would get streamlined considering that in the West, corrigenda have been effective with newspapers such as The Guardian and The New York Times.

The other issue that all media houses must take into account is of training their journalists. Although some of the newspapers have begun equipping their news-gathering forces with dictaphones and other recording devices, it is far from becoming a practice. For, most Print journalists – in spite of most of them not knowing shorthand – take down copious notes. Such methods of news gathering often leave the doors wide open for errors creeping in when reporters sit down to finalize their reports.

There’s a lot to choose from as far as the media platforms and devices go – they vary from the traditional, the non-conventional, to the experimental. According to Dr Amartya Sen, “They span traditional print, audio-visual, and digital modes. Convergence between news media, entertainment and telecom has meant that the demarcation between journalism, public relations, advertising and entertainment has been eroded.”

This has led to the media outlets becoming all-pervasive and important, not only for marketing and advertisement but also – as Dr Sen says -- for the ‘soft power’ aspects of businesses, organizations, and even nations. Media entrepreneurship today is a necessary condition for any growing business enterprise, a political party, and even individuals seeking to leverage public influence for private gain.

With all that’s happening with the world of media, globalization has empowered one and all, in particular the Indian citizen. There’s increased movement of goods, capital, services and ideas now. Economic liberalization of the 1990s and the all-encompassing digital technologies have aided such a movement. Add to this the power of online media, which has brought forth a newness in the

media’s ability to empower stakeholders, giving them – an altogether new format – the means of individual empowerment, allowing the expression of individual ideas, opinions and identities.

In one of his columns in The Hindu, Vice-President Hamid Ansari says: “It is no exaggeration to say that media represent the sector of the economy that is the envy of others because of the extremely buoyant growth rates witnessed over the last two decades, in an environment characterized by minimal or no regulation.

The sole statutory, quasi-judicial body set up for media regulation in the country is the Press Council of India. While it aims to preserve the freedom of the Press and maintain and improve the standards of the Press in India, it has no way of imposing punishments or enforcing its directions for professional or ethical violations.”

Of course, then, what would become most apparent for the India media would be to practise self-regulation, not only individually but also collectively. The Vice-President is of the opinion that both have failed – collective, because it is neither universal nor enforceable, while individual self-regulation’s failure is due to personal predilections and the prevailing of personal interests over public interest.

In this kind of a scenario, it is up to the advertisers and sponsors – who comprise a major constituent of media in fuelling the force – to act in the interest of the stakeholders and align with those who do not only command TRPs but are also conscientious. Their aims and desired outcomes, however, might not align with public policy goals of the government or markers of public interests and may, instead, stand in opposition to them.

Also, according to trendwatching. com, one of the most important driving forces behind companies doing well will be that “brands must move from ‘having nothing to hide’, to pro-actively showing and proving they have nothing to hide, and go beyond uttering lofty statements on ‘values’ or ‘culture’ to real, unambiguous and clear evidence, or statements about actual results.”

Although the portal agrees that not all consumers will be this demanding, “but as total transparency becomes a hygiene factor, even those that aren’t will expect brands to prove their ethical and environmental credentials to those that do care.”

In this context, it would do well for companies to choose those media houses which have not departed from the conscientious line altogether.

I, like Arnab Goswami, am proud of the achievements India’s free and vibrant Press spells for the country. It is no less an accomplishment of how democracy flourishes, and how there is a clear process where opposition is not stifled. I believe that the freedom of the Press has had a lot to do with how the nation has progressed and developed. This is something every Indian must be well aware of today, and only then address the future in a manner that makes it a cut above the other three estates and preserves its right as a watchdog.

Feedback: abatra@exchange4media.com

Tags : Media Mantras