THE OTHER FACE OF MEDIA

Where we are heading to? Indian media over the last few years have grown a tendency of 'cooking the news'. The growing number of news channels have flooded the country with highlighted news and over-analyzed anticipations. In case of the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, the private news channels have made the issue a bit too much to say the least. The coverage of those attacks has thus far been termed as 'the ultimate low in the history of Indian news channels'. There could be no other disgrace which hurtled the people more than this news coverage of 26/11 attacks. In the view that the Pakistani masterminds regulated the activities from being at their camps with the help of the terrorists here by is due to the live coverage of the hostage issue. This is literally called as the 'walking on a knife'. The court should curtail the TV channels for risking the right to life of others while taking care of allowing them the right to free expression. Private TV channels should themselves know what is right and what is wrong, thereby establishing a rule book for regulating news coverage on their own. After the introduction of self-regulation into the rules of TV channels, the other national events were covered with legitimately with heart and mind. The liability of information suggested so far in TV coverage has been too much for an ordinary person to digest. In fact, regarding the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, the news coverage acted as a medium of communication between the terrorists and their handlers who were the masterminds and had their base at their own place back in Pakistan. No matter how farfetched this trajectory of the news projection, the TV channels have certainly violated the basic rules enrolled on them. The Supreme Court hangs on the balance between providing justice to the seekers of 'Right to live' who have been hurtled by the TV Channels indirectly and allowing the media their own, 'Right to free expression'! But the fact is that the basic right to free expression is for the people and in the scenario where even they are violated by this right, the basics have to be redefined. The question of redefinition is 'is government there for the people or for the rules?’ If this question is answered by changing the most basic amenities to live better, there is no doubt why there could be two swords in a single stand. After the Supreme Court's order of 'self-regulation' over the private news channels was implemented, the news coverage of similar subsequent events after 26/11 attacks was well established with an open-heart and mind. The going is better only in the sense there is nothing tougher on the way. Stern tests await the media and their efficiency for bringing out better scrutinizing of news will be looked upon seriously. If the going gets tough, the tough gets going. There is peace and war in everything around us. Wish the media takes the peace out of the wars and give us better life!!