Indian media must reform, understand that charity begins at home

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Indian media must reform, understand that charity begins at home

Indian media has seen a paradigm change in news broadcasting over the years. Gone are the days when limited time was allotted to news, which kept the masses abreast with the situation and happening within and outside India.

CJ: Shruti

Thu, Mar 31, 2011 15:47:58 IST

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Indian Media Industry :

INDIA IS a free democratic country and press is the fourth pillars of democracy comprising the Legislature, the Judiciary and the executive as the other three.

Media is the medium to reach out to people and make an effort to bring a change in their lives. It is a source of knowledge and information and can be an effective way to educate people.

Media is the window to the world for many people especially those residing in villages. Villagers are dependent on the media for news from around the world. People, who are not well versed with the use of computers still turn to the television for their daily dose of current affairs.

But, the media which was like a wall to depend on in earlier times, seems to have lost much of its shine and glory. The Indian media appears to be losing its bearings amidst the tinkle of money.

The major thing affecting the ethics of Indian media is the concept of Paid-News. News agencies are sending out news that is profitable to them in some way. Companies are paying money to media houses to promote their products. Any person, who pays more money can get the news he wants in the papers. The media ethics have gone down the drain and only the money appears to be the guiding force to putting news in the papers.

The second thing is the race for selling the most newspapers and getting the most viewers. The papers, these days have less news and more advertisements. The media has lost the real sense of news. Anything which gets viewership and readership is news.

The other thing affecting Indian media is Yellow journalism or sensationalism. The news anchor go on to say “The world is ending in 2012; see the bulletin which follows for further details.” People scared out of their wits would stick to their television sets in anticipation of what is going to happen.

If a marble statue has started drinking milk, an uproar is created and the channel will bring along priests and religious experts to support their theories. No one would think of looking into the scientific or logical reasoning behind the happenings. Sensationalism is the new-age fad and all the media agencies are following it with their eyes and ears tightly shut.

The Indian media has often been accused of misguiding people or giving false news. The news agency gets a bit of information and without checking the facts they try to get it out first by telling this is breaking news and we have it first. They fail to check the facts and the reality of the news. Even after the agency gets to know about the falseness of the news it has put out, it fails to accept its folly and give out and apology for the same.

The reporters these days are merely typists who just copy whatever information is given to them and fail to check the reality of the news. It might be termed as lazy journalism or blamed on the laid-back attitude of the youth today. They just want to get a story done. They fail to realize the impact their story might have on other people’s lives and they consequences it might lead to.

Major problem with media in India is every other news is breaking news. The common man gets confused and dazed. One does not know what to believe and what not to. The news agencies assume on their own what they believe to be true and get it out before waiting for the reliability of the news and the facts.

The overall quality of journalism has gone down in the Indian media today. People view the news channels and newspapers as a source of entertainment and fun rather than getting news. News agencies have more about what went wrong in an actor’s relationship than what is the cause of farmer suicides in Vidarbha. The poor and deprived seem to be neglected in the news and the news mainly covers how much more money the richest Indian has.

There is lack of ethics in the media. Agencies would keep out news if someone wishes them to do so if agency gets some benefits out of it.

I would like to bring a change in the Indian media in my own small way as each revolution begins with a single person. I would improve myself and check all facts and figures before I complete and submit any story. I would keep up with my principles and ethics. Bringing out the real news is more important rather than earning money. Even if one person is affected in a small but positive way with the work I do, I would believe my revolution for bringing a change in the Indian media has began.

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