"Ratan Tata in the 2G mess"; "A. Raja brazenly continues in office"; "CBI asked to move slow on Suresh Kalmadi"; "CBI, too little; too late : 2G scam"; "Niira Radia lobbied for A. Raja"; "PM: Auction is the right way for spectrum distribution"; " Sibal turns the phrase, says no loss in 2G". These have been the headlines in print and electronic media over the past few months. These headlines have caused Parliament being disrupted for whole of winter session. People around the world have believed that India is an easily corruptible society but to actually see honest figures like Dr. Manmohan Singh (Hon'ble Prime Minister) and Mr. Ratan Tata are not as clean as they are believed to be, is a lot to take. Peoples' reputations built over a life time were being besmirched for making tasty headlines and the who's who of political spectrum was believed to be involved in scams. End result: Total loss of face to INDIA at the world stage; Brand India taking a beating; Public cynicism, to name a few. Now, as days pass by, its more and more clear that some stories were deliberately planted in the media to meet some ulterior motives, or in some cases just to grab the headlines and eyeballs.
Who takes the responsibility for sullying the reputation of an economist Prime Minister who is respected world wide for his statesmanship and economic acumen; for hinting that Ratan Tata might have resorted to corrupt means to get a few telecom licenses. I say, the media must compensate these individuals for the defamation and public embarrassment that they have caused, especially as the two people mentioned have always been above suspicion in their words and in deeds. What it in turn did, was making people believe that nothing good can happen in this country and even the most honest people are corrupted by money and power. The official sponsor of this public cynicism was the print and electronic media. Times Now, CNN-IBN, Outlook and Open have been the most irresponsible of the lot. In the name of social activism, they have raised themselves to a pedestal where they are above the judiciary and executive of this country. I have special hatred towards Arnab Goswami (Times Now) and Rajdeep Sardesai (CNN-IBN) who think they are conducting "janata adalat" or people's forum on their respective 9' o clock shows. These two are responsible for majority of Indians having no trust in any of the pillars of democracy. So much of "facts" and "truths" are planted in these shows that people have began to believe that a TV studio is the official platform for the Government of India to face the country and answer them. It is also the platform to dispense justice to the "wronged" citizens of India and a place to decide which policies are good for India. So in short, a TV anchor is legislature, the executive and judiciary at the same time. Add to this, their "investigative powers", which they claimed was better than the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and being a better watchdog than the "tainted" Chief Vigilance Commissioner (CVC); we have a be all and end all powerhouse called media. Now, my question is, is this good for India. The answer is, unequivocal NO. We cannot have media dictate the speed of governance, mobilising public opinion for or against a particular elected Government or making policy decisions. Media is supposed to be a messenger and that's what it should be doing, namely, presenting an item as it is without fear, favour or ill-will. If the messenger goes rogue and begins to use the medium to run its own agendas, create news where there isn't any and become a platform for creating stories rather than reporting them,then just "shoot the messenger"(as in the adage), for he causes more harm than good to the society.
Today, a Kapil Sibal (Minister of the Union Cabinet for Telecommunication and IT, eminent lawyer) is not allowed to place his side of the story as media has pronounced the Government of India guilty of embezzling the nation of Rs. 1.76 lakh ($40 billion) . A Raja (Ex. Minister of the Union Cabinet for Telecommunication and IT, accused in the 2G scam) is not allowed to tell his side of the story of what the devil went in his mind when he took "stupid" and mostly illegal decisions. A CBI is looking more and more stupid because of the many, many leaks in its cadre that media laps up and splashes it all around as "Breaking news". Comments are attributed to a particular person (here say or anonymous source) and huge embarrassment is caused to individuals every single day. I thought the Constitution gave each and everyone of us a right to "remain innocent until proven guilty" then why are verdicts being passed everyday in TV studios where cases are being taken up sou-motu and the "judge" has prejudged the matter before the first hearing. In the name of giving sensational breaking -news items, no holds barred contest are taking place in the media. God forbid, if anyone questions the media, they all cry hoarse "Don't shoot the messenger". I say, keep shooting the messenger until he learns his responsibility. Ban the channels until the electronic media stops fake investigative stories and leaks and concentrates more on the basic work of reporting as it happened. My message to the messengers, get your basic acts together guys, your stories are falling flat every single day and should a day come and people realise that you fed them stories for an ulterior motive, the little credibility that the media has as the conscience keeper of the society, will be lost for ever.
I, like all Indians, would like to know the entire truth about how the Government is functioning. I would like to know if the promises the Government made to me when I elected them to power are being carried out. I would want to know what are the eminent minds of India thinking about the performance of the Government and the shortcomings if any. If the Government is shortchanging me, I would not want to re-elect them to power for another term. Democracy in India, provides a unique platform for each of these things. It gives me the power to elect a Government during the elections. Parliament allows me to know how my chosen Government is performing and if they are following the agenda that they promised me. The CVC and the CBI has power to investigate if there are allegations of shortchanging the electorate and the Courts are a forum to prosecute the guilty (if any). So, our founding fathers were smart enough to provide unique platforms for every necessity of a democracy. Long ago, during school days, I had learnt a Hindi adage , "Jiska kaam usiko sajhe, aur kare to danka baje" (in English: Every person has a suitable role in the scheme of things and it works best if every person performs his or her own role). This is exactly what I wish to tell the media moguls today. You cannot don all the hats, let every actor perform his or her role and only then its a pleasing experience to all. Do not take things for granted and abuse the powers of having a subscriber base. Lets be responsible in reporting and restore the credibility of all the pillars of the democracy. We want Indians to believe this democracy works for them. The current media escapades are denting the image of India and democracy all around the world. If this continues unchecked, sooner than later, the Government will be forced to bring in legislation that curtails the freedom of media and at that stage, media will be solely responsible for its own peril. Remember, its always better to self-regulate, because when outsiders clip your wings, you would regret it for bringing this upon yourself. Best of luck.
So Long....
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