By Srabana Lahiri & Simran Sabherwal
Thomas Jefferson once said, advertisements contain the only truths to be relied on in a newspaper... Are Indian publications and TV channels reliable in the age of corporate owners, quitting journalists, raucous talk shows and allegations of paid news?
How much faith do we have in the Indian media today? Has its credibility been affected, specially with the news media itself being in the news due to several recent developments in this space? With none other than Mukesh Ambani taking control of a large media organization, a churn created by the sudden movement of prominent journalists and the issue of paid news hitting headlines, how seriously do people take the media, after all?
During the height of the election campaign earlier this year, Rajdeep Sardesai, then Editor-in-Chief of IBN18 Network, wrote in his blog that “media bashing has become this election season’s favourite sport”. To quote him, “The response of media associations to this constant barrage of abuse and intimidation has been to either resort to self-righteous rage by invoking democratic principles and freedom of speech, or to stay silent in the belief that there is little point in adding to the escalating noise levels. Frankly, neither can the media occupy the high moral ground nor is it in our interest to hold our peace. The time has come to call a spade an axe and tell it like it is: the fact is, that while our political class has lost its nerve, a number of us in the media have also lost our moral compass and worryingly, our credibility.”
Commenting on the sharp polarization within the media due to the high stakes involved, he also added, “Worse, there is the regressive trend of projecting blatantly partisan agendas as ‘independent’ news and views. Many of us are no longer true to our calling: we peddle half truths, and, at times, downright sensationalism in the belief that it is no longer enough to ‘tell’ a story, but that the story must be ‘sold’ in a manner that will attract maximum eyeballs. In this age of hype, when news becomes box office for some and ratings matter more than respect, then you know you are on a slippery slope to tabloidization.”
MAKE OR BREAK NEWS
With the media playing a big role in creating public perceptions in this age of 24-hour ‘breaking’ news, a credible media is the need of the hour. However, recent reports of media cosying up to politicians and corporates to influence public opinion have seriously dented the image of the media. Concerns also arise about the declining quality of journalism, where serious issues are relegated to the back-burner and PR-driven agendas get picked up as exclusive news. This has led to many believing that the fourth estate no longer performs its main duty of providing the public accurate news or “act as the people’s watchdog or conscience.”
Reflecting on the media, Arvind Sharma, Former Chairman of the Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) says that in his interaction with people, the sense he gets is that there is a resigned acceptance of the new reality that channels will focus on the content that gives them TRPs. This acceptance also recognizes the fact that this is better than government-owned/ controlled media putting out government press releases. However, Sharma says that people increasingly believe that news can be bought and with money, bad news can be muffled. He adds, “Credibility of media is diluted without doubt. However, I would refrain from dubbing it as a crisis because the term crisis will lend legitimacy to a potential ‘emergency’ regulatory response.
And that is the last thing this country needs. We need to regulate practices like ‘paid news’ as much as we need to regulate medical malpractices. But no more. I believe that in a vibrant democracy, everything, including the news put out by media being screened through people’s own filters of healthy scepticism is a good thing.”
EDITORIAL INDEPENDENCE
With large corporates increasingly making their presence felt across the media space, concerns also emerge about editorial independence. MG Parameswaran, newly elected President of the AAAI and Advisor, FCBUlka believes the debate about the independence of the fourth estate is an old one and in every country, media organizations have strong connections with the other three estates, namely the rulers, the church and the commoner. Similarly, it is not surprising that in India too, big businesses have strong connections with the media.
It must also be kept in mind that some media houses are themselves big businesses with their own push and pull. According to Parameswaran, “The new breed of ‘Citizen Journalists’ often masquerade as the free voice of media, but unfortunately many of them do not follow the discipline of journalistic practice, such as cross-checking all facts with two sources, etc. Just because some media houses today have new owners, I don’t think there will be seismic changes in the way viewers and readers will see Indian media.” He adds, “I am reminded of the words of Thomas Jefferson, one of the founding fathers of the American Constitution, who observed: Advertisements contain the only truths to be relied on in a newspaper. Amen.’”
AN ECONOMIC CRISIS
With margins under pressure and low subscription revenues, the over reliance on the advertiser’s limited budget also poses a threat to media credibility. According to Sunil Lulla, Chairman & Managing Director, Grey Group India, “Indian media is facing an economic crisis, where with such expanding choices, the economic pool remains small. Indian consumers do not like to pay for subscriptions. With advertising fragmenting across Print, TV and the Internet, I believe growth in revenues will need to outpace, otherwise the survival of many media organizations will be a challenge. The only threat of credibility media has is of its own making, hype vs objectivity.”
Feedback: srabana@exchange4media.com
