[Reader-list] ‘As Hindus, We Were Expected To Further The Cause With Our Stories’

[Rajendra Bhat Uppinangadi]

Dear Sir,

In all walks of life, we see the blacksheep in guise of professionals,
journalists are no exception just as judiciary and bureaucracy, who have
license to journalistic freedom of expression to use it for personal gains,
this surmise is primarily because the lady in question, questions the awards
extended to other journalists in her first para and then imagination runs
wild as if she is only the chosen writer, honest reporter, which is betrayed
by her rumblings as if the agitators were burning the trucks when all the
reporters were in favour of NOT, repeat, not reporting such acts of
vandalism.? And the post by the honoured Sanjay Kak is known for partisan
approach, lacks  the force in convincing the reader.

There are enough human right activists, we can also call them "loose chaddi
pink socialites,"  who seem to be more particular about the rights of the
inhumans who indulge in perpetuating miseries on other lives in society,
with fanatism for faith, caste and religion.These activists forget about the
rights of the victims, come and obstruct rule of laws with high dramatics in
front of law enforcing authorities.Investigations are subverted and
prosecutions are delayed by these so called activists and truth never is
known to the  citizens in the society. That the NGOs work with vested
interest , atleast most of them is clear for citizens, in many supreme court
judgements, the worst exampe is of Kudremukh iron ore Co;where supreme court
went ahead and stoppd operations of this PSU, thus rendering about 30,000
families jobless and clueless about their future, thanks to the NGO and its
fervent funds based misinformation campaign, inspite of good work of
afforestation by the PSU., complying with all conditions laid by the
authorities. The NGO and its talking head, who was just running around with
a katara scooter now zooms in a deluxe skoda.!

  So much about social activism of NGOs and the vested interest in action
thru NGOs. But not all NGOs are that bad, many do yeoman service, albeit
quietly, without much fanfare, thus proving that there are many who like to
be in studios for personal glories rather than service to humanity.None need
to be surprise if they find this reporter in one of the tv studios shortly
on way to be being a celebrity.

Regards,

Rajen.

"Notice, that once again, no effort is made by those on this list who
are heaping abuse on Simple Pani to rebut the arguments or
observations made by her on their own merit. All that is done is a
blanket denial of any credibility simply on the grounds that a
different voice has made itself heard. And that voice is given the
distinction of treason. She is all the more dangerous because she is
not the notional other.  First we heard - from the partisans of the
Amarnath agitation - "no one knows what is going on in Jammu, because
none of the people criticising the Amarnath agitation are in Jammu".
Now, that we have heard from someone who was in Jammu in that
critical period, she must be discredited on specious grounds that
have nothing to do with what she has said."


On Fri, Jun 5, 2009 at 2:12 AM, Shuddhabrata Sengupta <shuddha at sarai.net>wrote:

> Dear all,
>
> I find it surprising how any expression of difference with the
> received wisdom of what exactly happened in Jammu during the days of
> the Amarnath agitation last year must be treated with this kind of
> callous and ad hominem attack. And since when do journalistic ethics
> include an endorsement of covering up the reality of the reporter's
> own experiences. I think the journalist in question has displayed a
> rare courage in breaking ranks and talking about the reality of the
> atmosphere of a news room as she saw it through a crisis situation. I
> wish there were more, not less people like her, in every newspaper
> and magazine.
>
> Notice, that once again, no effort is made by those on this list who
> are heaping abuse on Simple Pani to rebut the arguments or
> observations made by her on their own merit. All that is done is a
> blanket denial of any credibility simply on the grounds that a
> different voice has made itself heard. And that voice is given the
> distinction of treason. She is all the more dangerous because she is
> not the notional other.  First we heard - from the partisans of the
> Amarnath agitation - "no one knows what is going on in Jammu, because
> none of the people criticising the Amarnath agitation are in Jammu".
> Now, that we have heard from someone who was in Jammu in that
> critical period, she must be discredited on specious grounds that
> have nothing to do with what she has said.
>
> A loud voice does not make for a sound argument.
>
> best
>
> Shuddha
>
>
> On 04-Jun-09, at 4:48 PM, Aditya Raj Kaul wrote:
>
> > Wonder how many days the so called "ïnsider" has worked in Jammu.
> > Sitting in
> > the air conditioned office and filing stories is an altogether
> > different
> > deal. She seems to have not left the four walls or else confined
> > herself to
> > Orissa.
> >
> > The Jammu based media friends deny this allegation. This includes her
> > colleagues in the newspaper she worked for.
> >
> > The National media was anyway openly biased against the Jammu
> > agitation
> > against religious propaganda initiated by PDP and separatist elements.
> >
> > Simple M Pani should join Kak 'sahab' in documentary making. The
> > "valuable
> > insider account" (well thought, infact) may just lead to another
> > well funded
> > propaganda masala movie.
> > Such immature tales put the media to shame. Horrible.
> >
> >
> >
> > On Thu, Jun 4, 2009 at 11:52 AM, Sanjay Kak <kaksanjay at gmail.com>
> > wrote:
> >
> >> As an 'insider' account of the workings of India's mainstream press,
> >> and its professionalism and politics, this is a most valuable
> >> account.
> >> Best
> >> Sanjay Kak
> >>
> >>
> >> From Tehelka Magazine, Vol 6, Issue 22, Dated Jun 06, 2009
> >> CULTURE & SOCIETY
> >> personal histories
> >>
> >> ‘As Hindus, We Were Expected To Further The Cause With Our Stories’
> >>
> >> Simple M Pani
> >> Is 32. She is a journalist based in New Delhi
> >>
> >> Illustration: UZMA MOHSIN
> >>
> >> EVERY YEAR, I look starry-eyed at the awardees of the Ramnath Goenka
> >> Excellence in Journalism Awards and at the stalwarts handing over the
> >> honours. For grit, hard work, tenacity and honesty to the trade,
> >> without a care for reward, getting richly rewarded. But this year, I
> >> couldn’t quell a queasy feeling in my stomach when the virtues of
> >> fair
> >> reporting were spoken about at the event. This has been happening
> >> since the Amarnath land agitation, when I was reporting for the Jammu
> >> bureau of a leading national daily. It visited Jammu like a gale,
> >> sweeping away in gusts the sense of fair play and discrimination of
> >> many scribes. In our morning meetings, it was assumed as a given that
> >> being Hindus, we (reporters, photojournalists and other staff)
> >> supported the agitation for restoration of land to the Amarnath
> >> Shrine
> >> Board. Not only were we expected to support it whole-heartedly but it
> >> was considered our ‘moral’ duty to further its cause through our
> >> stories. It was routine for our editor to ask, “So how is the
> >> agitation faring in xyz place?” and an over-zealous colleague to
> >> answer passionately, “Excellent. It’s got a tremendous response
> >> there”
> >> and for the editor to rub his chin and say, “But find out what
> >> challenges they are facing in abc place and how it could be
> >> strengthened there.” If you were in Jammu, you had to sing paeans to
> >> the agitators. What smacked of fascism was that no other line of
> >> thinking, let alone criticism of any sort, was brooked. The few media
> >> houses that did judge it critically, were a woeful minority.
> >>
> >> Two quixotic features of the agitation stood out. First, to refuse to
> >> recognise the real. To pretend not to see something as stark as an
> >> economic blockade of the Valley, imposed by the stone-pelting
> >> agitators by attacking and burning Valley-bound trucks. (I’ve seen
> >> trucks burnt to rubble by agitators, on the Jammu-Pathankote National
> >> Highway, but naturally, it wasn’t considered newsworthy in several
> >> publications because the Jammu media had decided there was no
> >> blockade. This assumption ruled out any question of trucks being
> >> attacked.) This kind of dangerous, deductive logic crafting an
> >> alternative reality was rampant at the time. The storyline would be
> >> decided in the office and reporters would be asked to select data
> >> from
> >> the field to support it. For instance, to prove the nonexistence of a
> >> blockade, we would be asked to report that medicines were
> >> available in
> >> plenty in Jammu. If there were a blockade, then Jammu would be
> >> equally
> >> hit, ran the specious logic. In reality, Jammu faced a severe
> >> shortage
> >> of medicines!
> >>
> >> Second, to fancy the unreal as real, by drawing parallels between
> >> itself and the India’s Freedom Movement. Like praising the Emperor’s
> >> new clothes, which despite any empirical reality, were extolled to
> >> the
> >> skies. Eulogies of “those brave, nationalist, heroes,” the agitators,
> >> who went about uprooting railway tracks, smashing windows of public
> >> transport that dared to ply on the roads in defiance of the bandh
> >> call, and violently attacking trucks entering the state, filled reams
> >> of newsprint every day. Strangely, the mute common man of Jammu, the
> >> poor news vendor and hawker on the streets seemed to be more
> >> discerning than the city’s intelligentsia. They knew that there was
> >> much more to nationalism than flag-waving xenophobia. That sporting a
> >> ‘Bhagat Singh moustache’ wasn’t enough to equate one with the martyr.
> >> They knew that vandalism couldn’t pass for bravery and that they
> >> would
> >> have to repay the loss caused to the state from their pockets; all of
> >> which the intelligentsia missed, in a misplaced fervour.
> >>
> >> Despite the claim that the struggle was solely for the restoration of
> >> land to the Amarnath Shrine Board, the fact is it did degenerate into
> >> hate for the ‘other.’ Gujjars’ kullas were burnt in hundreds. The
> >> word
> >> “Kashmir” was knocked off from the Kashmir Square Mall, a Delhi-style
> >> mall in town, and was rechristened ‘City Square Mall.’ Such
> >> sentiments
> >> are dangerous for any civilised society, more so when the media, the
> >> supposed watchdog of liberal values, is gung-ho about it.
> >>
> >> From Tehelka Magazine, Vol 6, Issue 22, Dated Jun 06, 2009
> >> _________________________________________
> >> reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city.
> >> Critiques & Collaborations
> >> To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with
> >> subscribe in the subject header.
> >> To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list
> >> List archive: &lt;https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/>
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > --
> > Aditya Raj Kaul
> >
> > Freelance Correspondent, The Times of India
> > Cell -  +91-9873297834
> >
> > Blog: http://activistsdiary.blogspot.com/
> > _________________________________________
> > reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city.
> > Critiques & Collaborations
> > To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with
> > subscribe in the subject header.
> > To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list
> > List archive: &lt;https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/>
>
> Shuddhabrata Sengupta
> The Sarai Programme at CSDS
> Raqs Media Collective
> shuddha at sarai.net
> www.sarai.net
> www.raqsmediacollective.net
>
>
> _________________________________________
> reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city.
> Critiques & Collaborations
> To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with
> subscribe in the subject header.
> To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list
> List archive: &lt;https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/>
>



-- 
Rajen.