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

Fri Jun 5 22:00:34 IST 2009

Dear All,

In Kashmir, we usually sit in a corner of a room which is diagonally
opposite to its entrance point: the door. It become our
habit/tradition to be there, which makes us feel comfortable, but as
and when a guest arrives we immediately offer him that space and move
a little to towards the door. And if more guests arrive then you
simply keep on moving closer and closer towards the door. You
suddenly feel happy, that  your own room is full of guests, ( OR
DIFFERENT OPINIONS)

Now as a guest, if you go to other’s room with a preconceived notion
of acquiring the corner which is farthest from the door, you are
spotted. In Kashmir there is a saying, Maji dopnam thazras behun (
mother advised me to sit at a higher place ) Perhaps, mother’s
excessive love towards her child leads to such a suggestion, but it is
a sign of stupidity if one actually performs that suggestion while
entering the space of the other. In short we have to be humble, both,
when we receive a guest or become a guest. ( BOTH WHEN WE OFFER AN
OPNION OR ACCEPT)

The other point which I would to add here, with regard to the
reportage of Jammu Agitation about AmarNath Land dispute is that what
about not reporting anything at all about such events. In journalistic
practices it is a known belief that ‘Terrorists are dying for Media
coverage’. But, it is not only limited to Terrorist outfits, I guess
every other protest on the streets want a media coverage. This
squarely means that Journalists are some sort of highbrows in our
society without which we cant do anything.

Just try going to Jantar Manter ( the only official protest point in
Delhi ) with a Camera in your hand and see how different protest
groups quickly re-assemble and start sloganeering for a photograph.
There is A THEATRE  in it. A language of our present system of living
is embedded in it which involves the process of image making. It not a
question of what is true and what is false, but perhaps, our loss of
wisdom to something which never belonged to us in the first place.

We make images of others with our ways of looking at it. We make
images of ourselves with their ways of looking at it. The image,
either through reportage in words or a photograph is never
representational, and hence misleading if the consumer is not open to
other suggestions. It is an endless process. Unfortunately, the
meaning often runs away from the person who yearns some objectivity,
which  might have offered him a chance to frame an opinion, but alas,
a little later, he often discovers that ‘ it was not so’.

Simple M Pani's reportage of Jammu Agitation from a different wide
angle is again just another  respectable guest in the room, and as
Shuddha suggested, that one wishes more such different
perspectives....let there be are no full stops…

Godard's amazing treatment to the Palestinian footage as watched by a
family in France ‘ Here and Elsewhere’ , asks
“ Where did the inability to see and hear these very simple images come from ?
 The film begins with a line
‘this film was titled VICTORY in 1970, and in 1974 it is called ‘ Here
and Elsewhere’ . It is a wonderfully educational movie, and ought to
be made compulsory for those who are working in Media and also who
pose for their camera and  mikes on the streets.

So, images keep on changing the  meaning, and we become part of it,
unwittingly.  To escape our fate is too radical a thought. We are
somehow destined to float on the surface  of these signs between
rapidly changing textures of vast realm of signifiers and signifieds.
So, imagine, if there were no newspapers, no photographs, no TV or
Radio as in the past, what would be our ways of looking at things?

 I guess, we still would go out and eat some food, make a joke,
develop relations and keep on living.

With love
is

On Fri, Jun 5, 2009 at 12:55 PM, Rajendra Bhat
Uppinangadi<rajen786uppinangady at gmail.com> wrote:
> 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
>> >> _________________________________________
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>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > --
>> > 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
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>>
>> 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
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>>
>
>
>
> --
> Rajen.
> _________________________________________
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