TV News Channel: A Catalyst?.......or an Fourth Estate of Society
TELEVISION NEWS media is
one of the most important catalysts that has an invariably important role to
play in shaping up public opinions, sentiments, and dogmas by promulgating
accurate and desirable information and knowledge. Due to its vast intrusion in
public life, it has the power of creating an enduring impact on society and
culture of a region. Today, TV news channels in India are facing a qualitative
crisis pertaining to disseminated content in the package of news.It seems as if
the news channels in India have charted out their own respective doctrines and
present anything as news and serve it to their audience, which leads to a shift
from ethical issues of journalism. The orthodox news contents find themselves
in trash and a stinking combination of sex, stings, gossips, super naturals,
crime and reality show reports hold the centre stage. Stories of real life, and
real heroes of national interest are relegated to the lower ranks.News channels
have adopted a policy of corporate culture and have metamorphosed themselves
towards ’packaging’ of information wherein their basic motto has become that of
entertaining and earning Television Rating Points (TRP) rather than
disseminating information. With umpteen number of news channels mushrooming,
your thirst for what you call ’news’ would still not be satiated. The quality
and authenticity of news have deteriorated, and the news channels are into the
business of raking in moolah (money) at any cost.Indian electronic media has
been presenting news in an irresponsible manner sensitizing crucial events
without realizing and understanding the impact and implications on the society.
For instance, what happened in Aarushi murder case is an evidence of media’s
irresponsibility of character assassination. The channels have put on the
mantle of self proclaimed investigating agencies, and this characteristic of
sensitive journalism has compelled the judicial machinery and ministries to
come out with a set of regulations for this kind of investigative reporting.
The trend of sting operations has been taken up by almost every channel with an eye towards enhancing channel’s TRPs. A channel even went on to the extent of staging and fabricating a sting operation wherein a lady school teacher from a Delhi girls school found herself in soup for her alleged involvement in trafficking of girl students of her school! The sting operations have dared to intrude the private lives in their rat race of sensitizing news and attracting viewers. This has enforced the news channels into crime and sex shows that are very erratic.In the last few days, taking a peek at news contents, one could find that the cold war between Amitabh Bachchan and Shatrughna Sinha and Amitabh’s visit to his school – Sherwood have garnered ample coverage giving the impression that there is nothing else important in the country. Likewise, the likes of Rakhi Sawant and Mallika Sherawatalways find strong coverage on news channels for futile reasons.
When you get up early in the morning to brush up with current affairs, you are likely to have a rendezvous with supernatural offerings and horoscope readings by the so called pundits or in other words ’babas’ on almost every channel. These babadom and horoscope solutions are just played for cheap publicity and to play with sentiments and beliefs of the masses.
Shockingly, the news channels take eternal pride in glamorizing crime and criminal world, and depict the out caricatures of criminals as larger than life heroes. The time slot around 11 in the night is booked for crime news in programmes namely – Sansani, Vaardaat, Crime reporter, Crime file, etc. Throughout the day, the channels come out with seductive endorsement of the contents to be telecast during such episodes, giving an impression that if you miss you will miss the train of your life. Add to this, the presenters of such shows who come out wit Shahenshah like image would terrorise you more with their animated articulations. Another trend in vogue nowadays are the laughter shows, wherein the channels lifts clips from various comedy shows running on various entertainment channels and serves as news items. As if the recurrent repeat telecast by the respective entertainment channels was not enough that the news channels have plunged into the business of making people laugh.
It is quite acceptable to have a refreshing dose of entertainment amidst real serious business of news watching to break free from boredom, which may feel as a refreshing breeze, but here Ganges is flowing in the opposite direction. If you get bored of being entertained on news channels, you may be offered, in mercy, a small dose of news to your desire.
It is high time that TV news channels in India observe a degree of reticence and carefully zero in on the contents that deem necessary preference and at the same time figuring out those contents that should be weeded out. They need to take a firm holding on the essence and demand of journalism rather than becoming a bane for one of the strongest pillars of democracy.
The trend of sting operations has been taken up by almost every channel with an eye towards enhancing channel’s TRPs. A channel even went on to the extent of staging and fabricating a sting operation wherein a lady school teacher from a Delhi girls school found herself in soup for her alleged involvement in trafficking of girl students of her school! The sting operations have dared to intrude the private lives in their rat race of sensitizing news and attracting viewers. This has enforced the news channels into crime and sex shows that are very erratic.In the last few days, taking a peek at news contents, one could find that the cold war between Amitabh Bachchan and Shatrughna Sinha and Amitabh’s visit to his school – Sherwood have garnered ample coverage giving the impression that there is nothing else important in the country. Likewise, the likes of Rakhi Sawant and Mallika Sherawatalways find strong coverage on news channels for futile reasons.
When you get up early in the morning to brush up with current affairs, you are likely to have a rendezvous with supernatural offerings and horoscope readings by the so called pundits or in other words ’babas’ on almost every channel. These babadom and horoscope solutions are just played for cheap publicity and to play with sentiments and beliefs of the masses.
Shockingly, the news channels take eternal pride in glamorizing crime and criminal world, and depict the out caricatures of criminals as larger than life heroes. The time slot around 11 in the night is booked for crime news in programmes namely – Sansani, Vaardaat, Crime reporter, Crime file, etc. Throughout the day, the channels come out with seductive endorsement of the contents to be telecast during such episodes, giving an impression that if you miss you will miss the train of your life. Add to this, the presenters of such shows who come out wit Shahenshah like image would terrorise you more with their animated articulations. Another trend in vogue nowadays are the laughter shows, wherein the channels lifts clips from various comedy shows running on various entertainment channels and serves as news items. As if the recurrent repeat telecast by the respective entertainment channels was not enough that the news channels have plunged into the business of making people laugh.
It is quite acceptable to have a refreshing dose of entertainment amidst real serious business of news watching to break free from boredom, which may feel as a refreshing breeze, but here Ganges is flowing in the opposite direction. If you get bored of being entertained on news channels, you may be offered, in mercy, a small dose of news to your desire.
It is high time that TV news channels in India observe a degree of reticence and carefully zero in on the contents that deem necessary preference and at the same time figuring out those contents that should be weeded out. They need to take a firm holding on the essence and demand of journalism rather than becoming a bane for one of the strongest pillars of democracy.
Mr. Anish Saxena
Assistant Professor
Dept. of Communication Studies
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