TV Channels’ ‘Maara Maari’ For TRPs
Remarkably, driving “Operation Sindoor” with meticulous planning and operational ethics brought laurels to the Indian Army and the whole nation is proud of them. But the television channels brought disrepute to themselves by peddling unverified/misinformation campaigns shamelessly leaning on the back of brave Indian army who were on the frontline fighting enemy’s nefarious designs.
Sajjad Bazaz
Since the launch of “Operation Sindoor” as a punitive and targeted campaign to dismantle the terror infrastructure across the Line of Control and deeper inside Pakistan, a cross-section of media outlets in the country lost sight of their journalistic ethics under the cover of patriotism, which it was not. While covering the pounding of Pakistan-backed terrorist infrastructure in the Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK) and inside Pakistan, we witnessed most of the television channels presenting the military confrontation between India and Pakistan as a festival.
In other words, these television channels were presenting the situation as a festival of war and exaggeration of events in their news and analysis crossed all limits and heightened the tension in the general public.
In a situation where two nuclear powers militarily lock horns, a careful dissemination of information always remains of paramount importance. Any disinformation campaign driven by television channels during the time of military confrontation, whether wittingly or unwittingly, has direct bearing on the security of the nation. It’s simply an unpatriotic act on the part of those who present themselves as more important persons on the television screens, than the actual ground situation.
If we look at the design of the “Operation Sindoor”, we will find it loaded with operational ethics central to the mission. And look at the operational modus operandi of the media outlets, especially the television channels, in the country. They showed lack of operational efficiency when it was needed the most. Most of them hardly cared for the directives of the government where it was urged to exercise control while covering the conflict situation so that national security is not compromised and remains of paramount importance.
However, the behaviour of these television channels was not at all purely an act of patriotism. They locked themselves into a competition for raising their TRPs (Television Rating Point or Target Rating Point) and to show each other down in influencing the minds of general viewers. Their misrepresentation of facts and figures in the news and analysis programme actually became the ripe content for social media platforms to further strengthen the misinformation campaigns unfortunately driven at the back of “Operation Sindoor”.
Remarkably, driving “Operation Sindoor” with meticulous planning and operational ethics brought laurels to the Indian Army and the whole nation is proud of them. But the television channels brought disrepute to themselves by peddling unverified/misinformation campaigns shamelessly leaning on the back of brave Indian army who were on the frontline fighting enemy’s nefarious designs. The television channels’ fight for TRPs at a time when national security was of utmost importance, is a shameful act when measured by all standards of ethics in journalism.
OVERALL SCENARIO
In today’s modern era, conflict is ubiquitous. Response to conflict is mainly focused on emergency relief where we arm ourselves with blankets, medicines and occasionally a well-laid out plan drafted to control the conflict situation. Even as this type of support is vital
For those caught in the conflict, the need to be informed is equally critical. Here emerges the role of media by providing the people in a conflict zone with long-term and sometimes life-saving social support through the means of information.
But the kind of support through the means of information during the times of conflict has raised many eyebrows. Those gathering the information in such situations and putting it to the public have been presenting themselves as more important persons than the information.
Even reporting on different cultural contexts in various conflict zones is often defamatory, malicious and corrupted.
It has been a habit of the so-called ‘best television journalists’ in the country to make use of the hostile relations between India and Pakistan to their advantage by peddling war hysteria among the audience watching them moderating debates. Most of them always act more as commander in chief of the Indian armed forces than a television anchor.
Even as most of the participants in a debate sometimes lash at their ‘military’ behavior and crossing the limit as an anchor, it is still shocking why people, despite knowing their attitude, come on their panel to take their volleys of ‘venomous’ questions? If we critically analyse this part, certain points come on the forefront. Are such debates and panel discussions scripted like a Bollywood script? Are panelists paid to face snubbing at the hands of the anchors?
JOURNALISM OF ATTACHMENT
Being a student of journalism and having my journalism lessons from the likes of B. G. Verghese, V. K. Dethy, Mark Tully, P C Chatterji etc. I have no hesitation to conclude that most of the TV anchors under the garb of ‘journalists and analysts’ have been throwing all journalistic norms to the wind. They try to project themselves more patriotic than the other by killing the facts and vomiting twisted analysis. They act as undisputed authority on the Kashmir situation when most of them have not even visited the place.
Ironically, even criticizing them for their unethical practices, which divides communities on caste, creed and color, is a risk as they lose no time to dub the person as anti-national. Actually, nationalism is not their cup of tea, they fake it to earn profits like any other businessman.
One is pained to hear people calling them journalists. They are actually in the profession of ‘churnalism’ where they seem to have mortgaged their consciousness to fulfil their vested interests. What we see today on television news channels is not at all journalism, it’s simply an act of churning out glorified handouts tailored for these specific breeds of men on screen (TV anchors). These ‘churnalists’ are actually the chest thumpers for a particular class of people to gain public faith for them against a cost.
They, unlike journalists, are never by the people, to the people and for the people. They don’t speak for the society, but work for better television rating points (TRPs) to earn hefty profits. These ‘patriotic’ anchors register highly increased TRPs, but they as individuals and their channels have lost credibility.
Frankly speaking, this kind of “journalism of attachment” exposes us to their biased interpretation of whatever information they possess for public consumption. Otherwise “Journalism of attachment” is not practiced in cozy television studios. It’s an activity to be conducted on the field and is purely based on morality.
‘MAARA MAARI’ FOR TRPs
As far as the race for TRPs among private television news channels is concerned, it was described as ‘Blood Pressure Raising Points (BRPs)’ by former Prasar Bharati chairman A Surya Prakash. While taking a dig at the news channels which keep having eight to 10 panelists debating at the top of their voices, he rightly observed that no other country in the world seems to have this kind of a ‘maara maari’ on TV news channels.
However, one thing is certain that the race for TRP through unethical means has marred credibility of these channels.
Since breaking news mania has engulfed these channels while sensationalizing even the ordinary happenings around us, they seem to be losing the sense.
WAY FORWARD
At the moment it makes sense for communication professionals in true sense to introspect over the need for responsible communication at least through the powerful medium of television.
Precisely, the media has to keep itself away from biased reporting on nationalism, patriotism and other diversity issues during a situation prevailing here. The so-called ‘patriotic’ anchors have to keep it in mind that aiming to raise TRP through the ‘sensational’ coverage of incidents may register highly increased TRP, but their act can have dangerous implications for the country’s security. Just a last word for the authorities in the given situation: They need to work out a line of control for the television and other channels of public information to infuse a sense of nation-first responsibility among them. They should not be allowed to misuse the sensitive situation, the likes of “Operation Sindoor”, to derive monetary benefits for themselves.
(The author is Editor-in-Chief of Straight Talk Communications. He is former Head of Corporate Communications & CSR Department and Internal Communication & Knowledge Management Department of J&K Bank)
