Friday, July 01, 2005

Electronic media hiring wrestlers!

The news is that certain channels in the country are going to hire wrestlers, boxers and musclemen who will be trained as journalists. It is quite understandable.
When tragedy strikes somewhere, the correspondents barge into the affected area asking for bytes. In the beginning people were flabbergasted. Some docile people would give the needed byte. But the situation is changing fast and there are reports of journos with mikes entering a house and returning with bruises and marks.
Especially when dying man is asked, 'Kaisa mahsoos ho raha hai' the relatives of the man on deathbed seethe with rage. Many instances of such overzealous journos getting beaten have been reported in the country. No wonder, the muscleman would go with the mike, catch the hapless person by his neck and order him to 'give byte'.
It is not absolutely the fault of reporters for such a situation. The senior editors and coordinators at Delhi and Mumbai ask the reporter to get the byte immediately after the tragedy has struck. But now we hope that the wrestlers and bullies would make good reporters. Seeing their built and body language, the people would speak up due to fear and channels would get many more scoops.