Times of India (ToI) is angry. It's reporter did a story over a month back that actress Manisha Koirala had named her dog after a revered religious figure. Either it turned out to be false or could not be proved. (No big deal though! Times people write more about cats and dogs than human beings and pets can't speak for ToI in courts yet).
Anyway, a corporator approached the police. Koirala was outraged also. The paper not only published a clarification but also an apology. Then the police registered a case under section 295 (A) of IPC. The reporter was arrested though later granted bail. She was rudely picked up from her home where she lived with her elderly mother, says the paper now in a story.
This story betrays the frustration of editorial-wallahs at Times of India, the newspaper with the largest circulation in the WORLD. After all, a journalist needs to be treated with certain respect. See they don't arrest politicians for bigger charges but in a reporter's case they are so fast!
At EditIndia our take is that: You may be the biggest selling paper but lack of real journalism practiced in your paper has brought you to this state where no body gives a damn to you.
Sitting in your ivory tower and doing stories about models, celebs and even wannabe celebs you have long back left journalism and entered this celebism. You by-and-large don't practice real journalism and your stories do not have such impact in the society where the reporters' phone call could prevent police from taking action.
While the original story I couldn't find on the net, this story that is nothing but collective wail of Times of India editorial has been prominently featured on the paper and site. Your reporters seem not to have such relations with cops that such a minor case could not be stopped or at least arrest delayed. Surely a Loksatta, Lokmat journo could have done this with a phone call. The day the paper carried a page 1 anchor on 'How much dogs are suffering from depression in India', I knew this would happen. So don't cry so much now. Jab sudharna nahin hai aur hindustan mein baith kar Jupiter ke logon ke liye story karna hai. And don't think it is a frustrated guy who could not get into ToI is getting sadistic pleasure now. I never liked this paper, the kind of journalism they do.
PS: Who asked you to publish apology? If you had guts you could have just published a clarification and stood firm behind your reporter. Lekin dum hi nahin hai. Just because a celebrity was involved, apology promptly published else letters are thrown in waste paper baskets.
4 comments:
Once the Jain (owner of ToI) was caught under FERA (Foreign Exchange Regulation Act) and it was after that they had realised ki thoda to stories karna padengi. But back to just celebrity journalism and the result is there.
So my dear friend, you think journalism is all about the capability to wield your pressure baton to prevent the police from doing something.
i guess not.
The real journalists power lies where is will be able to pressurise without revealign anything about you.
Oh this is nothing. In Chandigarh, where The Times of India sells less than 10,000 copies after six years, the focus remains mostly on dogs, pick pockets, astrologers and local fashion shows. Most of the time of course is spent in sacking editors. This edition in Chandigarh has had three editors so far. Raminder Singh who was eased out, Dinesh Kumar who was sacked, and Sridhar Raman who was sacked. Currently they are busy sacking the secior most people. The last to be shown the door was a special correspondent called Sanjeev Kochhar.
But while all this goes on you ask which story have they broken in the region in six years and they won't have an answer. The TOI is now like that. You buy it so that it remains the highest selling daily, but you don't read it because you have a certain IQ and don't want to discredit it.
Let me add. Chief of Bureau S P Singh was also sacked in Feb along with Sridhar Raman. Earlier Singh was thrown out by IE and PTI. The current RE is no better. Daroo, babes and flashy clothes. Just like the previous hollow men: D K Kumar (incredibly ignorant of what journalism is), Sridhar Raman (vulgarities and more with women) and S P Singh (low-lifer, liar, incompetent and more).
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