Our News Rooms are Upper Caste-dominated!

We may overlook it or try to avoid it but it is a fact that newsrooms in India's national media and even regional media are mostly dominated by the Upper Castes (UCs).

It is unfortunate that the Dalits hardly get into the editoral section of the newspapers. Its a hard truth. In US long back, it was observed that the Blacks, who were 14% of US population, were not in journalism and major newspapers themselves took the inititative and now their representation is healthy. That is the real affirmative action.

In sharp contrast, SCs and STs, who together constitute 25% of India's population don't figure at the top level of editorial at all. There is no presence of SC/ST at the top level. So in a survey of 300 senior journalists in 37 Hindi and English newspapes and channels brought the startling facts:

UCs who form 8% of India's population hold 71% of top jobs in national media. Dalits and Adivasis were found nowhere in decision-making and NOT ONE of them found in top 315 media men.

Women, non-UCs and Muslims are also grossly under-represented. If men and women are taken together, the share of UC Hindus 'dwijas' in the top echelons of media is a shocking 85%.

The survey was designed and executed by Anil Chamaria, freelance journalist, Jitendra Kumar from the Media Study Group and Yogendra Yadav, senior fellow at the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS).

Brahmins alone, the survey found, hold 49 per cent of the top jobs in national journalism. If non-`dwija' forward castes like Marathas, Patels, Jats and Reddys are added, the total forward caste share stands at 88 per cent.

In contrast, OBCs, who are estimated to constitute around 40 per cent of the population, account for an "abysmally low" four per cent of top media jobs. In the English print media, OBCs account for just one per cent of top jobs and in the Hindi print media eight per cent.

Muslims too, the survey noted, are "severely under-represented in the national media": they account for only three per cent among the key decision makers in the national media, compared with 13.4 per cent in the country's population, says the survey report published in The Hindu.

Muslims do better in the Hindi electronic media, forming six per cent of key decision-makers. In the English electronic media, the survey found there were no Muslims at the senior-most levels in Delhi.

Christians, however, are proportionately represented in the media (mainly in the English media). Their share is about four per cent compared with their population share of 2.3 per cent.

Doubly disadvantaged sections of the population, such as women Other Backward Classes or backward caste Muslims and Christians, are nearly absent among the key decision-makers.

The survey, for example, found that there was not a single OBC woman among the 315 journalists enumerated. The CNN-IBN also aired the findings of the survey. No wonder that the media is often accused of getting biased.

Media Mania: Rahul Mahajan Case

What a poor sight it was all channels taking credit for exclusives and Rahul Mahajan dominating the news of this country with a population of 100 crore!
There was no other news. Already there is little of developmental stories, postive news and social stories on televsion. The Ajtak guys were so elated for having Saahil at their Kashmir studio! Even if Nelson Mandela would have walked into the studio, they wouldn't have been so happy. Doesn't that suggest the priorities of our news channels who thrive on sensationalism.
If they keep working at this pace, high-profile criminals would be brought to studios for giving their side of stories before going to jail--that is not too far. Already, we had once Punya Prasoon Bajpai talk to the PRO/lawyer of an underworld don.
MEANWHILE
I was reading a story in Asian Age. I read it because it appeared an investigative story about the role of a radical Muslim outfit (SIMI) that has a strong base in Maharashtra. However, glaring errors in the story made me upset. The fact that the writer Olga Tellis is a well-known journalist made me wonder. It could not be the fault of the desk alone. Such a serious issue and such a poor reporting! I rubbed my eyes in disbelief and found it was really Asian Age. If you don't know spellings, you can ask somebody who is aware or do some good search on the net, else make a mockery of all. Reading the story I remembered the cardinal rule, don't write your by-line unless you are too sure of your story because it affects your credibility.

Quota issue: Outlook favours, HT TOI and rest disagree

Most of the leading newspapers maintained that reservation for OBCs would further divide the society and that it would affect merit. In Indian Express Kumar Ketkar went to extent of prophesising that if we continue at this pace, India will be balkanized.
However, Vinod Mehta, in Outlook took a sharply different view. He said that the Middle Class is hostile to any such proposal that aims at empowering the backwards, Dalits and the poor. He cited the growth of Southern States where quota exists for long and it has not affeceted merit. Rather, these states have fared much better than North-Indian states.
CNN-IBN made an extra effort to shows that it was unbiased. The figures on number of Dalits/OBCs in journalism and Shivam Vij's report on the other side (views of AIIMS doctors in support of quota) gave the channel an edge. Another channel went to the extent of exhorting youths to do a Rang De Basanti on Arjun Singh, I heard. Now if this is true then it is a matter of introspection for all of us that where journalism in headed.