Friday, May 23, 2008

Aarushi murder case: News channels go overboard

Urban India was shocked and millions of eyes were tranfixed to news channels as police made the sensational revelations about the Aarushi Talwar murder case on Friday.

Though, it is to the credit of TV channels that the investigation picked up the pace and the police were under pressure to solve the case, the channels ignored every other important news item including the killing of 15 Gujjars in Rajasthan, on the same day.

The case had dominated the media headlines for the last week and after the press conference in which police named her parents Dr Rajesh Talwar and Nupur as killers of Arushi and Hemraj along with Dr Anita Durrani as an accomplice, everybody was dumb-founded.

However, the extent of media coverage is baffling. There are thousands of gruesome murders in this country ever year. Agreed that it was a case involving a doctor couple but there has to be a limit to the macabre coverage. Everyone had a gut feeling that the parents may later turn out to be killers and it turned out to be true.

By repeating the grisly details of the murder and later discussing them in panel discussions, the channels pandered to populist emotions. Ironically, people were disgusted by the news but they still wanted to watch it. And channels did the same, throwing all caution to wind and caring little what effect it would have on millions of teenagers and kids.

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

I think it is very reasonable to say that it is because of the high crime rate @ noida that the police wants to earn its reputation back without any hard work. It expects to earn a tap of the back for its good work, but in reality it would get a hammer from the public if they behave so immaturely.I think they are nothing but a bunch of idiots with the brute force they are so proud of. We always comment on the political system, but it is very important to note that the system can be controlled if ppl do no enter into the police force by actually using their "force" and not their brains. Aarushi had to go and no one could stop that. but what can be stopped is further pain to a father who is already traumatized by such baseless charges on him. I would like to ask the man in the turban who is heading the noida police. i dont call him a policeman because he is party to such a mockery. He does not deserve to be a human being if he levies such baseless and inhuman charges on a person who is just like him. A father..but much worse cause he has lost his child. Please help the father who shows himself as very strong. but everyone has emotions which he does not express. God bless Aarushi..but before that God Bless Noida Police.

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Udayvir said...

The Aarushi-Hemraj Murder case - A gruesome murder. A tragic loss for their families respectively. May their souls rest in peace.
The Police - Not exactly Sherlock Holmes or the scotland yard. Under trained and under paid, I dont expect anything great from them. And I dont blame them for their shabby work.
The Media - A rudimentary demonic resurrection. The most evil beast lurking in our country. Who make their rupee on exploiting anything and everything. The biggest embarrassment of the country. They deserve the majority vote for everything that's wrong in India. (NDTV and CNN IBN are the saving grace.)
The People - The most gullible lot of infective creatures. Very similar to modeling clay, but much more vicious. They believe whatever the media says. They make themselves self proclaimed judges, constables and saints. They love to talk about mainstream nonsense because they seem to care, join groups on social websites to show their apathetic concern and pass their home grown judgement on things that apparently dont relate to them in any way whatsoever.

The media and the press have a very important duty. They are empowered with providing the people of the country with information and news, so that one is updated with the happenings and mishappenings of the country and the world. They provide a medium of communication to the public. They have a very strong power that it needs to be controlled and regulated. Without much surprise our Ministry of Information and Broadcasting make a feeble attempt in doing what they need to. The media not only provides irrelevant information, but they force opinions onto the public. They make a run for their money by severely exploiting news items such that their viewer-ship increases. They feed upon people's miseries and make a ruckus of the facts available. They mould the people's opinion as their own. The people, on the other hand, get hypnotized by the dramatic show put on by news channels and print media that they add fuel to the fire and invigorate the press to step up their drama. Its like an obscene strip show. The press strip bare the news as people continue to ogle and love to get more shown to them. The people love to talk about it. Make groups on Facebook and Orkut. Act like they care. And vigorously discuss such issues to the point that the press go into an ecstatic high and blow everything out of sane proportions.
We all have instigated this murder. We all have spoken so much about it and made it sensational. Encouraging the media to tear up their family into tiny little bits and pieces. The media forced the police to come out with an explanation. They mocked our law enforcers, proclaiming themselves to do better jobs. Under the sheer public pressure and lack of professionalism, the police had to come up with a suspect and make an arrest. They pinned it first on Hemraj and then on the father on pure substantial evidence. They stripped poor Aarushi's innocence. And the media went into a frenzy. The people watched and enjoyed every bit of it. The watched more as more twists materialize. They talked even more and unanimously considered her father to be the murderer. The people instigated the whole affair. Shredded their already devastated family. I am not justifying who the murderer was. But the press and the public have no right, read NO right, whatsoever to call her father a murder. We were not present at the crime scene. Save for family and friends, we are not related to the case in any way except in a pure humanitarian sense.
Aarushi and Hemraj's murder was tragic and gruesome, agreed. But it was a murder at that. If we all seem to actually care then why cant we all have candlelight vigils and communities on Facebook and Orkut about the many that die everyday and all those poor minors who get raped and killed by perverted individuals? Oh wait! They all are not from DPS, are they? They all are from a taboo section of society are they not? If you can only face one side of it and ignore the other side, then you have a major problem with reality itself. We all love to talk about the divide between the rich and the poor. But aren't we the ones instigating that divide by sensationalizing the murders and rapes of the rich while turing away from the same of the poor? This murder took up show-time on news channel for almost 20 hours a day. Several pages were covered in the newspaper. No one cared about anybody else's death. The issue was named "Aarushi murder case" and not "Aarushi - Hemraj murder case".

Here's a reality check:
- 10 yr old Nitin Nayak gets crushed under Blueline bus in Uttam Nagar. TOI - 16/05/08
- Hemraj is Aarushi's killer. TOI 17/05/08
- 6 yr old girl, a rickshaw puller's daughter, found raped and stabbed to death. The article appears on page 7 and they didn't even name her. TOI 17/05/08.
- Oh Hemraj is innocent. And dead. TOI 18/05/08
- 8 yr old killed by squall, 4yr old killed by candle fire, 18 yr old beaten up and 2 honor killings. TOI 19/05/08
- 6 yr old Shabana buried alive. Candlelight vigil for Aarushi starts. TOI 20/05/08
- 6 yr old, 14 yr old and a youth. All dead in separate incidents. TOI 21/05/08
- Aarushi makes it to front page and full of 2nd page. TOI 22/05/08
- 9 yr old electrocuted to death due to negligence. TOI 23/05/08
- Board results out. Some suicides. Page 4, 5 and 6 titles reads "TIMES CITY | AARUSHI MURDER". Headlines reads "Dad killed Aarushi". Also, an 8 yr old was molested by teacher. TOI 24/05/08
- 12 yr old raped. Page 4 titled "TIMES CITY | AARUSHI MURDER". TOI 25/05/08
- Aarushi murder pops up in "MY TIMES | MY VOICE" where several people make their baseless comments. 19 yr old girl stabbed to death. Cops now not convinced that her dad did commit the crime. TOI 26/05/08.

So there you go. Thats 10 day's worth of events following this sensational murder. The case obviously made front page every single day. We created a perfect situation for the media to feast upon this case. We further created a gap between the rich and the poor. A rickshaw puller's daughter may not be from DPS and her parents may not be dentists. Does it mean that she is extraneous? Why not create a hue and cry about that? I am not saying its wrong to pay our respects to those who have departed. But its a crime against humanity to be selective about it. Just because Aarushi's case is more mainstream does not give her a superior concern over someone from a poorer section of society (No offense to Aarushi and her family and friends). Hemraj's murder seems so insignificant even though it is part of the same case. No one did a candlelight vigil. No one cared to go meet his family. Do we not care about him? We just presented a perfect model of the rich-poor divide. And surely it was not the age difference.

We need to mourn her loss silently. Its a sacrifice we must make so it is less upsetting for her family. Honestly may her soul rest in peace. I mean peace and not a mockery as it has been made out to be. Making it sensational only makes matters worse. It just provides fuel to the sick fire ignited by the press. It has already devastated her family. Added insult to a grisly injury. Let us silence ourselves for her sake. The media and the press wont stop till we continue to fuel them.

I say again, I mean NO offense or hurt to Aarushi and Hemraj's family and friends. I only intend to dampen the public instigation. I intend to be a drop of poison for those media houses and those press agencies that exploit issues like this murder.

-Udayvir Singh Yadav

"Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake. " - Rabindranath Tagore.

Anonymous said...

The msgs are pointing the finger at the police without realising that we are misleading the police and its the public who has caused "disrepute" to the police instead of highlighting that the police is created to save the public and that is what they are paid for else they will have to survive at the mercy of highhandedness/fear from antisocial beings.Pls. give them a chance to relieve the reputed doctor instead of using methods to prove themselves right.This is what complicates legal proceedings.
Police is to protect the public and not protect from the public.

Anonymous said...

I am really wonder how her mother did not hear any voice, though the murder taken place at their home itself? To imagine,If any stranger comes to kill them,how come the doors will be in open during night times and even by looking at startnger one might have shouted loudly before they react? May God bless Aarushi and their maidservant. Thier soul rest in peace.

Anonymous said...

Is the police genuinely bungling or is it a cover up ? Why is Mr Talwar not assisting the investigation ? Numerous questions regarding his behaviour and events are not answered. What about fingerprint and DNA evidence ? Whose fingerprints are on the wall and on the cooler ? are they not the fathers ?

Anonymous said...

Why Aarushi Mother not Arrested ? Even though Father was Arrested. Don't Forget that Girl Got Slaughtered inside Home in presence of Both Parents who say they don't know anything. A Person working for them is also slaughtered. Would his family get any compensation/pension from Talwar's ? As security of employee in work place is on the Employer. Talwar's is rich doctor having lot of influence on administration.

If media is not there mr talwar won't even got arrested.?

Police/CBI can crack any case in 24hrs. but fails in rich and influential cases.

Som said...

I do have some agreement with points raised in this article. Meanwhile, i think, now media is becoming hyper-sensitive with crimes. It's definetely not a good trend.

Unknown said...

I think that police has not taken this case seriously. otherwise it would have been solved earlier.....
because of media they now have to investigate it seriously.........

__________________
Amit
Outsourcing

Anonymous said...

Total silence after Rajesh Talwar is out. Was the halla only to bring him out?? Are biggies mixed up??

Anonymous said...

Ya. Same happened with the Nithari murders too. Media is interested only in TRP. Masala!

Ruksar said...

It is very sad, grieving parents only targeted as culprits because they were in the house. Local Police spoiled the case. CBI couldnt find real culprits so with flimsy evidence caught hold of unfortunate parents & asking them to prove their innocence . 4 years of mental torture,humilation,how long it is going to be continued.God only knows or Aarushi knows Culprits must be some one who are friendly with Hemraj & know about talwar's houshold Real culprits must be having good laugh on this case proceedings Have some mercy on Aarushi's parents

Ruksar said...

It is very sad, grieving parents only targeted as culprits because they were in the house. Local Police spoiled the case. CBI couldnt find real culprits so with flimsy evidence caught hold of unfortunate parents & asking them to prove their innocence . 4 years of mental torture,humilation,how long it is going to be continued.God only knows or Aarushi knows Culprits must be some one who are friendly with Hemraj & know about talwar's houshold Real culprits must be having good laugh on this case proceedings Have some mercy on Aarushi's parents

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