I remember as a small boy, I used to enjoy watching television. Doordarshan was all we had. Doordarshan was all we needed. I remember the quality of news in those days. A well dressed decent gentleman or lady used to read news. The lady’s sweet melancholy voice. The gentleman’s deep baritone voice. The flawless language. The news was righteous, just and correct. Events had to ‘deserve’ to make it to the 9 ‘o’ clock news.
Then suddenly the ‘K’ onslaught started. These sensational Balaji daily soaps and serials in turn polluted journalism. Aaj tak, IBN7, Headlines Today, India TV, Star News, NDTV and many more dominated the television arena. I am sure no one is happy about the news these channels offer. In fact, one needs special skills to run all this.
I sometimes wonder, why the news channels can’t do what newspapers do. Enlighten people with news. Correct news. Righteous news. News which is not exaggerated. I really don’t understand why news channels think that they are quite different from the newspapers?
News channels transmit news continuously, most of which is live. They can immediately grab a couple of people who know nothing of the issue to continue amusing the viewers. They can scream and make their presenters scream. Whereas newspapers have to wait until the next morning. They move slowly. They have to make somebody sit down, analyze the situation and then write a story for the morning edition. They can’t really scream.
In the Doordarshan days, television news indeed operated like newspapers. They used to broadcast verified news. In the sense of not reporting as it is unfolding but after it has completely unfolded. Today the process of unfolding is everything. News is no different form the live commentary of a cricket match. They call it breaking news. Indeed, today news is fragile. Weak.
The metrics for success or failure of the newspaper is its circulation, whilst TV channels depend completely on TRP ratings. There is one fundamental difference between the two. A newspaper is not evaluated in its parts. How many read a particular editorial, how many read a particular news item and for how long. Meanwhile a TV channel is rated in its half an hour slots. Unlike the newspaper, the TV channel can’t be sure of the viewer. A channel is continuously under pressure to retain a viewer. It has to run. Run continuously to even remain where it is!
Under these circumstances, can we expect media reforms where news channels will re-establish their dependability? Will we have at least one new channel which focuses in justly analyzing an event over breaking insignificant events? Will news channels be able to restore the trust and integrity of their establishment? Will the news channels be able to do what good newspapers still manage to do today?
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Being a programmer analyst in Brocade Communications, Bangalore, Sourav has more than coding and software development on his mind. He passionately writes poems in Hindi, and has authored two books of 101 poems each. He is a freelance writer and has written many articles for several newspapers, magazines and websites. You will often find him coding in his computer, reading journals, or discussing world politics and culture over endless cups of tea...
Peta Jinnath Andersen is a freelance and fiction writer. Born in Sydney, Australia, to a Fiji-Indian father and Scottish mother, she’s a bit confused about her background, but loves it all the same. Currently living in the US, she has just had her first child, and is busy studying hard in an effort to learn more about her Indian heritage – including taking Hindi lessons – so she can teach her son about just what it is that makes an NRI special.
on April 25, 2011
at 4:04 am
I would prefer newspapers any day over the news channels. Some of the breaking news on the channels actually break my heart. I think too much of anything in excess is not good and that is what is causing the problem. They have to run 24*7 channels hence report every type of news they come across.
on April 25, 2011
at 5:58 am
look when u r running a 24 hour channel,need to be right on toe all round the day.u ll hafta CREATE news if not anything.so there goes the NEWS!
i ve stopped watching news.i prefer papers
on April 25, 2011
at 2:26 pm
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on April 26, 2011
at 1:58 am
It is true. But it may in national level. In Andra Pradesh News papers also merged with political parties and publishing some sponsored news which will make readers fools.
on April 26, 2011
at 1:41 pm
Sourav
Agree with your comments re news channels needing a continuous stream to justify their existence. This is not, by the way, limited to India.
However, I don’t believe it therefore follows that newspapers are “better” – there are a number of flaws with mainstream media, partisanship, ownership bias etc that have caused a drop in readership.
One reason the internet is popular as that it has the capacity to act as a check and balance on the mainstream media sources.
Rgds
AussieDesi
on April 26, 2011
at 3:40 pm
News paper is best way to know the fact about any thing which is report on news channel. I never believed on news channel their pick of news subject is always with mala-fide intension with vested interest.
on April 26, 2011
at 9:10 pm
While some of what you say is true, I believe there is also some unfair generalization mixed up in this. Yes, your strongest point is perhaps the fact that a newspaper is seen as a whole while a television news channel is evaluated in parts. But then again, a newspaper is meant to be consumed as a whole and a television channel is meant to be consumed in parts. However, I think TV as a medium is not meant for deep analysis. The power of television is getting the news out there now. How many people stayed glued to their TV sets when terrorists attacked Mumbai on 26/11? Would a newspaper have given people the same solace, or united the country the same way as television did, showing things as they happened? I don’t think it is the responsibility of news channels to analyze. I think it’s their responsibility to get me the news as its happening, and Indian TV news channels, for all their failings, do a commendable job of it.
on April 27, 2011
at 5:56 am
It is sad to say that the TV channels BELIEVE that it is their bounden duty to analyse and offer opinion however half-baked it may be. That’s what makes them even more irritating in addition to the ‘breaking news’.
on April 27, 2011
at 6:31 am
The news channels are becoming “less sane” thesedays. And all thanks to the 24×7 concept. Imagine we had only 2 or 3 2-hour slots in the day; all the non-sense news will vanish, because then there will be PRIORITY of the news thereby eliminating substandard news.
on April 28, 2011
at 4:43 am
Nowadays there is only breaking and sensational news all paid-media reporting! Newspapers are better anyday!
on December 12, 2012
at 7:31 am
Newspaper is also grater than news channal becouse we can use news paper any time any place &we can keep it siqure for a long time,many villageres use to news paper becouse there are no power for watch T V ,news paper provide us explanable news.
T
elevision give us news in short term,and it for be only a cirten time . If I miss that time then we can’t see it .we know that TV provide us pitctureble news but it be only short term..
So newspaper is grater than TV channals….