Foreign Paws Over Nepali National Media

Nepal’s Minister for Information and Communication Krishna Bahadur Mahara has said no national media can be fair and people-oriented unless they are free from the grip of foreign capital and interests. Addressing a deliberative seminar entitled Autonomy, Self-Reliance and Professionalism of National Broadcasting on Tuesday in Kathmandu, Mahara, also the Nepal government spokesperson, stressed on the need for national media to seriously consider Nepal’s national needs and collective public consciousness that actually guide policymakers.

At present, more than 90 percent of Nepal’s economy has been controlled by Indian companies and business people. A kilo of red pomegranate worth Nepali rupees 35 in India costs more than Nepali rupees 100 in Nepal. Thousands of market commodities selling in Nepal cost far higher than in they do in India. This shows the status of Indian grip on the Nepali economy. This economic grip can be seen in the media market as well. Nepal’s national television, Nepal Television give regular shows of Hindu movies while Nepali movies have been undermined deliberately. The national media give the logic of the need to sustain economically through the advertisements obtained from bulky Indian business in Nepal.

Other national broadcasting companies and publications of Nepal are not free from foreign capital. Consequently, media contents have to a considerable extent been affected.

Journalists associated with those media houses often informally complain that their professional freedom has been cared very little. They say that they are likely to lose their job should they work independently and professionally. “Most of the administrative staff members do discourage journalistic practices so much in our media houses,” says a reporter of Nepal Television. He also complains that professionally educated and trained journalists are less respected in the national media than someone placed there through the recommendation of a bigwig. He grumbles, “Flatterers of party leaders are the heroes in our media.”