It’s not even full four months gone and India has witnessed two bomb blasts in a short interval in 2013. The first was in Hyderabad on February 21 and the next one was in Bangalore on April 19.
Both the events have come a long way since the days of the Khalistan and Kashmir related terrorism of the 80s and the 90’s. The Kandhar hijacking in 1999, Parliament attack in 2001 and Mumbai attack in 2008 are some of the landmarks in terror cases in India.
The history of terror attacks in India is entwined with the media coverage, particularly the electronic media, as everyone like to see the blow by blow account and live coverage of such event is popular choice of media reportage.
However, it’s lamented that the media coverage of such crime is monotones and fails to instil any freshness to the subject even though each act of terror is fresh and laced up with elements of surprise.
Reportage on terrorism has come to such a pass that each time such dastardly acts take place; the couch potatoes sitting before the idiot box can predict the media coverage and tell what will happen next as most often, its action reply that’s happening in the pattern of reporting.
The media reportage is still caught up in the clutter of arranging the Five Ws and One H (Who, What, Why, When, Where and How) in an inward pyramid, robbing off giving freshness to the subject.
The media coverage of terrorism has now become a joke for the standup comedians who narrate with aplomb and frills of laughter how media will behave in case if a bomb blast takes place in India.
Giving the subject its due importance it is necessary to flag off a fresh debate on the subject focusing on the role and responsibility of the media reporting acts of terrorism.
However, before dwelling further, one has to understand the phenomena of terrorism first. Terrorism is a criminal act that influences an audience beyond the immediate victim. The strategy of terrorist is to commit acts of violence choosing targets that symbolize what they oppose with the aim to draw greatest publicity. The motive of the terrorists is to spread hate, terror, violence and disharmony in the given place and the country at large.
If this is the case, then the media has a significant challenge in defining their role and responsibility in reporting acts of terror. The obligation of the journalists’ is to bring out the facts of the incident and refrain from conjectures, speculations and comments that may be prejudiced.
However, this is not happening in India and time and again it’s the same verbose, ill-founded language that is used in reporting terrorism particularly on the electronic media. It’s this bit of media coverage that has become sickening.
Let’s take the latest example of Hyderabad and Bangalore bomb blasts. In case of Hyderabad blast media jumped into conclusion that the bomb blast was a retaliatory act to the hanging of Afzal Guru, the accused in Parliament attack case.
The logical deduction that the TV channels drew was that it was the handiwork of Kashmiri terrorist, aided and abated from Pakistan through its actors Lashkar, Jaish’s sleeping cell in India. Who will decide the truthfulness of this hypothesis?
In the case of Bangalore blast that actually occurred near the BJP office and a temple in close proximity led the media to jump into conclusion that it was the Indian Mujhadeen, the home grown terrorist to be behind this act. It dished out flimsy arguments like the blast occurred to commemorate the terror act at Chinnaswamy stadium last year. Again who is to decide the truthfulness of such instant manufactured hyperbole?
The question arises whether it is the job of the media to identify the culprits and pinpoint the blame on individuals and or it is the work of the security agencies to do so? Is not the media over stepping its role and responsibility and misguiding the people by its speculative stories? There have been instances, when media theories have totally gone wrong.
Each time a terrorist attack takes place, media goes overboard in giving sensational, exploitative and melodramatic reporting, a glimpse of which, we had during recent bomb blasts in Hyderabad and Bangalore. This trend is going on for long time and there is hardly any check on it.
Annoyed with such reportage, Press Council of India Chairman Markandey Katju had lashed out at media for “demonizing” the entire Muslim community whenever a bomb blast takes place in the country. He termed such reporting as a “totally irresponsible behaviour” as media trial is leading to spread of communalism and hatred in the society. Freedom is not absolute and every freedom was subjected to reasonable restriction in public interest, Katju argued.
It’s true that media is the true mirror of the society and plays the role of its leader, motivator and guide. It is its duty to gauge the situation and help the nation in such hours of distress and also do not allow the morale and the psyche of the common man to be shaken.
However, this is not happening, each time a bomb blast occurs, the media becomes a tool in the hands of the terrorists, terrorizing the society through gory visuals and mouthing speculative stories that is hardly needed in such moments of anxiety.
It’s the electronic media that have the facility of live coverage at their command that is found erring on this count. The journalists have failed to draw a line on their responsibilities and their insensitive coverage has caused enormous damage to the society.
This fact is accepted by the electronic media; particularly the TV channels which formed News Broadcasters Association (NBA) and have come out with a set of guidelines for self regulations.
Their do and don’ts include; don’t give live coverage of hostage crises, block information that may help terrorists, don’t disclose details of hostages; withhold sensitive information on rescue operations, avoid live contact with victims and with security personnel engaged in rescue operations, avoid unnecessary repetition of archival footage which may agitate the minds of viewers.
However, such self regulatory mechanism is hardly being practiced in its letter and spirit. The television reportage of Hyderabad and Bangalore bomb blasts needs to be replayed and introspected.
The practitioner of media may bear in mind that while facts are scared in journalism, comments should be guarded and measured. Journalist need draw a line between information, curiosity and rumour, particularly reporting acts of terror.
In this context, the role and responsibility of the media is very significant. Whenever terror attacks takes place expectation from the media is high. People glue before the TV sets to get the details and like know more facts about the happenings. In such situation journalists have to be careful in reporting.
While the media has the duty to give instant news at the same time they have to strike a balance between people’s right to know and live up to the demands of national security and the social ethics. Even narrating the facts, they should see to it their report do not create panic and fear among the people.
The Supreme Court of India has observed that ‘Freedom of the Press is subject to reasonable restrictions enumerated in Article 19(2) of the Constitutions where sovereignty, integrity and the security of the country are concerned’ cannot be lost sight of.
However, we must also not overlook the positive side of the media coverage. Media plays a vital role in proper functioning of our democracy. Media coverage brings into light the lapses into our security system and inadequate arrangements of the government in handling such situations.
So, one need not to get panicked about media in handling the coverage of terror acts. It’s a matter of time when media reporting will show a greater maturity and sensitivity. We have to be patient and hopeful that media will undergo a self corrective analysis in its reportage of terrorism and meet the aspiration of the people.
Last but not the least, freedom of press is something hard earned gift of our freedom struggle and this cannot be tampered with.
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Syed Ali Mujtaba is a journalist based in Chennai. He can be contacted at syedalimujtaba@yahoo.com
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