Oneupmanship has always been an integral part of the schizophrenic love-hate relationship that exists between India and Pakistan. Sometimes serious, often innocuous , Indians and Pakistanis have reveled in comparisons. Was Imran Khan a superior all-rounder to Kapil Dev? (tough one, dead heat, I would say). Was Noorjehan a better singer than Lata Mangeshkar? (no contest, there is only one Lata). Is the Pakistani army more combat ready than the Indians? (again, no contest, size does matter). Are Pakistani politicians less corrupt than their Indian counterparts? (close one, although we still haven't had a president who spent seven years in jail).
On most counts, we'd like to believe that we are well ahead of the Pakistanis: films, music, art, theatre, there is a rich diversity and tradition to Indian culture that our friends across the border find tough to match. Let me though now suggest one area, perhaps controversially, where the Pakistanis are scoring over us: mainstream news television. Our production values may still be superior, but take away the glitzy packaging and the reality is a little more disconcerting. If the aftermath of 26/11 has revealed something to the seemingly mighty Indian electronic media, it is that a powerful section of the Pakistani news television has shown itself to be less trivia driven, less jingoistic, and, at times, even more enterprising than us.
Had it not been for Geo and Dawn News, there is a fair chance that the Pakistani establishment would still be in denial over the country's involvement in 26/11. It was the Geo investigation in Kasab's Faridkot village (and the Sunday Observer report before that) which made it impossible for the Pakistan government to obliterate Kasab's past. Its news television which exposed the terror module's Karachi base. And its the sustained questioning on Pakistani news channels of its leadership that was one contributory factor in forcing an admission to the reality of terror groups operating on its soil.
Sure, there has been the usual India-bashing at times, some of it ridiculously offensive. The you tube video of a chat show on a Pakistani channel called News One made headlines in our country for the manner in which it attempted to target "Hindu fanatics" as being responsible for the Mumbai terror attacks. News One, by all accounts, is a tabloid channel, designed to cater to a mass Urdu speaking viewership that demands a certain level of support for the jihadists. It would appear that a section of the populist Urdu media in Pakistan has chosen to align itself with those civil society voices who tacitly support armed militias. During the Lal Masjid episode, it was apparent that the militants had influential sympathizers within the Pakistani media who saw them as torchbearers of an ideological war within.
It is equally true that when it comes to Kashmir and the Indian state, the lines between the so-called 'liberal' and 'conservative' Pakistani media begin to blur. There is certainly less space for an Arundhati Roy-like voice within the Pakistani media than is the case in our country. Human rights activists like Asma Jehangir perhaps get more air time in this country than they still would in Pakistan. On Kashmir, the dominant section of the Pakistani media wears its hyper-nationalism like a badge of honour: the Lashkar for the longest time has been seen as legitimate freedom fighters when operating in the valley .
And yet, in a society as dangerously chaotic and complex as contemporary Pakistan is, it is the emergence of news channels like Geo and Dawn News as a fora for robust public debate which offers some hope for the future of Pakistani democracy. At a time when the Pakistani state appears to be on the retreat, its authority undermined in the eyes of its people, these channels have filled the vacuum. They have almost begun to set the national agenda and force an element of transparency and accountability in a system unused to being questioned.
In recent years, many courageous Pakistani journalists have used the medium to checkmate the otherwise unchallenged ruling elite. The lawyers revolt against the Musharaff regime which eventually spelt doom for the General was played out live on Pakistani television with unmistakeable commitment, providing a momentum to a popular peoples' movement. Little wonder that the General's biggest mistake was his attempt to censor news and close down Geo's news programming.
Ironically, it had been the General who was principally responsible for freeing up Pakistan's private electronic media by pushing through legislation that ended the monopoly of state run Pakistan television around eight years ago. There is even a suggestion that the General was driven by what he had seen of Indian private new television when, during and after the Kargil war in 1999, Indian news channels were being watched in Pakistani homes. What started off perhaps as a counter-propaganda weapon has now become a mini-revolution, with dozens of private channels of varying quality furiously competing with each other.
That competition is being witnessed in this country too. But while television news leaders in Pakistan have chosen to use their new found freedom to discover a passion for hard news journalism and become voices of dissent, we are in danger in this country of moving in precisely the opposite direction. Caught between trivia, sensationalism and histrionics, the space for independent journalism in the public interest seems to be shrinking. In fact all over South Asia, the independent journalist is more in danger than ever before. In Sri Lanka, the brutal slaying of Lasantha Wickramatunga, editor of the Sunday Leader showed how many powerful forces wanted to silence the voice of a fiercely independent journalist. In Nepal, the Maoists have targeted the news media while here in India, attempts to muzzle the media are becoming more brazen.
Today, journalists in India are in constant danger of becoming complicit with the state/corporate interests or seeking the easy option "soft" stories. Yet in Pakistan, in the face of a hostile establishment, there are many brave journalists who are not only doing tough stories but they are doing so in a very hostile environment. In India, by contrast on the day when the union budget was delivered this week and the Taliban had edged even more precariously close to Islamabad, many news channels had found their top headline for prime time: Sharukh Khan's successful shoulder surgery!
Total Comments: 47
Read Comment | Post Comment
RS,
A nice balanced view.
Why can't the Indian journalists do more than reporting the news?
I have seen that sometimes you do ask tough questions but mostly the questions are designed to make the speakers commit officially to something that is obvious.
But if Dawn and geo could do what they did in Pak than Indian journalism is seriously lacking in courage.
An Example of a detailed pre-election information that all of us want:
Your channel like others comes up with stats on the last elections; prediction of 2009 govt, but doest it honestly and realistically prepare the voter for the elections?
The details on the party expenditure (remember the courage of Dawn) the details of candidates, whom should we vote for and whom not (based on facts) obviously derived from your own research and investigations. What each candidate has done so far in his job etc.... CAN THIS NOT BE AIRED IN A DEMOCRACY LIKE INDIA ?
This time I seriously want to vote and I know like J&K voter turn-outs would be good. But already the electorate is confused with the pre-election drama where the individual and party goals heavily overlay the nations' prioroties. We cant compare ourselves with a democracy like america, but we need obamas. Powerful and honest voices like yours if blended with Dawn-like courage can give birth to couple of obamas: one for the ruling and one for the opposition as well!
Wishing your team more courage and resilience.
An Indian
...Reply
I must say this is a candid acceptance from a person of your stature after a long time.,, now that's a start!!!! I think news channels are becoming farcical with the passing of each day, its high time somebody from within showed the mirror to the so called media chieftains asking them, would they like to see such news coverage if they were themselves the viewers!!
News channels should refrain from showing what is now essentially becoming bollywood like commercial filmi news,,,, please spare us and dont follow in the footsteps of IndiaTV or StarNews(These guys defy logic sometimes). ...Reply
dear rajdeep, i am writing this with a sense of exasperation. why do we wait till its absolutely imperative to do anything, less than 24 hours to go for the auction then the govt wakes up. there is a leadership summit coming up in india and the organizers have the gall to actually invite musharaff??? even if the invitation was delivered some months ago, is musharaff really welcome in this country and more importantly is even a leader????? has he led his country well??? what leadership are the summit attendees going to learn from him. over and above this the dawn site has a write up saying that he is going to keep his tone aggressive and that he is going to take on the indians in their own homeland.. is this why he is invited? shouldnt he be declared as the one man whom we dont want in this country? remember kargil anyone?? ...Reply
By Ansar Abbasi
ISLAMABAD: The Crime Investigation Department (CID), Punjab, had accurately warned the Punjab government on Jan 22, 2009 about an Indian plan to target the Sri Lankan cricket team during its visit to Pakistan.
The CID, while referring to a source report, said this terrorist attack would be carried out by the infamous RAW, especially while the Sri Lankan team would be travelling "between the hotel and stadium or at hotel during their stay".
And the incident, which the whole world saw on March 3, precisely happened the same way, raising a hundred-million dollar question as to why the Punjab government, under Governor Salmaan Taseer, let it happen so easily despite a clear warning from the intelligence agencies of the country.
Copy of this fabulous work of the CID, which was wasted by the government in the Punjab in a sheer show of criminal negligence harming the national interest, shows that Additional Inspector General of Police, CID, Punjab, Malik Muhammad Iqbal, shared this report with all concerned in the federal and provincial governments.
The report tagged "SCRET/IMMEDIATE" with subject "SOURCE REPORT" reads: "It has reliably been learnt that RAW (Indian intelligence agency) has assigned its agents the task to target Sri Lankan cricket team during its current visit to Lahore, especially while travelling between the hotel and stadium or at hotel during their stay.
2. It is evident that RAW intends to show Pakistan a security risk state for sports events, particularly when the European and the Indian teams have already postponed their proposed visits considering it a high security risk to visit Pakistan.
3. RAW has also collected photographs of leaders of Jamaatud Daawa (proscribed) and its establishments to target them.
4. Extreme vigilance and heightened security arrangements indicated."
The above report was sent to Syed Kamal Shah, interior secretary, Government of Pakistan, Islamabad, Javed Mehmud, Chief Secretary, Punjab, Lahore, Dr Syed Tauqir Shah, Secretary to Chief Minister, Punjab, Lahore, and Nadeem Hassan Asif, Home Secretary, Government of Punjab, Lahore, on Jan 22 with the covering letter of Additional IGP, CID, Punjab, Lahore, Malik Muhammad Iqbal.
The same covering letter also included a note announcing that the Capital City Police Officer (CCPO), Lahore, and the Lahore commissioner were being informed separately for necessary action.
The same day on Jan 22, the issue because if its sensitivity was brought into the notice of the then-chief minister Shahbaz Sharif on whose instructions an urgent and confidential note was sent to the IGP Punjab, the Lahore commissioner, the CCPO Lahore, the chief secretary and the home secretary.
On behalf of the chief minister, it was said: "The chief minister has seen the enclosed source report and has desired that every effort may be made for the security of the Sri Lankan cricket team during its current visit to Lahore. He has further desired that extreme vigilance and heightened security arrangement may be made to avert any untoward incident."
On the very next day on Jan 23, a meeting was held on the subject under the chairmanship of commissioner, Lahore, Khusro Pervaiz Khan, and attended by IB Director Mirza Tamraiz M Khan, DIG (traffic) Muhammad Ghalib Bandesha, Military Intelligence rep Col Saqib, Director ISI (Lahore) Ashraf Khan, DCO, Lahore, Sajjad Ahmad, district emergency officer, Lahore, Dr Ahmad Raza, SP/CID Lahore Azmatullah, Protocol Officer c/o DG Protocol, Lahore, Noorul Hassan, SP (traffic) Lahore Muhammad Asif Khan, SP City Lahore Rana Abdul Jabbar and others.
In the said meeting, the provincial government under Shahbaz Sharif took extremely tight security measures for the one-day international match between Pakistan and Sri Lanka, which was held on Jan 26, 2009.
Minutes of the meeting, as available with this correspondent, show how minutely the authorities at that time discussed each and every aspect of the terrorism threat and the security measures to be taken.
These minutes show the evolution of a comprehensive security plan and contingency plan to pre-empt the possible threat of terrorism by RAW.
The then-IG, Punjab, Shaukat Javed, personally visited the whole route of the cricket team for the one-day match and even talked to cops deployed there. The then-CCPO, Pervez Rathore, also visited the site more than once.
However, after the recent imposition of governor's rule, not only the chief secretary and the inspector general police were changed but also the whole lot of police officers in Lahore, including the CCPO, SP (operations) and six other SPs, who were replaced by officers some of whom enjoy highly stinking reputation.
There is no explanation offered so far by any government authority as to why the warning of the CID was overlooked this time when the Punjab was ruled by Punjab Governor Salmaan Taseer.
A two-day visit of this correspondent to Lahore shows the civilian bureaucracy there talking of how the civilian administration and police have been (mis)used by the provincial administration for political wheeling-dealing since the imposition of governor's rule in the Punjab.
"Keeping in view the CID source report, the terrorist attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team is a clear FIR against the Punjab governor and his administration," one of these officials commented. ...Reply
great all the best ...Reply
Read More Comments
The views/ideas/opinions expressed in this section of the website www.ibnlive.com / www.ibnpolitics.com are solely those of the writer/author and not of Web18 Software Services Limited (Web18) or of IBN18 Broadcast Limited (IBN18). The statements made by the writer/author have not been verified in any manner by Web18 and/or IBN18. Web18 and/or IBN18 shall not be responsible for or liable in any manner whatsoever for the views/ideas/opinions expressed by the writer/author of this section.