Click to play videoNew Delhi: A 14-year-old schoolgirl, found murdered in her bedroom. A day later, the decomposing body of the family servant, found on the terrace. A father arrested, a mother interrogated, unfounded police allegations of immorality and sleaze.
For over three weeks, it makes newspaper and television headlines. Every statement scrutinised, every development examined intensively - even obsessively - as crime claims more column space and airtime than ever before.
Crime reporters with tight deadlines, hunt for exclusives, under constant pressure to stay ahead of the competition, even the police. And as urban crime rises, crime coverage is rising too. But critics call it - trial by media. Welcome to the prime time crime.
Tanseem Hyder, crime reporter of Aaj Tak, has been following the Arushi Talwar murder case every step of the way. He's been reporting on crime for nine years now. And this comes easily to him. For many, he's the typical hardened crime reporter.
But Hyder says his emotional graph has gone from shock and introspection in his early years, to a practiced sensitivity today.
Tanseem says, “I've seen so many dead bodies. People, who've lost their child, mother, father they're crying. I feel strange to shove a mike in their faces. Then I think, I'm a professional, it's necessary to show it on TV.”
Today, while covering the Arushi death case, Hyder is waiting with other journalists for Arushi's father, Rajesh Talwar, to be produced in court. While covering that top story, every development, big or small, must be tracked.
Any miss is a big miss. Reporters often stick together. Their phones are their lifelines, linking them to their all-important sources, who give them the inside dope.
“Not just morning, at night also, at 2 am sometimes, we're on phone with sources, colleagues, print reporters, Police control room, policemen, etc to see if there's some mishappening somewhere,” Tanseem said.
While covering the Arushi death case getting Dr Talwar’s reaction Tanseem said, “I tried to ask Talwar some questions if he had said something it'd have been big for any channel. That he finally opened his mouth. But he didn't say anything."
The broadcast vans are right there satellite dishes up and ready. It’s barely a minute of footage, but it must be aired immediately. Live reports are on every channel is soon carrying that latest update. In another court, the Nitish Katara verdict is out, and the Yadavs have been convicted.
Split-second decisions are taken to drop all other news. Every channel is on Arushi or the Katara case - anchors, reporters, experts on air for hours till the excitement dies down.
When reportage looks and sounds so similar on every channel, given the limited visuals and limited information available, the next thing the field reporter does to beat the competition is put pressure on his sources-often the police and lawyers.
Most sought after, is an exclusive from the horse's mouth. Recently, when Arushi's mother, Nupur Talwar, broke her silence with an interview, those camping for days outside the Talwar home felt let down.
Chief of Reporting Zee News Satish K Singh said, “I was there. Some people were called inside their house to interview Nupur Talwar. The media waiting there shouted, and made life hell for the people there. But when there is a free for all, what does it mean? Do you expect me to come from the spot of reporting without a report? What do I do?”
Metro now is a tabloid that has had the Arushi case on its cover page almost everyday since the story first broke.
Metro Now Editor and Crime Reporter Soni Sangwan said, “Basic bread and butter of a tabloid is crime, especially one which has ingredients like. It involves people like us, there is sex, there are young people, there's really gory crime, and then there's all this mystery.”
Tabloids and newspapers too are now devoting more space to crime and police stories, and that means more work for the crime reporter.
“Print reporters have a really tough job now. Because they're fighting with the minute to minute updates, the breaking news that comes on TV. So by the time my paper is going to reach my reader, he already knows the story. He already knows the day's developments. So what I've to give him is perspective,” Soni added.
Now anchoring three prime time crime shows, his appetite for crime, like that of his viewers, only seems to be growing.
Everyday, there's something new. Different stories, mysteries and twists. Everyday this sustains interest, and that's why it appeals. It's adventurous.
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