Forwarding a mail from an aggrieved television viewer. I couldnt agree more
with him. Ethics and sensitivity towards the plight of other human beings
are not qualities that are urgently needed only by the much maligned
political class. The electronic media coverage of teh Mumbai mayhem was
crass, shallow and aimed to pander to the lowest qualities in human
nature. - Diana Pinto
Dear All.....!!!
We always blame the police for not doing their jobs. How can they do their
jobs when we have our journalists feed vital information to the terrorists.
On the Times News channel when there was a panel of speakers called online,
there was an Isreali person by the name of Dr. Kedar on the panel. Even Dr.
Kedar had specified that the constant airing of live news with all the
information was working in favour of the terrorists and the their counter
parts controlling this operation from some other part of the world.
Read the below email.
Appalling journalism. Absolute blasphemy! As I watch the news from home, I
am dumbfounded to see Barkha Dutt of NDTV break every rule of ethical
journalism in reporting theMumbai mayhem. Take a couple of instances for
example:
· In one instance she asks a husband about his wife being stuck, or
held as a hostage. The poor guy adds in the end about where she was last
hiding. Aired! My dear friends with AK-47s, our national news is helping
you. Go get those still in. And be sure to thank NDTV for not censoring this
bit of information.
· In another instance, a General sort of suggests that there were no
hostages in Oberoi Trident. (Clever.) Then, our herione of revelations calls
the head of Oberoi, and the idiot confirms a possibility of 100 or more
people still in the building. Hello! Guys with guns, you've got more goats
to slay. But before you do, you've got to love NDTV and more precisely Ms.
Dutt. She's your official intelligence from Ground zero.
You do not need to be a journalist to understand the basic premise of
ethics, which starts with protecting victims first; and that is done by
avoiding key information from being aired publiclyâ?"such as but not limited
to revealing the number of possible people still in, the hideouts of
hostages and people stuck in buildings.
Imagine you're one of those sorry souls holed-up in one of those bathrooms,
or kitchens. A journalist pulls your kin outside and asks about your last
contact on national television, and other prying details. In a bout of
emotion, if they happen to reveal more details, you are sure going to hell.
Remember these are hotels, where in all likelihood, every room has a
television. All a terrorist needs to do is listen to Ms. Barkha Dutt's
latest achievement of extracting information from your relative, based on
your last phone-call or SMS. And you're shafted courtesy NDTV.1
If the terrorists don't manage to shove you in to your private hell, the
journalists on national television will certainly help you get there. One of
the criticisms about Barkha Dutt on Wikipedia reads thus:
During the Kargil conflict, Indian Army sources repeatedly complained to her
channel that she was giving away locations in her broadcasts, thus causing
Indian casualties.
Looks like the idiot journalist has not learnt anything since then. I join a
number of bloggers pleading her to shut the f*** up.
Update: In fact, I am willing to believe that Hemant Karkare died because
these channels showed him prepare (wear helmet, wear bullet-proof vest.) in
excruciating detail live on television. And they in turn targeted him where
he was unprotected. The brave officer succumbed to bullets in the neck.
