Television news channels is the last refuge of the scoundrel

When life can change in a matter of seconds…

Pardon me for line that I had plagiarized from an ad of Tata DoCoMo, but then I just could not let it go. It all started like any other day for Y S Rajasekhara Reddy seeking to reach out to a remote village down south of Andhra Pradesh. Sadly, the helicopter went missing and after a frantic search, the bodies of YSR and others with him on the ill-fated flight were located.

What followed since then has been an unending debate on the telugu television channels on the hows and whys of the crash, with experts of every type trying to fool gullible viewers with mumbo jumbo. Once the chaotic funeral was done with, the battle for C Block began. Joining in the mess was a host of telugu news channels with their own agenda. Endless sound bytes, discussions and gibberish and finally the news channels realized that their hidden agenda would not make 10 Janpath budge from moving Konjeti Rosaiah from the C Block.

There was one specific incident that was repeatedly played out on the channels which showed their true colours. It was the tearing down of the flex at Khammam that was construed as an insult to Madam and that was blasphemy. After the initial blame on Jagan Bhajan gang, some telugu news channels discovered that one of the guys who did the war dance after tearing down the flex was a supporter of Renuka Chowdary. So they went after this man and forced him to confess that he did this at the prodding of Mrs Chowdhary. The man in question denied that he had anything to do with her. No insisted one TV correspondent, you have been hired by Renuka. The man denied only to be threatened by the correspondent and finally they came to blows. Welcome to the world of telugu news channels.

The craze to own a telugu news channel started a few years ago when Srini Raju after his exit from Satyam launched TV 9. To be fair to Srini, the channel was a breath of fresh air,with jazzy studios, pretty anchors and of course the ubiquitous OB vans. As is the wont in Andhra every time someone strikes gold with a new line of business, all others jump in. History is replete with instances where people who jumped into pharma, aquaculture, granites, floriculture, software without knowing the basics of that business. The first thing they did was to go for a public issue, buy cars, build fancy houses and then disappear. SEBI has a list of such people from Hyderabad who swindled gullible investors and are listed as missing. Of course, they are still around and you can spot them in pubs, parties and weddings.

It was said that Politics is the last refuge of the scoundrel. Now you can change that to News Television Channels. From owners of Chit fund companies to real estate contractors and just about anyone wants to own a telugu news channel. Why a news channel you might ask me , why not an entertainment channel? The answer lies in the fact being the owner of a news channel gives a cloak of respectability, albeit wolf masquerading as a sheep. So if you have a dozen criminal cases listed against your name, buy a news channel and no cop can dare arrest you. There are many people in Hyderabad who are roaming around with a few hundred crores in their pockets.

The shameful act of ‘I want publicity at any cost’ was repeated during the recent floods in Kurnool and Mahabubnagar districts. In the name of rescuing people, TV correspondents hired boats and went looking for victims, and when they located some unfortunate souls thrust a mike with the logo of their channel prominently displayed and asked them “How are you feeling?”. What a question to ask a poor man who had nothing to eat for over 24 hours. I would have slapped that reporter if I come face to face with him.

Actually you cannot blame the poor reporter or his colleagues many of whom are not paid salaries for months on end. They are under instructions from their bosses to get sound bytes and visuals at any cost. Later the shameless act went on in the fund raising and distribution of relief material. If you want to do something good, why make such a big hue and cry about it. The best charity is done with no noise. Learn from organisations like Red Cross, Oxfam and Medecins sans Frontieres. They are into charity care all through the year but do not make a song and dance about it.

I am a part of this mob, but thankfully I never took a plot of land from the government nor did I accept any bribe from any corporate big wig. One has to just walk into a press conference and see the way some journalists gorge on food as if they have not eaten for days. At one time journalism was considered a noble profession – but it’s no longer that way. The telugu news channels have proved that the profession as reached its nadir. I hang my head in shame. My only hope is these news channels shut down at the earliest and end this farce.