The only war we need to be waging for India is against mainstream media today. Instead of asking tough questions of the govt., it joyfully becomes its mouthpiece. Instead of reporting with restraint and responsibility, it fuels the flow of fake news with hyperbole and imprecise visuals. Instead of reporting all sides of a story, it shouts down at speakers it does not agree with. Mainstream media in India no longer represents the marginalized, the oppressed, the ones seeking justice, or ones deserving of being heard by society. Media wilfully instigates witch-hunts, engages in hate speech, dramatizes events to the point of gross inaccuracy. It is media that has become unfaithful to everything - it no longer displays loyalty to journalistic ethics, nor is it concerned with the state of the nation. We had all hoped that Privatization gave Media the autonomy to do its job that it struggled to perform under the state’s control. Instead, the market has transformed it into a cheap hawker, peddling anything that sells, so long as they get a bone thrown at them, by the govt., by the corporate, or by the dark evil called Television Rating Points. Media only wants itself to be heard. And it barks into our faces. The watchdog has turned into a rabid dog.
