Jyoti Punwani: Reporting communalism -what's the English press aiming at?
Two newsworthy events took place recently which were consigned to the inside pages of national dailies. Nothing new in that, except that they contributed to the feeling among literate Muslims that the English press delights only in demonising them. The first was the arrest by the Bijapur (Karnataka) police of six Sri Ram Sene activists for hoisting a Pakistani flag at the office of the tehsildar of Sindhagi town on January 1. If that’s not sensational news, what is? The report quoted the police as saying that this was done to provoke communal violence.
In fact, the very persons who had hoisted the flag took to the streets against its hoisting, along with their cohorts in the Bajrang Dal and VHP, stoning police vehicles, burning tyres and taking out processions. The situation was so bad that the police asked shopkeepers to down shutters; the weekly market had to be cancelled, and State transport buses were taken off the road. The first reports spoke only about the flag being hoisted. These too were confined to the inside pages, perhaps wisely. But when the culprits were arrested four days later, that should have been front-page news. It would have exposed the mindset and the tactics of organisations such as the Sri Ram Sene. It would also have shown that though the Sri Ram Sene may attack manifestations of Western culture such as pubs and lovers who celebrate Valentine’s Day, they themselves don’t refrain from celebrating New Year’s Day, a Western celebration if ever there was one. The arrested youth had gone to Bijapur to celebrate New Year and hoisted the flag on their return.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, highlighting this sensational incident would have made many of those who doubt the patriotism of Muslims do a re-think. These are not aims that newspapers are supposed to fulfil, many journalists, specially news editors, who decide which item goes where, would argue. But the Press Council guidelines on reporting communal issues, issued in 2010, say: “Journalists and columnists owe a very special responsibility to their country in promoting communal peace and amity.” Editors would not have forgotten that during the investigation of the April 2006 Nanded blasts, which took place while some RSS boys were assembling bombs in an RSS member’s house, a fake beard was found in the house of one of the two youth who died in the blast. That was the initial pointer to the modus operandi of the RSS.
The Bijapur flag-hoisting only showed that even five years later, Hindutva organisations act as agent provocateurs to provoke communal violence. This is an even graver crime than actually indulging in communal violence. But no national newspaper thought fit to write an editorial on this.
Interestingly, the Sri Ram Sene has blamed the RSS for the flag-hoisting. The Sene was founded by an associate of Bal Thackeray, who continues to be not only a force in Maharashtra, but an inspiration for many. Surely that link should have been highlighted in an edit. Even viewed as an independent organisation, the Sri Ram Sene’s latest crime deserved more attention, given its history of violence. What if six Muslim youngsters had been arrested for hoisting the Pakistani flag in Bijapur? How would we have treated that news? Would the BJP, Karnataka’s ruling party, have allowed us to bury it? ..
http://thehoot.org/web/home/story.php?storyid=5685&mod=1&pg=1§ionId=10&valid=true
In fact, the very persons who had hoisted the flag took to the streets against its hoisting, along with their cohorts in the Bajrang Dal and VHP, stoning police vehicles, burning tyres and taking out processions. The situation was so bad that the police asked shopkeepers to down shutters; the weekly market had to be cancelled, and State transport buses were taken off the road. The first reports spoke only about the flag being hoisted. These too were confined to the inside pages, perhaps wisely. But when the culprits were arrested four days later, that should have been front-page news. It would have exposed the mindset and the tactics of organisations such as the Sri Ram Sene. It would also have shown that though the Sri Ram Sene may attack manifestations of Western culture such as pubs and lovers who celebrate Valentine’s Day, they themselves don’t refrain from celebrating New Year’s Day, a Western celebration if ever there was one. The arrested youth had gone to Bijapur to celebrate New Year and hoisted the flag on their return.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, highlighting this sensational incident would have made many of those who doubt the patriotism of Muslims do a re-think. These are not aims that newspapers are supposed to fulfil, many journalists, specially news editors, who decide which item goes where, would argue. But the Press Council guidelines on reporting communal issues, issued in 2010, say: “Journalists and columnists owe a very special responsibility to their country in promoting communal peace and amity.” Editors would not have forgotten that during the investigation of the April 2006 Nanded blasts, which took place while some RSS boys were assembling bombs in an RSS member’s house, a fake beard was found in the house of one of the two youth who died in the blast. That was the initial pointer to the modus operandi of the RSS.
The Bijapur flag-hoisting only showed that even five years later, Hindutva organisations act as agent provocateurs to provoke communal violence. This is an even graver crime than actually indulging in communal violence. But no national newspaper thought fit to write an editorial on this.
Interestingly, the Sri Ram Sene has blamed the RSS for the flag-hoisting. The Sene was founded by an associate of Bal Thackeray, who continues to be not only a force in Maharashtra, but an inspiration for many. Surely that link should have been highlighted in an edit. Even viewed as an independent organisation, the Sri Ram Sene’s latest crime deserved more attention, given its history of violence. What if six Muslim youngsters had been arrested for hoisting the Pakistani flag in Bijapur? How would we have treated that news? Would the BJP, Karnataka’s ruling party, have allowed us to bury it? ..
http://thehoot.org/web/home/story.php?storyid=5685&mod=1&pg=1§ionId=10&valid=true
