Media & Credibility, these two words are seldom used together. Historically, media has always been dominated by left-wing pseudo intellectuals. Their only claim to fame is their proximity to power circles in lutyens Delhi & over-usage of oxford dictionary. Conventional media has become a propaganda tool for left-wing ideology.
The media space required for an alternate ideology in a true bipolar democracy has never been provided by the mainstream Indian media. This is the reason why political events in India have always flummoxed the arm-chair media in lutyens Delhi. Going by the political discourse dictated by lutyens media, the scale & spectacular success of Ram Janmabhoomi movement cannot be explained. Emergency imposed by Indira Gandhi government in 1975 exposed all the pseudo liberalism of Indian media, when it was asked to bend by the then government, it began to crawl. With the exception of media giants like Ramnath Goenka, media proved itself to be a government stooge. Lutyens media must realize that they don't have proprietorship over what they define as 'Idea of India'.
What has now hurt lutyens media is not the clampdown on freedom of speech but their loss of undeclared monopoly over political discourse in India. In this digital social media age, it's the voice of the previously silent Indian majority which is making noise. Lutyens media is unable to digest the fact that previously silent Indian middle-class has become politically opinionated. Previously, political discourse in India was unilateral. The agenda was set by the media & right to express your opinion was a privilege exercised by lutyens media intellectuals. But today, social media has provided a platform where the intellectual caste divide doesn't exist anymore. Today, India is more opinionated than ever before. 2014 elections demonstrated the rise of the silent Indian majority. Going by the media debates from 2012 to 2014, the rise of Modi just cannot be explained. But social media discourse perfectly captured the mood of Indian masses.
NDTV's cry over one day ban is not about freedom of speech. It's their cry over being held accountable & being questioned by the government. Lutyens media has never been scrutinized. Accountability is fundamental in any democracy. Mainstream media must use this as an opportunity to re-establish itself as what they should be-The 4th pillar of democracy. Frankly, today lutyens media is heading towards irrelevancy. If they still believe that majority in India can be dictated by their debates then it's the time for them to pack their boots. Practically, it's the social media which is actually the voice of the people today because the agenda & discourse is decided by 'We, the people of India' and not 'We, the people of Lutyens Delhi'.
The media space required for an alternate ideology in a true bipolar democracy has never been provided by the mainstream Indian media. This is the reason why political events in India have always flummoxed the arm-chair media in lutyens Delhi. Going by the political discourse dictated by lutyens media, the scale & spectacular success of Ram Janmabhoomi movement cannot be explained. Emergency imposed by Indira Gandhi government in 1975 exposed all the pseudo liberalism of Indian media, when it was asked to bend by the then government, it began to crawl. With the exception of media giants like Ramnath Goenka, media proved itself to be a government stooge. Lutyens media must realize that they don't have proprietorship over what they define as 'Idea of India'.
What has now hurt lutyens media is not the clampdown on freedom of speech but their loss of undeclared monopoly over political discourse in India. In this digital social media age, it's the voice of the previously silent Indian majority which is making noise. Lutyens media is unable to digest the fact that previously silent Indian middle-class has become politically opinionated. Previously, political discourse in India was unilateral. The agenda was set by the media & right to express your opinion was a privilege exercised by lutyens media intellectuals. But today, social media has provided a platform where the intellectual caste divide doesn't exist anymore. Today, India is more opinionated than ever before. 2014 elections demonstrated the rise of the silent Indian majority. Going by the media debates from 2012 to 2014, the rise of Modi just cannot be explained. But social media discourse perfectly captured the mood of Indian masses.
NDTV's cry over one day ban is not about freedom of speech. It's their cry over being held accountable & being questioned by the government. Lutyens media has never been scrutinized. Accountability is fundamental in any democracy. Mainstream media must use this as an opportunity to re-establish itself as what they should be-The 4th pillar of democracy. Frankly, today lutyens media is heading towards irrelevancy. If they still believe that majority in India can be dictated by their debates then it's the time for them to pack their boots. Practically, it's the social media which is actually the voice of the people today because the agenda & discourse is decided by 'We, the people of India' and not 'We, the people of Lutyens Delhi'.
