STINK IN THE TALE

The outrageous stink operation in the capital, framing a school teacher, should make us hang our heads in shame. It may have been the handiwork of a Hindi news channel on the fringes, which needed a big stunt to bring attention. But what about the outbreak of violence outside the school which followed?

Was it a spontaneous public reaction or did the mob chew on generous dollops of footage and vox pops (reactions taken from the person on the street) relentlessly fed on TV? Of course, relentless violence is standout headline material.

Broadcasters urgently need to formulate a code of conduct without being pushed by the government. The last thing we want is a broadcast bill with the government and its content auditor (one per news channel) breathing down our neck. But with such wanton acts of headline-manufacturing, the media's moral high ground of protecting its independence looks more and more shaky.

I've come across meticulously planned and executed sting operations. A case in point being Aaj Tak-Headlines Today's Operation Duryodhan which exposed MPs accepting cash for raising questions in Parliament. Some senior editorial figures and video editos were missing for weeks, while the official word was that they were ill or on vacation. And all the extensive background effort showed in a watertight expose.

But then it was a sting operation dealing with Big Fishes and nothing could be left to chance. Editorial rigour goes for a toss when it comes to exposing small fry.

Will news channels, especially those of the Hindi ilk, unite and ensure there is a rigorous internal screening exercise confirming the veracity after a sting operation is carried out? Once something is aired, it takes ages to come out of a damaged reputation, even if the story has a faked conclusion thanks to clever camerawork and even cleverer editing. In the recent case, Uma Khurana may not be entirely innocent, but has certainly got a raw deal.

The other increasingly emerging danger to law and order is stringers (local reporters who are paid per assignment and not regular employees) eager to make a fast buck by selling footage, preferably violent clashes between groups and incidents of mob fury against wrongdoers, real or imagined. Covering and faithfully recording such incidents is one thing, but what if these stringers themselves incite mobs and encourage them to persist with their violent acts? I've seen a lot of unedited footage which looks staged, with the 'agitated' crowd looking more like performing to the moves of the camera. We have dropped many such 'doctored' headlines but some have regrettably passed editorial scrutiny, riding high on the quest for fresh headlines.

Images from Bhagalpur, when a man was beaten up by a mob and dragged behind a bike by local policemen, caused nationwide horror recently. Undoubtedly shocking and deplorable, but I can't help asking whether the stringer who shot the visuals played his part in encouraging the mob frenzy.
The electronic media is galloping at a frenetic pace with each and every player looking for 'breaking news' to stand out. It can be argued that sensationalising is a necessary evil in a young industry, but what if news is manufactured? Let truth remain stranger than fiction and not the other way round.