Sources Of the Media

Media today exists on a complex and delicate network of breaking news, scandalous story discoveries, sting operations, out of the box shows, unique format soaps – a mix of clutter breaking competition-oriented rat race for TRP’s and readers. The Indian media circuit is setting and breaking the boundaries and limits.

Indian media is a phenomenon that is attaining puberty. After its true birth post -liberalization in 1991 she is now exploring and discovering titillating facts about her abilities – sometimes hideous, interesting, sometimes scandalous and rebellious like a curious virgin. The scribes, staff reporters, free lancers, the common man are the sources of the media. The press agencies help to fill the pages and sell the broad sheet copies albeit with lack of credit.

Media is dependent, to a large extent, for its success on various factors – one of them being sources. These sources could be anybody associated with media houses working on mutual benefit, an actress of the elite class wanting to divulge her share of venom on spicy gossip, a tip off agent divulging data about the underworld’s going-ons, it could be a hoax call by an anonymous person not wanting to be known giving information to the media. But all these would want to give the media what the masses want to hear. In media, people always crave for their part of identity and credit to be visible in the news- it is their claim to be noticed by the people.

The staff reporters and free lancers shoulder a lot of responsibility, to deal with the other types of sources – tip offs, ‘khubris’ and providers of media who are happy to watch the show from side as the news is played out.

These identity thrilled individuals provide media with its daily mouthful feed, and it is these sources that surrogatively run the media industry today. These sources often help in the cracking of cases before the judiciary; it is this investigative journalism that results in the media being guilty of the contempt of law. In case of a lawsuit against the media, it is not possible for media to defend itself as the information derived from these sources is not documented. Hence, it is the Media that takes place of the villain in public domain.

It is time that the media takes charge of the content that it lets out, because these sources sometimes work on ‘first come first serve’ basis meaning that the news was a sale object to be given to the highest bidder. Unfortunately, the media falls prey to such sources. The media needs to look upon its habit of filling the pages with the help of these sources as it undermines the very basic principle of news ethics that the news should be completely verified of its genuine nature before it is given to the public.

To the public ‘seeing is believing’ contrasts with the fact that ‘Media is a business’. The media should not fall to the anti-side of the law that its credibility is questioned every time a news item comes to the fore. The Indian media is at a stage that practices followed today can play an important role in shaping its future. The sources are important in their role to provide the public with news that concerns their lives, yet the media needs to build confidence in itself, so that it does not tend to turn towards the sources thereby diluting its purpose as the Fourth Estate.

© This article was published in the Jai Hind College BMM Magazine 2009-10.

By SM