JOURNALISM - A Flawed Perspective

Journalism is one of the world’s most respected and reputed profession. It takes a good amount of years to become a decent sort of Journalist. They are a source of information for all of us. If they don’t exist, then I’m pretty sure that the world’s information will be very hard to combine. News channels, Newspapers, Weekly Periodicals, Magazines, etc. are some of the best sources for updating yourself with the daily affairs. Journalists are being blindly trusted all around the universe and it is being assumed that they will project the true picture of the real world.

It was being considered as a Non-Economic activity in many of the countries, but in the modern era, the definition of Journalism is getting changed. Irresponsibility is highly prevalent nowadays in this profession. Politeness is missing from the Media. The debate shows are now being conducted not to come to a conclusion, but to showcase immoral and harsh behavior on the national television. Advertisements and Sponsor messages are in plenty of amounts and sometimes they even overshadow the main informative content. They have become a source of Marketing basically with a Pop-Up advertisement gets emerges after every minute, making the TV screens gets parted in two different directions. Sometimes it becomes very difficult to identify that whether we are watching any news channel or we are simply understanding the benefits of adopting SWADESHI through Shri Baba Ramdev of Patanjali. Who cares..???

Journalists also act as they are bigger than the Judge of the Supreme Court of the country. Just on the basis of a single rumor or a viral story, the reporters’ exhibit their assumptions in a manner that they are the ones who have all the correct details regarding the whole story. Exaggerated claims always make their presence felt during the telecast. They can spend 3-4 days to run the proceedings on the same topic, which are being supported with the irrelevant taglines such as ‘Maut ka Bathtub’ being used during the recent celebrities’ death. They also show their speed through the shows like SUPERFAST 200 where after 130 news a commercial is being shown and after the commercial, the countdown begins from 180. 

Are they working during the commercials as well…??? Maybe…!!!

Print Media is also having its own story. One thing that surprises me a lot is to believe in the fact that on daily basis only that much news arises in the whole world that can get covered in the 16 Pages of a Newspaper. Still, as compared to the digital media, it is more affordable and having high proximity. There also advertisements overshadows the main content and with the time, the evolution of technology has started to make the newspaper obsolete. All the newspaper and magazine agencies are getting themselves registered over the Android and Apple’s OS through the Apps. And we also have started to dislike it because of many reasons.

More focus on profiteering and entertainment has made today’s Journalism a questionable practice. Simply saying anything from their own perspectives and keeping the major facts hidden in order to maintain the viewer’s interest always creates a negative image of them in the eyes of the audience, whether they believe it or not. The provoking way of communication should be strictly removed and must not be used by any journalist. In the name of journalism, profiteering should not take place. It is wrong and highly unethical.

I’m not saying this from the position of an inexperienced blogger/writer, I’m saying this all as I also belong to the same target audience. This is what I feel as a recipient of all the news that I attain after watching such shows. Conducting debates and discussions by involving the participants who do not like each other has become an obsolete tactic to gain a large number of tele-viewers. This must be avoided if they really want to gain the lost trust.

I would also love to know about your views on the today’s practice of Journalism. What according to you should be avoided in today’s journalism…?

Give your answers in the comment box.

Thanks & Regards

Sahil Jain