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Jan302009
Are We a Free Country?
The picture on the left shows a screenshot from NDTV’s website, where they exclusively discusses the topic of moral policing. What caught my attention to this portion is the title of the discussion - A free country? And I couldn’t help but ponder about the same question now on the light of NDTV allegedly suing an Indian blogger from Netherlands. Are we still living in a free country and is our freedom of speech protected?
It all started out with the blogger Chyetanya Kunte (link from Google cache) blogging about 26/11 like the rest of us. And it contained an external reference (from Wikipedia) about Ms. Dutt’s reporting from Kargil. The blogger did not say/accuse anything which has not been said/accused before. But it looks like the folks at NDTV decided to sue the blogger and asked for an apology. What we see now in his blog is an ‘unconditional apology‘ and he has taken down the blog post.
I agree that it is okay to take offense. NDTV or Barkha Dutt is very well within their rights to take offense. But is suing the blogger the way to solve the matter? And suing for what? Drawing an external reference in his post? The media all over talks about the freedom of speech, liberal values and such. Especially NDTV and Barkha Dutt in particular have always talked about such causes in the recent past. But now this incident makes me wonder if all of it was just a business/marketing stunt. We have a lot of pseudo-liberals in our world anyway.
Much of the criticism that has been raised against the television media during the 26/11 terrorist attacks were genuine. We as the people of this country who help you get on with your business (don’t tell me that journalism is all about social commitment and such cliched things), holds the right to criticize the media’s wrong actions because it affects us, the people of India. Sometimes in a sharp manner, when it is needed. And if the media had cared a bit about professionalism, professional ethics and their commitment towards the society and the country, they would have taken corrective measures. But instead they go around suing people.
And it is interesting to note that the other media houses are so far silent on this issue. Scratching each others’ backs, perhaps? Sardesai ji?
And to Barkha Dutt:
I had high regards for you Maam. I even used to talk in support of you when so many people - men and women - were against you and your journalistic ways. I had thought that they were plain jealous. I thought you were a courageous woman for which I had admired you, but are you really such a fragile, insecure person who can’t take a critique or talk/discuss/debate it? (you still host that show “We The People“, right?) Or is it just that people when they are placed in the higher positions in their professions or develop a larger-than-life image in the society that they live in, become more intolerant because their ego shoots up?
The message that you are sending out to the liberal community of India and the world with this incident doesn’t look so good on you or your TV channel, Maam. Think about it. And we as bloggers of India are not going to just shut up and go scared.
Shame on you. And shame on NDTV.
The views expressed in this post are those of the writer and are not necessarily endorsed by Mutiny.in
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Brijesh
001
11:22 pm
Whom are you calling maam?! What are you being so queasy about?
It was a very bad biz strategy from NDTV. Period. Now, they have to apologize for this episode of they will be written off in the blogosphere. I am hoping they will do the right thing.
Rockus
002
2:30 am
Excellent post. You are right about ego shoot-up. Many of our journos and other public figures floats in the air once they become popular. Its more terrible for the journos since they are supposed to be connected with the people and their sentiments.
Hari Nair
003
4:59 am
Good Post. This should be highlighted far and wide in the blogosphere, so that these media agencies dont take people for a ride. There was nothing offensive in the article to merit a legal action from NDTV.
Chacko
004
9:54 am
She is my friend on facebook, since we are both from the same college. I asked her for an interview on the Mutiny but no response from her. Yet.
just_passing
005
3:53 pm
Why are you guys surprised? ever heard of “war for news”? Those guys were snuffed out of existence for snooping around our media bigwigs, Barkha madam included
almostinfamous
006
6:39 pm
the question in your title cannot be answered(if at all you are curious and not merely using a rhetorical q) without defining what you mean by freedom.
the answer is a mixture - many people are free, many others are not.
this whole incident is patently ridiculous since it is utter speculation without more than a shred of actual information.
Natarajan
007
10:41 pm
Yes. It looks like NDTV might have been better off without taking the legal option.
sanjukta
008
3:49 pm
I see, NDTV / Ms. Dutt should have probably taken legal opinion from the above commentators here and then taken an action. You all are such great legal experts no?
Please talk to some real lawyer and then form an opinion on whether she had a case or not. Any small or big lawyer would tell you that she damn well did have a case and Mr. Kunte would have been in big trouble if he didn’t give an apology.
Lesson learnt: We bloggers are not above law. In your criticism you cannot overstep the limits of decency and respect, freedom of speech must have a reasonable restriction. For a really unbiased view read Mr. Prem Panicker’s post http://tinyurl.com/az7qmh
Venkatesh Sridhar
009
12:34 am
@Sanjukta,
No one is denying NDTV & Barkha Dutt had a right to take offense. But what about when Ms. Dutt calls Narendra Modi a mass murderer when he is not convicted by any court of law. If Modi sued her she would be feted by the rest of the media for taking Modi on and Modi will be panned for not letting her exercise her right to speech, why should Barkha Dutt get more rights than you or me?
Barkha Dutt has called George W Bush a mass murderer. How can she justify calling him that. That’s a clear slander, wouldn’t you be upset if someone called you a mass murderer much more than being called shoddy at your job?
So, are you telling me just because she has access to a huge corporate media resources and a cameras and a microphone she has got more rights than you and me?
mitesh
010
1:30 am
hi
first time i read here about ndtv and barkha dutt this incident, if this really happend then i think NDTV should have debate on this topic, it will give them max TRP in the history of tv channels.
as here u are discussing this matter i think After so much fame,but i dont think tv channels have done anything wrong in reoparing 26/11
first time we have seen the power of media ,3 ministers have to resign .
well done media. ,Those terrorist were hightly trained,they fought for more than 2 days ,do you think they got time to listen news. while fighting with our brave Nsg commandoes. ,just imagine the fight ,u will realise no body inside got the time to watch news and make plan .
Eternal Truth
011
3:32 am
Jo, thanks for bringing this up. I felt exactly the same when I read this news.
NDTV/Barkha accuse different personalities/organizations on their channel 100 times a day without any substantial evidence but when someone did that against them, they are now all pissed off.
Ashish
012
9:19 pm
As the saying goes, Might is right, ND TV has showed its muscles again.
I hope this opens up eyes of ignorant people who believes media is always right.
First of all they are into business of making money through the news.
So business comes first and news second.
I am not surprised that NDTV acted in the agressive manner.
I believe that in future bloggers will play a huge role in the free media, not commercial press.
Just to cheer up fellow bloggers, Majority of founding father of Indian congress owned some kind of news paper or published articles and all.
“Kalam se hi kranti aati hein”.
Keep writing and keep exposing people.
Good day.
The MM
013
9:55 pm
What else can we expect of NDTV? They get angry when someone tells them the truth about Ms. Dutt and NDTV. In the latest incident, they tried to portray a Mangalore pub brawl, involving a few boys/girls as some form of Hindu Taliban. It is expected that people will laugh at them and they are welcome to sue but the courts might laugh at them as well.