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Tuesday, 13 November 2018
Thursday, 8 November 2018
Column | Window Seat
Window Seat | Mrinal Chatterjee
Public Service Broadcasting
November 12, is observed as the
Public Service Broadcasting Day in India to commemorate Mahatma Gandhi’s maiden
visit to All India Radio (AIR) studio. On November 12, 1947, Mahatma Gandhi
spoke on radio to the refugees from Pakistan, stationed at the camp at
Kurukshetra. It was Gandhi’s first and last visit to the studio of AIR. He was
a communicator par excellence. He had always emphasised on the service and
advocacy aspect of media, two important pillars of public service broadcasting.
Public Service Broadcasting (PSB) is
the broadcasting made, financed and controlled by the public, for the public.
It is neither commercial nor state-owned. It is supposed to be free from
political interference and pressure from commercial forces. Through PSB,
citizens are informed, educated and also entertained. When guaranteed with
pluralism, programming diversity, editorial independence, appropriate funding,
accountability and transparency, PSB can serve as a cornerstone of democracy.
The roots of public service
broadcasting are generally traced to documents prepared in support of the
establishment of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) by Royal Charter on
January 1, 1927.
All India Radio and then Doordarshan
had adopted the Public Service Broadcasting (PSB) model from their inception.
However there have been challenges to this model, mostly from financial aspect.
With the proliferation of cable and satellite television from late 80s,
market-driven content began to gain prominence. Mainstream media tried to cater
to the want of paying public and not to their need. This created a situation,
where it is difficult to find a sane voice amidst cacophony. PSB is and will
always be relevant and required as a watchdog of democracy.
Manali
Located at 6398 feet above the sea level and little above 8,000
population as per 2011 census Manali ought to be a quiet small town; ‘honeymoon
capital’ that is what some websites say. Film actress Kangana Ranaut has a bungalow there- says another website.
Rohtang Pass is just about 50 odd km and you can ski there, says yet another
website. Now I can’t really tell what
enticed me to plan a trip there with family including my 77 years old mother.
At first site Manali seemed to have far too many hotels and tourists that it
can possibly accommodate. So you can see civic amenities bursting at the seams.
We stayed at a wooden log house at the PWD
Circuit House, located adjacent to a small forest of Deodar and Chinar trees,
walking distance from the Mall Road, the main shopping centre of the town. We
explored the town by foot, which I believe is the best way to explore a place
you have never been to. We went to Hidimba Temple, stopped at every bend of the
road to look at the snow-capped mountains, also at roadside tea shops to strike
conversation with the locals, who were courteous and friendly, tried to buy
trinkets, which we found priced very expensively. We saw the Ramleela
procession in which the characters danced and also did acrobatics. We found
couple of restaurants serving Bengali food, which was cooked very badly and was
prohibitively high-priced.
And then my wife demanded, “Show me some real
ice, which I can roll into a ball and throw at you.” We were advised to visit
Rohtang Pass to do that. So next morning off we went to Rohtang Pass.
Rohtang Pass
At 13050 feet, Rohtang Pass that connects Kullu valley with Lahul and
Spiti valley is not an easy place to go. In fact the name Rohtang means 'ground of corpses' due to the number
of people who lost their lives trying to cross it. This pass is an
ancient trade route between the people on either side of Pir Panjal.
But though travelling to
Rothang Pass is still difficult, given the erratic weather and heavy snow fall
in the winter months- now it happens to be one of
the most popular tourist spot in Himachal Pradesh attracting over two hundred
thousand tourists per year.
From tourism point of view, this place is amazing. You can roll on snow.
Throw ice balls. Ski. In fact Rohtang Pass is all about
soaking in nature’s might and beauty. Apart from trekking across the rustic
terrain, there are a plenty of adventure activities in and around Rohtang Pass.
Once at this place, live your dreams to be on the alps in Switzerland.
However, one note of caution: there could be altitude sickness. So take
adequate medicine and drink plenty of water.
Diwali in Delhi
I was in Delhi
just about a week before Diwali. The bazars were preparing for Diwali bass. My
friends in Delhi were apprehensive about the pollution on Diwali evening,
despite Supreme Court directions and guidelines.
Pratyush one of
my former students, presently working in mainstream journalism in Delhi wrote
in his social media page:
If you live in NCR, are literate enough to
read newspapers, old enough to understand the implications and yet burst
crackers, here's my Diwali wishes for you - may you die sooner than later
because you are digging a grave for all of us.
As I am writing this column, just after Diwali- I found Delhi is full of
graves dug recently.
Tailpiece: Importance of Documentation
A Bank
Manager was travelling by train. When the train started, He was traveling alone
in the AC-I coupe. Sometime later, a beautiful lady came and sat on the
opposite berth!
Bank Manager
was pleasantly happy. The lady smiled at him. This made him happier. Then she
went and sat next to him. Bank Manager was bubbling with joy.
She then
leant towards him and whispered in his ear, "Hand over all your cash,
cards and mobile phone to me , else I will shout loudly and tell everybody that
you are harassing and misbehaving with me"
Manager
stared blankly at her. After a while he took out a paper and a pen from his bag
and wrote, "I am sorry, I cannot hear or speak. Please write on this paper
whatever you want to say"
The lady
wrote everything what she said earlier and gave it to him!
Banker took
her note, kept it nicely in his pocket...got up and told her in clear tones...”Now
shout and scream !!”
Moral of the story: DOCUMENTATION IS
VERY IMPORTANT IN "ME TOO" AGE !!
(Courtesy: Social Media)
***
The author, a journalist turned media academician lives in Central
Odisha town of Dhenkanal. He has co-edited an anthology of lectures and essays
on ‘Mahatma Gandhi: A Journalist and Editor’ with Snehasis Sur, which has
recently been released at Delhi.
11.11.18
This column is published every Sunday in Gangtok based English daily Sikkim Express and www.orissadiary.com
Wednesday, 7 November 2018
Days in November
Days in November
Media friends may plan stories around the theme/issue.
Nov. 11: National Education Day
Nov. 12: Public Service B’casting Day
Nov. 14 Childrens’ Day
Nov. 16 National Press Day | International Day for Tolerance
Nov 19: World Toilet Day
Nov. 21: World Television Day, World Fisheries Day
Nov. 25: International Day for Elimination of Violence against Women
Monday, 5 November 2018
Friday, 2 November 2018
Column | Window Seat
Window Seat | Mrinal
Chatterjee
Language Journalism
From 1818 to 2018, the language
journalism in India has completed 200 years. From being the country cousin of
English language journalism (which began in India in 1780), it has grown and by
the millennium overtaken it in terms of size, reach, impact and financial
health- except in some states in the North-east like Mizoram, Manipur, Nagaland
and Sikkim.
Consider the figures. Out of the top
ten circulated newspapers in India, only two are in English language. There are
more viewers for language news channels than the English. In entertainment
sector, language channels rule the roost. In digital dunia too, language sites are gaining ground fast. They are getting
more hits and retaining more visitors for more time than their English language
counterparts.
So in a way, the prospect for language
journalism is bright. As more and more people become literate, more people will
engage with language media. More mass-engagement will translate into more impact.
Regional media will gradually become socially and politically more powerful.
This will eventually create more financial opportunities attracting larger and
pan-national players. If that happens, then there will be a significant
improvement in the financial health of language journalism. This might create a
situation which will demand content quality advancement. This will create a
demand for better and trained human resources, which will then create a demand
for quality media education.
However, ironically, some of the
prospects can also become challenges. As
language media becomes socially and politically more powerful, larger players
with deeper pockets and probably lighter conscience will enter into the media
market to harness financial or other benefits. As language media becomes
socially and politically more powerful, and acquire the potential to be
financially beneficial, it will attract more players. This might improve the
general quality or there can be a tendency to sensationalize/trivialize, especially
in case of visual media. As language media becomes socially and politically
more powerful, there will a growing tendency to control it. With coalition politics showing no sign of
abetting and regional political parties gaining (or attempting to gain) more
ground language journalism will be cross promoted by political parties. As more
money flows into language media world, the general financial health improves
and average media house gains more. But, whether media-workers will gain out of
it or not- will depend on their bargaining power and demand for the quality
product by the consumers.
Indian Institute of Mass Communication
(IIMC), a premier mass communication teaching, training and research
organisation under Ministry of I & B organised a two days Seminar on
Language Journalism on 29 and 30 October. Media academicians and practitioners
from across the country discussed and deliberated on various aspects language
journalism, especially the prospect and challenge areas. Most of the
participants agreed on one point that the growth of language journalism goes
well with the federal structure of the country. However, there is always the
threat of ethnocentrism- about which we need to be vigilant.
Halloween
I had heard about Halloween, but had never seen or
participated in one. I saw one on 31 October- in an apartment in Delhi. At the
ground floor lift I saw a cute little girl dressed like a black cat. As I went
to the apartment of the lady who had invited me for dinner- I found two mothers
waiting for their kids to return. I asked, where had they gone? Halloween
party, they replied.
Few minutes later two kids enter- one dressed like half cat
and half witch; and the other a cute looking demon. They had a bag full of
toffees and cookies and they were mighty happy about getting these, as their
animated conversation showed.
I searched the net to know more about Halloween and found out
that it evolved from the ancient Celtic holiday of Samhain. Over the centuries
Halloween transitioned from a pagan agrarian ritual to Christian influenced
ritual to a day of parties, costumes, jack-o-lanterns and trick-or-treating for
kids and adults- across Europe. With time and as the British went to colonise
other lands it travelled to North America and then to USA and elsewhere. In USA
it became very popular and over time acquired a fun quotient.
It reached India with the British. However, it became popular
only in recent years.
I liked the idea of kids dressing up in fancy and cute
disguises and going from door to door demanding treats like cookies and
toffees. I remember in our childhood on Bijaya Dashami day, we used to go
neighbourhood houses and were treated with sweets and snacks. The different is
we used to pay obeisance to the elders and used to hug our friends- now the
kids threaten us with ‘trick or treat’ and force us to give them cookies-
lovingly of course.
Tail-piece: English!
Two individuals proceeded towards the apex of a
natural geologic protuberance, the purpose of their expedition being the
procurement of a sample of fluid hydride of oxygen in a large vessel, the exact
size of which was unspecified. One member of the team precipitously descended,
sustaining severe damage to the upper cranial portion of his anatomical structure;
subsequently the second member of the team performed a self-rotational
translation oriented in the same direction taken by the first team member.
Shashi Tharoorised version
of the nursery rhyme:
Jack and Jill went up the hill
........
(Courtesy: Social Media)
***
The
author, a journalist turned media academician lives in Central Odisha town of
Dhenkanal. He has co-edited an anthology of lectures and essays on ‘Mahatma
Gandhi: A Jouirnalist and Editor’ with Snehasis Sur, which has recently been
released at Delhi.
4.11.18
This column is published every Sunday in Gangtok based English daily Sikkim Express and www.orissadiary.com
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