We and the media

When was the last time you saw a newspaper praising the government for something it had done, not just Indian media to the least, the global media in general. Is the Indian government has really been that bad?, with scams surfacing every now and then, with a GDP expected to raise at 8.3%, touted globally as a rising Asian giant, having a transparency index of 3.3 (on a scale of 0-10, 0 being highly corrupt, 10 being highly clean), with some people trying to fight corruption by exercising their fundamental rights. If asked to describe about this country in a single word, I would say “India”. Growth, scams, hoopla, cricket, movies; everything happens here, everything so contradictory, but at the same time, a striking balance keeps it altogether. In such a country, politics plays a center stage and the media’s role is rather tricky, often biased, often opinionated. Let’s take a look at the contemporary politicians, to start with the Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, a finance minister in the past, yes he is not that articulate, does it mean that he is ineffective? Digvijay Singh, the general secretary of congress gives his piece of mind which you might not like but you just cannot ignore it. The leaders of the opposition Arun Jaitely and his own party rival Sushma Swaraj use the media as their mouth piece, they don’t leave any opportunity to shout out loud which not only proves their existence but also gives the impression to the common man that they care. The real question here is “how much is essential of a politician to go on air and express his views”. 100% I would say, after all how people would know what’s going on if their elected leaders stay mute. Manmohan singh might be widely appreciated for his integrity but his media silent image makes him akin to a dumb man blessed with a lot of singing talent. Coming back to the media responsibility, ethically speaking, media has to be skeptical, but at the same time should equally be exalting the government on the growth and beneficial policies if any. So much negativity has never lasted long and never will, trash and nail the politicians if they are wrong, laud the exemplary, after all these hiccups are normal in a thriving economy. With politically elite people blogging and twittering, and with facebook triggering democratic revolutions, media and internet have risen to a new level, a link between people at different places and different levels. Media transparency which completes and complements the democratic cycle of a country is the major advantage we have over China, improving it empowers us. If you want to know what’s happening right now, go to a news website, if you really want to know what the hell actually happened, go to Wikileaks.