Views on News 07 September 2015

Fooling the World

VIEWS ON NEWSSEPTEMBER 07, 2015 `50

www.viewsonnewsonline.com

ADVERTISING: Kolaveri Di in TurkeyBy Shobha John32

BOOKS: Farewell KabulBy Rajendra Bajpai 24

AGENCIES: A house for Mr UNIBy Shantanu Guha Ray16

TMM EXCLUSIVE: Coverage of Radhe Maa40

MUMBAI COAST ROAD:ROAD TO DISASTER

50

FTIISCRIPT GOING AWRY

46

Governance Section

How Social Media Disinformation Is Going Viral 12

Nepal or Vietnam??

By Abhay Vaidya By Darryl D’Monte

VIEWS ON NEWS (VON) has always been a cham-pion of the freedom of press as well as the libertyof institutions committed to academic and profes-sional excellence. This is because democracy flour-ishes and thrives only within an environment free ofrestrictions on thought and expression within theboundaries of the constitution and social decency.

I reacted with great sadness, therefore, to thenews that the police had made a late-night raid onthe Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) andarrested students who were on strike over the appointment of the new chairman of FTII Society.The police, of course, has every right to act in a ma-nner consistent with the exigencies of the situation

to uphold law and order. Ifit does not, it is certainlydereliction of duty.

But when the action in-volves entering institutionsof learning, apprehendingstudents and hauling themoff to the lock-up, it de-mands extraordinary justi-fication, the main onesbeing violence or exhorta-tion to violence, criminalconspiracies, destructionof public property or ille-gally bringing to a halt es-sential public services.These are well spelled outin the Indian Penal Code.

The debate over the

appointment of Gajendra Chauhan, TV actor and BJPmember, as chairman is a legitimate one. The pointof this editorial is not to argue either for Information& Broadcasting Minister Arun Jaitley’s view that stu-dents cannot decide on appointments of teachersand administrators, or for the student protestors andcritics whose agitation is based on their perceptionthat this move is part and parcel of the NarendraModi’s government’s agenda to nominate candi-dates on the basis of their proven sympathy for theBJP-RSS points of view—whatever they may be.

There is little doubt that in the past—and thisis before the BJP came to power—institutionshave been politicized and learning has often

been the victim of student politics. In the South, theDMK has produced powerful student-politician ora-tors. In the North, even the adroit Arun Jaitley is aproduct of Delhi University’s student politics that remains polarized between the Congress-backedNSUI and the BJP-sponsored ABVP. Delhi’s Jawa-harlal Nehru University (JNU) has been a hotbed ofMarxist ideology and the colleges of Delhi Universityhave, in the past, recruited professors and teachersknown publicly for their ideological and politicalleanings. The principal of St Stephen’s College, thejewel in Delhi University’s academic crown, is cho-sen on the basis of religion—Christianity.

Similarly, FTII has been known for its Leftist lean-ings and its graduates have often produced left-of-center, anti-establishment films. A strike here isnothing new: In the last few decades, there havebeen 40 strikes and agitations over restructuring of

FTII: MISSING THE FOREST FOR THE TREES

EDIT

OR

’S N

OTE

4 VIEWS ON NEWS September 7, 2015

syllabus, privatization fears and upgradation.The world over, at Columbia University in New

York, at the Sorbonne in France, there have been stu-dent agitations on similar issues, including systemsof grading and marking and admission require-ments. Liberal nations make it a policy not to allowpolice forces to enter campuses barring the rarestof rare occasions, based on the belief that it is oftenhealthy for students to debate and let off steam andchallenge hide-bound beliefs and value systems.Societal and political change often comes from stu-dent movements; witness the stellar role played byABVP in opposing Mrs Indira Gandhi’s Emergency.

It would be unfair to say that any Emergency-likesituation exists on the campuses of this nation. Whatneeds examination is whether the students at FTIIare defending the status quo or agitating for changesthat would make it a better and more creative insti-tution. Has the status quo produced an institutionbursting with creativity and productive energieswhich characterize the IITs and IIMs, or has it nur-tured a white elephant?

The debate should focus not on Chauhan’sparty affiliations but whether he is qualifiedand willing to be a leader and participant—

along with the students—and is contributing to ex-cellence, originality and innovation in a worldexploding with the new media. Administrative lead-ership on a campus consists of being able to spellout a concrete agenda for change and inspiring stu-dents and teachers to believe in it and executing it.

There is no real audit on whether institutes like

FTII or mass communications schools across thecountry are producing great journalists or techni-cians. Some of the greatest reporters and editors inthe country have never attended journalism or masscom classes. But this does not obviate the need fortechnical or communications institutes. Media tech-nologies, visual concepts, broadcasting and report-ing techniques are changing rapidly. Film-making,cinematography, editing techniques and processeshave altered within the last five years beyond ourwildest imagination.

As these innovations proliferate rapidly, there isa definite need for more FTIIs, whether backed bythe government or privately funded. But the watch-word must be excellence. This is what I find missingin the FTII controversy which, having become politi-cized, may be missing the very strong and persua-sive arguments for augmenting and creating anenvironment for quality education.

What needs examination is whetherthe FTII students are defending the status quo or agitating for changesthat would lead to excellence.

5VIEWS ON NEWS September 7, 2015

C O N LEDE

Getting fooled 12Endless oceans of information circulating on the net makes it difficult for tradi-

tional media to judge the credibility of accounts, pictures and videos. But

search engines are helping out, reports SUNIL SAXENA

SPOTLIGHT

Makeoverfor UNI

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T E N T S

R E G U L A R SEdit..................................................04Grapevine........................................08Quotes........................................10Vonderful English..............................11Media-Go-Round..............................20As The World Turns...........................27Web-Crawler.....................................28Anchor Review...................................36Design Review..................................38Breaking News.................................42

A parliamentary panel has

recommended the creation of a

statutory body as a media watchdog

rather than self-regulation. Will this be

the end of the road for the Press

Council? RAKESH BHATNAGAR probes

Cover design: Anthony LawrenceCover photo: Na Son Nguyen

SURVEY

Talk of the town 40Controversial and colorful

godwoman, Radhe Maa, garnered

viewer interest as news channels had

debates, talk shows and programs on

her. A report by VON Team

Kolaveri Di in Turkey32A vibrant Coca-Cola ad for

Turkey has gone viral, thanks to

its famous Indian tune. It’s a

perfect rhapsody of Indian and

Turkish culture, writes

SHOBHA JOHN

MEDIA MONITORING

Media watchdog 21

RAJENDRA

BAJPAI reviews

Farewell

Kabul – From

Afghanistan to a

More Dangerous

World, which

gives an

in-depth view of

the games

being played

between

Pakistan, the US

and the

warlords in

Afghanistan

BOOK REVIEW

Courting dangerin Afghanistan 24

Governance

Stalemate persists 46The present crisis in FTII has shown

that the govt is pushing ahead with

its plans for the campus, reports

ABHAY VAIDYA

CONTROVERSY

GLOBAL TRENDS

Japanese invasion 30A sharp fall in ad revenues has led to

the offloading of FT and The Economist.

While Nikkei takes over FT, the owner

has brought down the stake in The

Economist, reports MR DUA

ADVERTISING


Controversial road 50DARRYL D’MONTE writes on the

storm raised over a proposed road on

Mumbai’s western sea front. Despite

ecological concerns, the government

has given clearances

ENVIRONMENT


Grapevine

ALL GOVERNMENT de-partments are supposedlyin the swachhata modeagain. In an initiative thatis yet another brainchild ofthe PM, secretaries of vari-ous ministries have beenasked to initiate competi-tion between differentwings of an organization inorder to increase participa-tion in the cleanliness drive

and reward the better per-forming ones. So, do expectcompetitions between hos-pitals, police stations andrailway stations. The idea isto not let swachhata be aone-time effort, as it isgradually becoming. Sus-tainability of the cleanlinessoperation is really becom-ing a mountain of a prob-lem. Fresh ideas anyone?

Who is the Cleanest One?

DELHI CM Arvind Kejriwal is indeed amovie buff. Not only has he taken towatching movies, he ensures that hiscomrades-in-arm also do not miss out.And he makes sure that he tweets afterwatching a movie, even complimentingthe actors. But all things backfire—espe-cially in politics. A picture of the CM andhis colleagues enjoying an exclusivescreening of Drishyam at the PVR in Am-bience Mall, Vasant Kunj, went viral. Theonly occupants of the theater—the photo-graph makes it clear—were the CM andhis colleagues, who were being served thechoicest of movie time snacks! Way to go!

Aam Aadmi’s Entertainment

THE CORRIDORS of Shastri Bhawanare abuzz with sniggers about GajendraChauhan’s CV, which led to his selectionas FTII chairman. It’s a single-para CV,highlighting his most significant act. AnRTI reply quotes the file noting of I&Bministry: “Gajendra Chauhan is an actorwho is best known for his portrayal of theeldest Pandava ‘Yudishtira’ in the Mahabharatha (TV series). He hasworked in around 150 movies and over600 TV serials.” What we can also add toit is that he is also a devout follower ofthe incredible Radhe Maa and has been photographed with her as one of herhigh-profile bhakts!

Precise CV

Illustrations: UdayShankar—Compiled by Roshni Seth

THE 137-YEAR-OLD Secun-derabad Club clings to an ar-chaic rule of not givingpermanent membership towomen, even as males from thesame family can get member-ship. Women can qualify onlyfor associate membership with-out the right to vote or to con-test election. Why are the malemembers hell-bent on being attheir chauvinistic best?

Gender Divide

AN RTI by an Amdavadi has revealed that the governmentspent `15.87 crore for SMSs inthe run-up to the InternationalYoga Day on May 21. This authorreceived one too, from the primeminister himself!

A vendor, M/s Arch Concepts

Pvt Ltd, was paid a total of `3.67crore for the main event at Rajpath in New Delhi, including`1.02 crore for the supply of36,000 yoga mats.

The RTI reply of the Ministryof Ayush also reveals a paymentof `1.32 crore to Ernst and Youngfor its services. T-shirts by National Textile Corporation cost`49 lakh, and `12.05 lakh waspaid to the Guinness Record Ltdfor their commercial services,along with an extra £450 for“fast track service”. The NSS re-gional centre in Delhi, which pro-vided 1,000 volunteers for theevent, charged `22.5 lakh for it.

Besides this, publicity by the Directorate of Advertising and Visual Publicity and on Doordarshan, and All IndiaRadio cost the ministry `828.43 lakh.

Meri Awaaz SunoA ARUNMOZHITHEVAN posed apertinent question to health andfamily welfare minister in the LokSabha in July. He asked whether alarge number of people, specificallyin urban areas, suffered from chronicconstipation, as a study claimed. Hesought various details of the same aswell as the steps taken by the govern-ment to create awareness about con-stipation and its seriousness. In itsreply, the government, while denyingany study in this regard, reiterated itsresolve to provide comprehensivehealthcare to the public. In parlia-ment corridors, it was being calledthe Piku effect!

A Piku Query

Our Money, Their PromotionTHE KEJRIWAL government inDelhi has finally admitted that theyspent `22.33 crore on TV, radio andprint ads that they bludgeoned uswith—in just three months! First,they said that the expenses were beingborne by the AAP, but now they have conceded that it was your and mymoney being spent. Whatever hap-pened to probity?

THE BJP is making full use ofthe radio medium to reach out tothe masses in Kerala. It plans tolink up with the local NGO net-work to bypass the rule of I&Bministry that political partiescannot run radio services. Al-ready, Kerala-based NGOs aredoing the rounds of the ministry.Whose brainchild is this? Noneother than the party president’s.What an idea sirji!

Some PremonitionTHIS IS how the second para of page50 of APJ Abdul Kalam’s latest bookreads: “Now, finally, PramukhSwamiji has put me in a God syn-chronous orbit. No maneuvers are required any more, as I am placed inmy final position in eternity.” Isn’t iteerie? The book, Transcendence: MySpiritual experience with ParmukhSwamiji, was launched on June 29this year.

Costly Postures


U O T E S

Shekhar Gupta,senior journalistI have no views on @sanjivbhatt.But really, is marital fidelity 1of oursvc conditions? Is Victoria still our queen?

Rajdeep Sardesai,senior journalistAisi Taisi democracy: great lines:Wahan Mulleh youtube ban kare,yahan pandit kissing se ghabraye!

Nikhil Wagle, journalistThe main problem of our society ismost of d people don't read, watchn think. They draw conclusionsfrom Half baked TV debates n fight!

Shobhaa De,columnist

8 p.m. deadline for female Jamiastudents. To 'protect' them! Willauthorities guarantee their safetybefore 8 p.m.?

Sanjay Jha, CongressspokesmanSomeone asks me: Why do youguys suffer such a haranguing,hollering, hideous TV anchor? I tell:Because you guys watch the farce.#Choose

Nitish Kumar, BiharChief MinisterPromises, big bang announce-ments & packaging. Little actions& no delivery on ground. No wonder increasingly people say#BolneMeinKyaJataHai

One commits rape and thenfour more are named. Kabhiaisa ho sakta hai kya? Aisapractical hi nahin hai. (Cansuch a thing happen? It isimpractical.)

—Samjwadi Party chiefMulayam Singh Yadav

Now that Bihar polls areapproaching, everyone

should watch the (Manjhi)film to know what the DNA

of Bihar is made of. —Delhi Chief Minister Arvind

Kejriwal, reacting to Modi’sstatement about the problem with

Nitish Kumar’s DNA

Will Rahul Gandhi bethe “naada” whichwill hold the pyjamaparty together?—BJP national secretarySiddharthnath Singh

To use a cricket analogy, inlast year’s Independence

Day speech, he played on thefront foot. On Saturday, he

was defensive and on theback foot.

—Journalist and Modi biographerNilanjan Mukhopadhyay, on the

Prime Minister’s I-Day speech


SMARTEN YOUR TALKDID YOU KNOW?

You may be successful and laughing your way to thebank but a wrong usage in English speaking/writingcan turn you into a laughing stock!

You remember your boss’s silver wedding anniversaryand you also attended your bank’s golden anniversarycelebrations. But what would you call the special daywhen you complete, say, 13 years in your company?

RED-LETTER DAYS

�Paper anniversary – completion of one year�Cotton – 2 years �Leather – 3 years �Wood – 5 years �China – 9 years �Tin – 10 years �Steel – 11 years �Lace – 13 years

TYPES OF MEN & WOMEN

It takes all sorts to make the world. Take your pick:MEN�Wastrel……….idler/loafer�Philanderer………womaniser/fickle suitor�Adonis……….handsome man�Don Juan…………seducer�Debonair………..urbane/stylish

WOMEN�Virago………..bad-tempered�Coquette………..flirt �Hoyden………tomboy�Prima donna…temperamental/inflated view of self worth�Winsome………….shyly pleasing/pretty

�Party on!………..That’s right!�Pardon my French!……..Forgive my bad language!�Spit it out!........Say it!�Bonus!........That’s great!�That tears it!...........That is too much!�Sharp’s the word!..........Be quick!�(Well) What do you know!..........(exclamation of surprise)�What’s yours?............What would you like to drink?�Not on your Nellie!................Definitely not!�Use your noodle!................Use your head!�Get the picture?...............Do you understand?�I don’t mean maybe!...........I am serious! (not kidding!)

THANK YOU, SIR! Gratitude is a duty which ought to be paid, though a gentle-man does not expect this. So why not say ‘Thank you’ in styleand make your communication memorable for the benefactor?

�Thanks a skillion �Thanks a bunch �A zillion thanks �Gracias

HIT LIKE A TON OF BRICKS?‘Surprise’, meaning to takeoff-guard/unawares, is amild verb, but ‘astonish’ isstronger, and a stillstronger word is ‘astound’.However, ‘amaze’ is thestrongest.

English is one of modern India’s twenty-two official languages, and is widely learned as the second language in most countries. Enjoy it and avoid falling into some common error traps. BY MAHESH TRIVEDI

�Bated breath, NOT baited�Grievous, NOT -ious�Gramophone, NOT grama�Dos and don’ts, NOT do’s�De luxe, NOT deluxe�Gymnasiums, NOT gymnasia�Gauge, NOT guage�Chivvy, NOT chivy/chevy�All right, NOT alright�Wunderkind, NOT wonderkind

�Crystal – 15 years�Silver – 25 years�Pearl – 30 years�Ruby – 40 years�Golden – 50 years�Diamond – 75 years�Centenary – 100 years

�Tack �Merci�You have my gratitude�Thanks heaps


�Owe you one�I owe you big�I owe you big-time

The vast amount of information circulating on the net makes it

difficult for traditional media to judgethe credibility of accounts, picturesand videos posted there. But search

engines are helping outBY SUNIL SAXENA

LedeContent Credibility

NE of the most iconic pic-

tures of the Nepal earthquake

was of a young boy comfort-

ing his sister. The photo-

graph was telecast repeatedly

by Indian news channels; it

also went viral on the net. It was only much later

that the BBC found that the picture was a hoax. It

had nothing to do with Nepal. In fact, the picture

that touched so many hearts was taken by a Viet-

namese photographer in 2007.

The photographer, Na Son Nguyen, told

the BBC (http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-

32579598) that he was driving through Ha Giang

province of Vietnam when he saw two children

playing in a remote village called Can Ty. The little

girl, around two years old, started crying on seeing

OWorldFooling the

This photographof two Vietnamesechildren went viral aspart of Nepalearthquakefootage.


Na Son Nguyen

the Nepal earthquake and Indian anchors waxed

eloquent on the tragedy that befell the “two Nepa-

lese kids”.

This is not the only picture that has fooled world

media. The BBC itself was the victim of one

such hoax. In May 2012, BBC website

(http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/theeditors/2012/05/houl

a_massacre_picture_mistake.html) published a pho-

tograph of a child jumping over body bags that had

been placed in neat rows. The bodies were said to

be of children who had died in Houla in Syria) mas-

sacre and were awaiting burial. The picture was

found by BBC editors on Twitter. It had evidently

been posted by Syrian activists as evidence of the

Houla massacre in which 100 people were said to

have been killed. Imagine the surprise of Getty Im-

ages photographer Marco di Lauro, who saw the

a stranger, and her brother hugged her protectively.

Na Son captured the moment and later published

the picture on his personal blog.

VARIOUS HOAXESSo far so good. But three years later, Na Son found

the picture circulating on Facebook as that of “aban-

doned orphans” in Vietnam. What’s more interest-

ing, Na Son told the BBC: “Some people even

weaved intricate tales about the kids, like their

mother had died and their father left them.”

The picture’s journey did not end here. Later, it

started circulating on social media as that of two

Burmese orphans and when violence broke out in

Syria, social media painted the children as victims

of the Syrian civil war.

The picture resurfaced in Indian media during

A child shownby the BBC asjumping overbodies of children inSyria in 2012was actuallycaptured oncamera inBaghdad nineyears ago.

Getty Images


Who is the author?

Does the author have sufficient experience and ex-

pertise? What are his affiliations? Does he work for a

credible institution? What are his past writings?

In case of blogs or individual home pages, check

this information on About Us page. Good bloggers

provide detailed information about themselves.

Professional websites provide this information at

the end of the article, including even email IDs.

What is the purpose of the write-up?

Has the article been written to inform or educate? Is

it to advocate a cause or sell a product? Articles that

use inflammatory language or promote activist

views should be shunned.

Similarly, those that reek of bias should be left

untouched as they may not be based on facts. Ques-

tion the credibility of articles that promote self or

own products.

Does the article quote sources?

The most trustworthy articles quote from estab-

lished sources. They hyperlink information to author-

itative sources on the net. They’re well-researched

and well-referenced.

Is the article balanced?

The best writers give all points of view. They use data

and evidence to support their arguments. Similarly,

their conclusions are drawn from accepted informa-

tion. Most important, they don’t force their opinion

on you, but help you try and understand issues.

Does the article have a logical structure?

Good writers take great care to structure their arti-

cles. The most important points come first, the less

important points follow. There is no repetition or

jumping from point to point. Such articles reflect the

pains the author has taken in obtaining and present-

ing information, and can, therefore, be trusted more.

How good is the quality of writing?

Meticulous writers are very painstaking. They fuss

over syntax, writing style, spellings, etc. They want

to make sure that there are no typographical or any

other errors that may invite ridicule. You can trust

such writers.

Is the information dated?

All data gets dated. Do not use information that has

been posted four or five years ago. Check for latest

information. It is a good test to establish the rele-

vance of data, and the effort made by the writer to

provide useful and valuable information.

Reliability CheckHere are 10 questions that you need to ask to decide the

credibility of anything on the web

the bodies of children in Houla awaiting burial”.

These two cases establish the challenge that tra-

ditional media faces when sourcing content from

social media. The dilemma is to use the first-hand

accounts, photographs and videos posted by eye-

witnesses or to ignore them.

IMAGE SEARCHFortunately, the task of editors has been made

slightly easier by Google. Its image search helps you

track the source of pictures posted on the net.

What’s more, you can even find out if the image has

been modified or edited, and by which website.

All that you need to do is to enter the url of the

photograph or upload the photograph from your

computer in the Google search field (https://im-

ages.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl). The Google search

engine will do the rest.

You have one more tool that performs an

equally powerful image search. It is the reverse

image search engine TinEye (www.tineye.com)

which has indexed 12.3 billion images; this number

LEST YOU FALL FOR FALSE FOOTAGE

Websites like Storyfulhelp you ascertain the

authenticity of photographs and videos

LedeContent Credibility

picture when he logged onto the BBC site. He had

taken the picture nine years earlier in 2003 and it was

of skeletons that had been found outside Baghdad.

On hearing from Lauro, the BBC removed the

picture instantly. Fortunately, BBC editors had been

careful. Their caption mentioned that the photo-

graph was provided by an activist and could not be

independently verified, but it is “believed to show


continues to grow. This search is not limited to the

net alone. TinEye has expanded to include pictures

posted through mobile devices too.

The challenge becomes greater when it comes

to verifying web videos, especially those posted

from war zones or by terrorists who use the web to

plant vicious and malicious propaganda. These

user-generated videos are a nightmare for the

media. Which ones should it use and which ones

should it reject? And why?

STORYFUL SOURCEOne organization that is trying to make sense of

this vast ocean of user-generated content is Storyful

(www.storyful.com). It has set up a team of jour-

nalists, technologists and social media evangelists

to track and verify all sensitive social media

content. It says that it has combined “proprietary

technology and expert journalism” to create a

human algorithm.

“This game-changing combination,” gives Sto-

ryful “the ability to discover, verify, acquire and de-

The net is a huge web and needs a strong mechanism to monitor. The task is even more difficult for individuals.How do you decide which article or website to trust?

liver the most valuable real-time content the social

web has to offer.” Already, some of the leading

media organizations are turning to Storyful to

source their social media content.

Interestingly, social media giant Facebook, on

which many fake videos surface, has tied up with

Storyful to create FB Newswire. It publishes user-

generated images and videos at Facebook.com/FB-

Newswire and on Twitter at @FBNewswire.

To make it easier for journalists and news-

rooms, Facebook even allows them to “find, share

and embed newsworthy content in the media they

produce”. All that they need to do is to credit

the video creator in their broadcasts or on

their websites.

Facebook has also introduced a Trust Badge.

This badge, which is a blue check mark, is placed

on accounts that have been verified by Facebook.

The credit of initiating Trust Badge, however, goes

to Twitter.

The badge is literally a lifeline for the media,

which can blindly quote tweets from Twitter ac-

counts of celebrities that have a Trust Badge.

These are a few institutional efforts which help

the world find truth on the net. But they are mi-

nuscule. The net is a huge web and needs a much

stronger mechanism to monitor. The task is even

more difficult for individuals. How do you decide

which article or website to trust? (See Box)

In times to come, perhaps this could

become easier.

—The writer is Dean, School of Communi-

cation, GD Goenka University, Gurgaon

Who is the publisher?

This is the best yardstick to establish credibility.

Websites of established newspapers, magazines,

institutions, government departments, research

institutes, etc, greatly value credibility. They check

and cross-check information before posting it online.

Such information is more trustworthy. However, the

same cannot be said of blogs where it is essential to

check the background of the author.

Do others link to the site?

Another useful indicator is external links. People will

only hyperlink those sites that are trustworthy and

credible. You can find the back-links from Alexa.com.

The site tells you how many external links are coming

to a website.

Is there useful information on About Us Page?

The most trustworthy sources are those that provide

contact information about themselves, as well as of

authors writing for them.



The news agency’s heydays may be back again with a new construction

SpotlightUnited News of India

UNI Gets a I

T was in the late 1970s—after the

Emergency was lifted—that the man-

agement of United News of India

(UNI), then headed by editors of vari-

ous newspapers, planned a building of

its own. Probably the UNI management was

envious of a building already constructed by the

Press Trust of India (PTI), its immediate and

next-door rival, and the way PTI was earning

cash through high-value rentals, its tenants

ranging from state-owned banks to foreign

news agencies and newspapers.

TEETHING PROBLEMSThe land was there, at a prime location right be-

hind Niti Ayog, then the Planning Commis-

sion, and sandwiched between Sanchar Bha-

wan and Vithalbhai Patel House, home to MPs,

maverick writers, free thinkers and theatre per-

sonalities. But somehow, the building could

never come up because of teething problems

between UNI and the government, which was

its biggest subscriber but often jettisoned the

agency’s much-sought-after building project.

When Zee Telefilms made an abortive bid

to acquire UNI and wanted to usher a new in-

formation wave through the news agency, the

buzz in Delhi revolved around how the Mum-

bai-based media conglomerate was eyeing the

land, considered a cash cow with assured deliv-

erables. But the deal did not happen, and was

spiked by a defiant union. An enraged


deal. Will this sort out its cash flow problems? BY SHANTANU GUHA RAY

Makeover

Anil Shakya

Though it was not immediately known how

many floors UNI and PCI would keep, as per cur-

rent estimates, both would occupy a floor each.

Some more space could be allotted to state-owned

media outlets like DAVP and some wings of the

Ministry of Information and Broadcasting . Some

newspapers, magazines and channels could also

be accommodated there.

BUILDING AGENDAThe agency’s management, currently headed by

Vishwas Tripathi, a seasoned chartered account-

ant with deep knowledge of the real estate market,

is pushing the building agenda because it’s the first

answer to the agency’s fledgling cash flow prob-

lem. “Once the building is completed and floors

rented to interested parties, much of the news

agency’s insurmountable cash flow problems

would be sorted out,” the official said.

Highly-placed sources in Delhi claim the move

was primarily possible because of a push from the

government that wants to encourage competition

in a rather monopolistic news agency market

Highly-placed sources in Delhi claim theland deal was possible because of a pushfrom the center that wants to encourage

competition in a rather monopolistic newsagency market dominated by PTI.

Subhash Chandra, chairman of Zee, walked out

and demanded an instant refund of the `35 crore

that he had given at the time of the proposed

takeover. The agency, which paid `25 lakh per

month to Zee, has now cleared its dues.

DEAL SEALEDBut now, nearly four decades later, the final stamp

of clearance has been given for the UNI land and

its two owners, the news agency and Press Council

of India (PCI) that presently operates from a dif-

ferent building in Delhi. “The land has been allo-

cated to the two owners,” a senior official from the

Ministry of Urban Development said on condi-

tion of anonymity. He added that subsequent

clearances would be required by UNI and PCI be-

cause the building falls in Delhi’s “highest security

zone” that is home to the various ministries, the

RBI, AIR, Parliament and Rashtrapati Bhavan.

The official further said the initial cash to smo-

othen the construction process has already been

paid by the two parties a few months ago and the

“deal has been sealed”. The building, it is reliably

learnt, will be constructed by the state-owned Na-

tional Buildings Construction Corporation Lim-

ited (NBCC), a blue chip company with a conso-

lidated revenue of over `5,000 crore.

UNI and PCI will have 2,600 sqm each of the

land. There is an additional 620 sqm in the same

venue, which was offered once to UNI at commer-

cial rates by the Land and Development Office,

which falls under the Ministry of Urban Develop-

ment. UNI had refused it then. But now, it is reli-

ably learnt, the news agency is keen to acquire the

same and has approached the Land and Develop-

ment Office with an application.

ABORTIVE ATTEMPT(Right) SubhashChandra’s bid to

acquire UNI did notmaterialise

SpotlightUnited News of India


dominated by PTI. The news, for obvious reasons,

has not been made public, but the UNI manage-

ment and its editor have expressed relief at what

they claimed was “a major breakthrough”.

The agency has been making several efforts to

reach out to a number of high-value clients (read

top newspapers like The Times of India) and bol-

ster its service, which also includes regional lan-

guage services and a photo service. The pricing

has been deliberately kept low to pull in sub-

scribers, who had often expressed dissatisfaction

at the slow pace of the agency in today’s cutting

edge news environment.

RESURGENT UNIThe agency, it is reliably learnt, could benefit if the

government lifts restrictions on private radio

channels for news reporting, especially in the light

of the auction of new FM channels across India.

With the government admitting that more than

200-plus news channels and 150-plus newspapers

and magazines are waiting to get clearances to

start operations, UNI’s rates would be affordable

for them. Various members of the BJP, it is reliably

learnt, are favorably disposed towards seeing a

resurgent UNI. Some have even had meetings

with current board members, explaining what the

news agency must do to get into a combative,

competitive mode.

The agency has started a slow hiring process,

mainly pulling in junior editors to bolster its copy

desk, once valued for its crisp articles. The idea is

to beef up news operations that are currently op-

erating at one-third the capacity as compared to

PTI’s specialized news gatherers.

UNI copies were earlier jokingly referred to as

“crispy like dosas”. This snack is sold in its famous

canteen, a favourite haunt of journalists, bureau-

crats, MPs and corporate captains. And with the

new deal, its canteen too could get a second lease

of life.

As of now, all eyes are on pending clearances

from the government. After all, the land deal is the

best opportunity for UNI to get back into the na-

tional news platform.

The countdown has started in right earnest.

The buildingwill be constructed byNBCC. UNIand PCI wouldkeep, as percurrent estimates, afloor each.Some spacecould be allotted tomedia outletsand the I&Bministry.

CLEAR FOCUS(Left) Chairman, UNI,Viswas Tripathi withUnion Minister ofTransport Nitin Gadkari


YOUTUBE HAS announced the opening of itscollaboration and production facility for YouTube

video creators, called “YouTube Space Mumbai”, atWhistling Woods International (WWI). Slated toopen late 2015, the space will allow video creatorsand students at WWI to learn about video produc-tion, collaborate with other creators, and breakdown resource barriers that inhibit innovation andcreativity. Located in the heart of Mumbai's film andtelevision production hub, Filmcity, the unit is thelatest to open after the ones in Tokyo, Los Angeles,London, New York, Brazil and Berlin.

THERE’S MORE trouble in storefor Outlook magazine, which pub-lished an objectionable snippet inits July 6 issue about TelanganaIAS officer Smita Sabharwal. Out-

look alleged that she served as“eye candy” at official meetingsbecause of her good looks.

Now, the Telangana govern-ment, through a government order(RT.No.2296 of August 20), hassanctioned `15 lakh towards legalexpenses that she would incurwhile filing a civil defamation casein which she has asked for `10crore as damages. Of the moneyallocated, `9.75 lakh will be deposited as court fee while filingfor defamation.

The government order statesthat the money will be repaid tothe treasury by Sabharwal onceshe is awarded compensation bythe court.

Journalists’ Protest

Trouble for Outlook

YouTube’s Production Facility

EDIA-GO-ROUND

TO PROTEST against states’ fail-ure to bring to book perpetratorsof violence against journalists, thePress Council of India (PCI)wants the media to protestsymbolically by blacking outnews for two minutes on Novem-ber 2 every year. “The PCI may

proclaim November 2 as the NationalDay to End Impunity for CrimesAgainst Journalists and ask all news-rooms across the country to observetwo-minute silence,” it said in an affi-davit filed before the Supreme Courtin the case of UP journalist JagendraSingh's murder.

JUST FOUR of the 26 persons executed inIndia since 1991 belonged to the Muslim com-munity, and yet a perception has been createdby some media channels in the aftermath ofthe hanging of Yakub Memon that members ofthe minority community are being targeted,government sources told The Times of India.

An internal report by the I&B ministry hastaken exception to the “tenor of discussion” in

four channels—Aaj Tak, ABP News, NDTV India

and NDTV 24X7—and argued it was a “seriousthreat to national security'' and had “sownseeds of distrust between communities.”

CONCERNED BY violations during coverage of terroroperations, the I&B ministry is likely to issue anotheradvisory to TV channels asking them not to divulgeoperational details.“While monitoring of coveragerelated to Gurdaspur terror operations we found thatmany TV channels were reporting details likereinforcements sent, where the paramilitary men orpolice were positioned or what arms were beingbrought in. This is against national interest,” a sourcetold The Times of India.

Terror Coverage

“Media GivingWrong Picture”


HEN Lord Justice, Sir

Brian Henry Leveson of

the UK chaired a public

inquiry into the culture,

practices and ethics of the

British press, prompted by the News of the World

phone hacking affair in 2011, he was perhaps un-

aware of the ramifications that his recommenda-

tions would have on the media elsewhere, including

India. In November 2012, Sir Leveson submitted a

three-volume report that led to establishing the In-

dependent Press Standards Organization (IPSO) in

2014. Prime Minister Cameron’s government aban-

doned the Press Complaints Commission (PCC),

which had been the main industry regulator of the

press in the UK since 1990.

Leveson report assumes significance in the In-

dian context in view of a spate of complaints about

paid news and degeneration in news dissemination.

There are allegations of deals between media man-

agements and private parties who pay for either

concealing or highlighting stories in accordance

with the terms of an agreement.

Following the Leveson Report in the UK and in

view of the ills, especially paid news, afflicting

Big Brotheras Regulator

LAYING STANDARDSSir Brian Henry

Leveson, whoserecommendationsled to the creation

of the IndependentPress Standards

Organizationin the UK

A parliamentary panel has recommended creation of a statutorybody as a media watchdog rather than self-regulation for the Fourth

Estate. Will this be the end of the road for the Press Council? BY RAKESH BHATNAGAR

W

Media MonitoringAnurag Thakur Panel Report


GIVING A NEW DIRECTION?Parliamentarian AnuragSingh Thakur suggests

evolving a statutorymechanism rather than

continuing with thePress Council

the Indian media, a Standing Committee on Infor-

mation Technology chaired by BJP MP from

Himachal Pradesh, Anurag Singh Thakur, also ex-

amined the menace of paid news. This committee

in turn had been constituted in the light of a report

submitted by another committee headed by Ash-

wani Kumar two years ago which had left it to the

government to evolve a mechanism for rooting out

paid news in India.

ADOPTING UK MODELThe report submitted by Thakur to the Lok Sabha

on July 13, 2015, takes note of the Leveson’s recom-

mendations. However, while examining the “regu-

latory model” set up in the UK, the Anurag Thakur

panel agrees with the consultative report finding

Media MonitoringAnurag Thakur Panel Report

that the regulatory models in other democratic

countries are also required to be studied before

adopting the Leveson’s model.

A slew of recommendations by Leveson are:

�Appointment of a new watchdog independent of

MPs and newspapers, with statutory underpinning.

�This independent self-regulatory body should be

protected by a statute. It should be free of “any in-

fluence from industry and government”.

�It should also be governed by an independent

board. The chairperson and the members of the

board must be appointed in a genuinely open, trans-

parent and independent way.

�The Leveson report also says legislation should

allow for an independent regulator to be

organized by the industry, but it “should also place

an explicit duty on the government to uphold and

protect the freedom of the press”.

Leveson recommends certain remedies and

sanctions. It recommends fines of one percent of

turnover of a media company, with a maximum of

£1m. The watchdog should have “sufficient powers

to carry out investigations both into suspected seri-

ous or systemic breaches of the code”. The new

watchdog should have an arbitration mechanism for

resolution of civil legal claims against subscribers.

The process should be fair, quick and inexpensive.

“Frivolous or vexatious claims” could be struck out

at an early stage.

SENSATIONAL STORIESSir Leveson also points out to “reckless” and “sen-

sational” stories being pursued by the media. As he

observes: “There has been recklessness in prioriti-

zing sensational stories, almost irrespective of the

harm the stories may cause and the rights of those

who would be affected.” Several famous people have

had their family lives destroyed by the relentless

pursuit of the press, Leveson says, as it refers to

“ample evidence” concerning it. “Their families, in-

cluding their children, are pursued and important

personal moments are destroyed,” Leveson says.

He finds there is “a cultural tendency within

The Anurag Thakur panel expresses concern over “private treaties” between

media and corporates entities, the loss of independence of journalists

and the menace of paid news.


Leveson suggested appointment of anew watchdog independent of MPs and newspapers, which should be free of “any influence from industry and government”.

parts of the press vigorously to resist or dismiss

complainants almost as a matter of course.” He says

some newspapers are defensive, and even when an

apology is agreed, they get their own back by resort-

ing to “high-volume, extremely personal attacks on

those who challenge them”.

In the backdrop of Leveson findings, the

Anurag Thakur panel also takes cognizance of ad-

verse impact of “private treaties” between media and

corporates entities on the independence of journal-

ists, editors, media professionals and it giving rise

to the menace of paid news.

The committee strongly recommends that the

I&B ministry or regulatory bodies strictly enforce

all the existing guidelines and codes for bringing

transparency in “private treaties”, thereby curbing

paid news to a great extent.

The I&B ministry has stated that in view of the

Press Council of India’s (PCI) advice to Securities

Exchange Board of India (SEBI) that regulates the

stock market operations, voluntary disclosure of any

interest in any listed company has been made

mandatory. The Thakur panel expresses concern

that neither the I&B ministry nor any self-regula-

tory body such as PCI and the National Broadcast-

ing Authority have conducted any study to evaluate

the mechanism adopted by other countries to tackle

the menace of paid news. These institutions couldn’t

provide any input regarding the existing mechanism

to regulate media.

The parliamentary committee, therefore, feels

that it is important that various news and informa-

tive programs delivered by the print and electronic

media “are factual, neutral, fair and objective”. The

response of the government and observations made

by the committees each led by Ashwani Kumar and

Thakur make it amply clear that the government

may do away with PCI and evolve a statutory mech-

anism much to the chagrin of the media which

believes in self-regulation than by any diktat of the

government.

EXTREME MEASURES(Above) The infamous phone hacking

affair of the News of the World led to itsclosing down; (Right) The Levesonreport was critical of hounding of

celebrities and reckless stories on them


OURNALIST Christina Lamb’s lat-

est offering, Farewell Kabul – From

Afghanistan to a More Dangerous

World, is not just about the dangers

of reporting from Afghanistan and Pakistan, but

also about the double-game Islamabad has played

for nearly 30 years with its neighbor in the West

as well as its benefactor, the US. She finds over-

whelming evidence of Pakistan interfering in

Afghanistan, training the Taliban and fighting

alongside them in the hope that it can seize power

in Kabul. It can then turn Afghanistan into an

Islamic state to gain the strategic depth it is seek-

ing on its western frontier.

Lamb knows both the countries well because

she lived there for years and went back on numer-

ous occasions. In fact, she began her career as a

young journalist in Afghanistan, which she

thought was an ideal place to launch a career as a

freelance journalist.

RISKY JOBLamb was lucky. And she was willing to risk her

life. She went to Tora Bora mountains in eastern

Afghanistan, where Osama bin Laden lived in

caves along with his followers before fleeing to

Pakistan as US and Afghan troops chased him and

came within a couple of miles of his hideout.

Lamb was ambushed in southern Afghanistan

when the Taliban attacked her and the US troops

she was accompanying. She jumped from trench

to trench to avoid the fire.

Frequently, Lamb found that the Afghan Tal-

iban was accompanied by Urdu-speaking Pak-

istani troops. She interviewed nearly all the key

players in the AfPak drama—from Pakistani

24 VIEWS ON NEWS September 7 , 2015

Book ReviewFarewell Kabul – From Afghanistan to a More Dangerous World

This book gives an in-depth view of thegames being played between Pakistan, theUS and warlords in Afghanistan, one of the

most dangerous places on earthBY RAJENDRA BAJPAI

J

Courting Danger in

Afghanistan

TRUSTED ALLIES?(Clockwise from belowleft) Afghan warlordsAbdul Rashid Dostum,Ata Mohammad Noor,Mohammad Mohaqiqand Ismail Khan

generals to former Pakistan president Pervez

Musharraf, from Afghan warlords to former

Afghan president Hamid Karzai. She has a whole

chapter devoted to Colonel Imam—his real name

was Brigadier General Amir Sultan Tarar—who

admitted to training thousands of Afghan Taliban.

She finds the hand of Pakistan and its intelli-

gence agency, ISI, behind Afghan affairs every-

where and believes that bin Laden could not have

entered Pakistani territory, as he did at will, with-

out help from the Pakistan establishment. She

dwells at length on Islamabad’s double-game with

the US—taking money from that country and

then stoking anti-US sentiments.

SHORT-SIGHTED AMERICANSLamb also highlights US’ silly and short-sighted

ventures in Pakistan, pumping in billions of dol-


lars during the height of the Soviet intervention

in Afghanistan and then, stopping all aid, leaving

Pakistan and the Taliban to fend for themselves.

Lamb is also unsparing in her criticism of

Afghanistan, where every warlord and politician

appears to be on the take. She says Afghan troops

accompanying US soldiers appear to have taken

money from bin Laden in 2001 when they came

within two miles of his hideout. That helped bin

Laden escape from Tora Bora to Pakistan.

She also hits out at Hamid Karzai, who she

got to know well because he often protected

Christina Lamb finds Pakistan and ISI’shand behind Afghan affairs and believesthat Osama bin Laden could not have entered Pakistani territory without helpfrom the Pakistan establishment.

EVIL DESIGNS Pakistan feigned supportto the US in Afghanistanbut stoked anti-US feelings behind its back

dangers. As a Reuters correspondent, I went there

just after the Soviet troops arrived in Kabul. There

was firing in the capital every day and locals were

training their guns on Soviet troops.

During a visit to Jalalabad in March 1980, we

came face-to-face with the dangers of working in

that country. I was part of a convoy returning to

Kabul when local gunmen opened fire at us al-

most at the same spot where British troops were

massacred more than a century earlier. One could

not see the gunmen hiding behind rocks and tak-

ing aim at buses, cars and taxis on the highway.

The Indian counsel-general in Jalalabad was in

his black Soviet-made Volga car and he hastily

turned to go back, and asked me to tell the Indian

ambassador in Kabul that he could not make it for

a scheduled meeting. His first mistake was to ride

a black Volga, which otherwise is used by Afghan

officials, who are all targets of rebels.

Christina Lamb sets out the dangers clearly.

She is a journalist’s journalist—lucky, plucky and

willing to court danger armed only with a note-

book and a pen.

corrupt warlords and governors. In Afghanistan,

you could be in jail on corruption charges one day

and become the governor of a province the next

day. In some ways, corruption was a full-time job

in Afghanistan. There were warlords taking mo-

ney from Pakistan and the US, and during Afgha-

nistan’s invasion, from the Soviet Union as well.

To understand Afghans and Afghanistan, one

has to be familiar with the tribal politics of the

country. Tribal rivalries are handed down from

one generation to the next and often go on for

centuries. Americans were not too familiar with

that and learnt eventually from their mistakes, but

it was too late. Lamb spent enough time in that

country to understand tribal politics and her book

is a must-read for those having any interest in that

country. And if you are an Indian diplomat living

in Afghanistan, you must carry her book with you.

DANGEROUS PLACEAfghanistan is a dangerous place; there is no

doubt about that. To go there without knowing its

history, geography and politics only multiplies

DANGEROUS GAME(Right) Taliban

insurgents killed afterthey attacked Afghan

parliament in Junethis year

FAREWELL KABUL – FROMAFGHANISTAN TO A MORE DANGEROUS WORLDBy Christina LambPublisher: William CollinsPrice: `599; Pages: 640

Book ReviewFarewell Kabul – From Afghanistan to a More Dangerous World


S THE WORLD TURNS


DESI HOPPERS, a group of In-dian dancers, emerged victori-ous at the World of Dancecompetition in Los Angeles,beating 34 competitors from 14countries. On August 16, at theLos Angeles Convention Center,the group was crowned winnerwith a trophy and $5,000. DesiHoppers were the first-ever In-

dian troupe to represent thecountry at the championship.The dancers staged an ener-getic performance by startingwith the formation of LordGanesha, and then providing aglimpse of Indian classicaldance. The team will be seen inTV dance reality show Bindass

Naach, starting this month.

Indians bag dance trophy

BAN the Phantom

Long messageson Twitter

Malaysiawants socialmedia curbedTHE MALAYSIAN governmentwants Facebook, Twitter, andGoogle to curb content forpublic safety. The controversialdemand was announced afterPrime Minister Najib Razakwas accused of transferring$700m from a state fund intohis personal account. Najibhas denied the allegations. Ac-cording to The New York

Times, Malaysia’s communica-tions minister Salleh SaidKeruak wrote on his blog thatthe government will meet withrepresentatives of Facebook,

Google and Twitter to enlisttheir help in combating “the in-creasing tide of false informa-tion and rumors”. Najib sackedhis deputy last month after hequestioned him about thealleged embezzlement.

NOW TWITTER users will be able to sendlong messages through direct chat, thoughthe 140-characters limit will continue fortweets. For perhaps the first time in its his-tory, the social media company urged itsusers to “go long” when messaging otherusers. “Direct Messages now go beyond140 characters. Go long, express yourself,wax poetic,” tweeted @twitter.

The company has been expanding DirectMessage features to compete withFacebook Messenger, WhatsApp andGoogle Hangouts.

JAMAAT UD Dawah’s leader and the master-mind behind the 26/11 attack in Mumbai, HafizSaeed, wants upcoming movie Phantom bannedin Pakistan. Starring Saif Ali Kan and Katrina Kaif,Phantom shows Saeed’s assassination in themovie. Lawyer for Saeed, AK Dogar, wants tostop the film from being shown, arguing it is In-dian propaganda meant to hurt the image of Pak-istan abroad. Phantom is based on the novelMumbai Avengers by S Hussain Zaidi.

DATING APP Tinder’s CEO Chris Payne isstepping down, with co-founder and presi-dent, Sean Rad, taking over again, accord-ing to a report from Re/Code. Tinder wasin the news recently for tweets against aVanity Fair author, for a report in the fash-ion magazine about how bad dating apps

like Tinder are for youngpeople. Last year co-founder Whitney Wolfesued the company forsexual harassment andstripping her of title.Another co-founderJustin Mateen, accusedof sexual harass-ment, left thecompany.

Tinder CEOsteps down


WHILE NARENDRA Modi was busy strengthening ties withthe UAE, social media was gung-ho over every move hemade. Now that the PM is back on Indian soil, internet trollshave taken over with a slew of memes doing the rounds onFacebook, Twitter and Tumblr. An image of Modi embracingthe crown prince of UAE, HH Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed AlNahyan, has taken the virtual world by storm, with punsranging from the obvious—“Let’s bridge this gulf”— to theabsurd expression: “Ladies, there is no such thingas a thigh gap”.

JEFF BEZOS, founder and CEO of e-commerce giant Amazon, isin the news since the publication of an article in The New York Times

on August 15, that crticized the work culture and practices followed inthe company. The article, written by Jodi Kantor and David Streitfeld,uses accounts of former and current Amazon employees todescribe a cut-throat organization which has no place for those whocan’t keep up with the pressure, due to personal or health reasons.Titled “Inside Amazon: Wrestling Big Ideas in a Bruising Workplace”,the article has elicited strong reactions from employees and the man-agement alike. Bezos released an internal memo soon after the NYT

article, stating Amazon would not tolerate such callous managementpractices. He commented on the article, saying it “doesn’t describethe Amazon I know”. This internal memo was obtained by CNBC onAugust 17.

Amazon Faces Heat

Modi In UAE

Web Crawler What Went Viral

THIS INDEPENDENCE Day, a group of youngsterscame together with the mission to feed 1,00,000people across India and Pakistan. The group calledRobin Hood Army (robinhoodarmy.com/

mission100k) took the initiative with the help ofstudent volunteers across the two countries. Manyrestaurants pitched in with logistical support as themission gained momentum in Lahore, Karachi,Islamabad, Kolkata, Noida, Mumbai, Bangalore andDelhi. With the aim to stamp out hunger, Robin HoodArmy hopes this will be part of a sustained efforttowards curbing food wastage and eradicatinghunger. The initiative, mission100k, trended onsocial media and gained massive support ononline platforms on both sides of the border.

Mission Food


ASHLEY MADISON, a US-based web portal,which isdescribed as “the online personal & dating destinationfor casual encounters, married dating, discreetencounters and extra-marital affairs” was recentlyhacked by a group called Impact Team. The hackers threatened to reveal members’ details anddata unless the Toronto-based parent company, AvidLife Media, took down Ashley Madison andEstablishedMen.com. On August 19, the hackersfollowed through their threats and posted 9.7 gigabytesof user details, including credit card information. AvidLife has criticized this move and asked the FBI toinvestigate the matter.

Deadly Data Leak

BRANDON STANTON, the man behind the photoblog, Humans Of New York, travelled to Pakistan thissummer and painted a picture of Pakistan that wasalmost unknown to the rest of the world. Messagesthanking him flooded the HONY Facebook page as heshowed the human aspect of a nation, known in theinternational media only for its terror and violence.His photographs ranged from beautiful landscapes toportraits of people from across Pakistan.The photographs are accompanied by humaninterest stories that include experiences and thoughts ofthose photographed. Stanton is making headlines forhaving raised $2 million to support the Bonded Labour

Liberation Front, a Pakistani organization led bySyeda Ghulam Fatima, that works towardseradicating bonded labor.

DELHI GIRL Aditi Chauhanbecame the first female Indianfootball player to be signed bya top English club. With acountry that watches footballalmost as eagerly as it doescricket these days, theaccomplishment has beencelebrated across socialmedia platforms. Chauhanhas been signed by WestHam Ladies, which iscurrently in the Football Asso-

ciation’s (FA) Women’s Pre-mier League Southern Divi-sion. This is in the third levelin the women’s football struc-ture in England. She earlierrepresented the under-19Indian national women’s teamat AFC Qualifiers in Malaysia.Social media also criticizedthe dismal condition ofwomen’s football in Indiawhere no top-tier leaguesexist for female players.

Sporting Honor

Pak Perspective

NOT long ago, when Bloomberg Business-

week, a noted American financial journal,

put out a story that Britain’s influential and

prestigious weekly, The Economist, and its

sister daily newspaper, The Financial

Times, were up on sale, the news was stoutly and derisively

denied, ridiculed as a mere rumor, and dismissed as “specu-

lative nonsense”. However, the fact was that The Economist

and The Financial Times’ owners were reportedly ill at ease in

bringing out these publications due to heavy decline in their

ad revenues and downturn in print edition sales.

These factors alone are said to have prompted the com-

pany to search for an alternative to off-load them somehow,

although these stories were instantly scotched. Also, that is

why some years ago, The Financial Times’ senior executive,

Dame Marjorie Scardino, officially, and rather contemptu-

ously, remarked that “the title would be sold over my dead

body”. But, paradoxically and ironically, the current chief ex-

ecutive of the public owner-company, Pearson Inc, John Fal-

lon, is said to have presented the paper’s sale “largely as an act

of beneficence in the cause of journalism”.

Therefore, when the owner of the twin publications, Pear-

son Inc, a British media and education global giant, an-

nounced in July that The Financial Times had actually been

sold, nobody was enthralled, and much less, taken aback. Re-

member, the company had in the past offloaded some of its

valuable media assets, such as its financial news service, Merg-

ermarket. In any case, The Financial Times constituted a

minor segment of the company’s total holdings.

In the past, several whistleblowers had reported secret

talks about the publication’s sale among numerous buyers,

such as the British wire service Reuters Thomson, German

Axel Springer and American billionaire and former New York

mayor, Michael Bloomberg, but these were invariably bran-

ded as mere hearsay at the highest levels.

NEW OWNERS

However, when the 127-year-old The Financial Times was

purchased by the Japanese media giant, Nikkei, for $1.3 bil-

lion, it made sizzling international news. And The Economist

in its August 15 edition, had a Letter from the Editor, called A

New Chapter, where it said: “This week’s issue is an exception,

because it is an exceptional moment in The Economist’s

Global Trends TakeoversThe Financial Times, The Economist


A sharp fall in ad revenue and a dip insales have led to the offloading of these

twin publications. While Nikkei takesover FT, the owner has brought down

the stake in The EconomistBY MR DUA

Japanese Invasionof Fleet Street

history. On August 12th, we announced the most

important change to our shareholding structure

in almost 90 years. Pearson, the owner of The

Financial Times, which has had a non-controlling

50 per cent stake in us since 1928, is selling. Three-

fifths of those shares will go to an existing share-

holder—Exor, the holding company of the Agnelli

family. The rest will be bought back by our parent

company, The Economist Group.” The Economist,

founded in 1843 “to support the cause of free

trade”, always preferred to call itself a newspaper;

the group also includes the Economist Intelligence

Unit research company, and the US legislative in-

formation provider CQ Roll Call.

Meanwhile, the new owners of the publica-

tions plan “to shift to digital and mobile news”. In

fact, Pearson CEO, John Fallon, is reported to have

said that he offloaded one of his last remaining

media assets “to give it the best chance of its suc-

cess as readers switch from newspapers to smart-

phones and the market for business news becomes

more global”. He said that Pearson will exclusively

concentrate on its education business that has not

been in good health of late.

BETTER GLOBAL REACH

John Fallon noted that Nikkei being the owner of

the biggest financial title in the Japanese language,

The Nikkei, and dozen other media outlets, will be

able “to better focus on increasing the global reach

of The Financial Times and invest in its digital fu-

ture to compete with the financial firepower of

Bloomberg and top US business daily, The Wall

Street Journal”. The new owners are believed to

have been assured of “complete editorial inde-

pendence”, as it’s “implicit in the culture and fabric

of Nikkei”. Also, Nikkei owner Tsuneo Kita is be-

lieved to have stated that the company would

“maintain the paper’s independence while invest-

ing in the brand”. He added: “Let’s be clear that the

editorial independence will be maintained. The

FT is going to be the FT—it remains unchanged.”

FT’s editor, Lionel Barber was also said to have

been told he’ll retain his independence. Pearson

Inc, however, will not part with its present classic

mansion situated on the south bank of Thames

river. The new owners will function from the same

building and will pay for it.

According to Pearson, The Financial Times

had sales of £334 million last year, with £24 mil-

lion being its annual income. The group’s profits

on March 31 last amounted to $93 million, as per

a report in The New York Times. Patronized by

rich and elite readership, the publications will be

missed by the British readership, among many

others in the US and Asia. FT’s change of owners

was deemed to be “a desperately sad” event by

many London mediapersons. The pink newsprint

signature, The Financial Times, is said to be the

classic symbol of London’s “pinstriped suit”—the

only daily printed in pink paper. The same pink

newsprint style is also a signature mark of three

business dailies, The Economic Times, The Finan-

cial Express and Business Standard, in India.

OWNERSHIP CHANGE(From above left) John Fallon,the chief executive of PearsonInc; Nikkei owner Tsuneo Kita

(Below) FT’s office at OneSouthwark Bridge, London


Advertising Coca-Cola


A vibrant Coca-Cola adfor Turkey has gone

viral, thanks to its famousIndian tune. A perfect

rhapsody of Indian andTurkish cultureBY SHOBHA JOHN

Kolaveri DiHits Turkish

Shores

SUNNY and sensuous. Sultry and

sandy. As these two images merge on

a hot, happening beach, you suddenly

start feeling thirsty despite being ensc-

onced in evergreen Delhi lashed by

monsoon showers. Such is the power of advertis-

ing; it makes you desirous of things you don’t

need. And that’s what Coca-Cola’s 2015 video for

the Turkish market—Aç Bir Coca-Cola—does.

The song, sung by Turkish singers Özcan

Deniz and Sıla, is vibrant. And as you watch the

swaying crowd of good-looking men and women,

the rhythms of West Asian music sweep over you

even though you don’t understand the Turkish

lyrics. The beat of the tambourine is matched by

the steps of men in casual clothes—open shirts

with waxed chests, capris, T-shirts, hats….

FAMILIAR TUNE

As the song swirls around your head, sung by a

George Clooney lookalike, you say, wait, haven’t I

heard this rhythm before? And yet it is clearly a

Turkish ad for Coca-Cola. And then it hits you:

the tune is from Kolaveri Di, the song sung by

Dhanush in 2011 and which went viral, making

him an instant star.

As the catchy tune continues, you realize that

the language of dating and romance is clearly the

same everywhere. It shows testosterone-induced

men, including the grey-haired lead singer who

looks incongruous in this setting, asking young,

sultry women something like “Why this murder-

ous rage, girl?” (the English interpretation of

Tamil Kolaveri Di.) As girls in hammocks look up,

others are seen strutting around in mini skirts,

halters and shorts and hand fans, with their

blondish curls flying in the breeze. This is clearly

a Bohemian Rhapsody as the girls are seen leading

this motley group of men.

The lead female singer is a woman in a

provocative red shirt and shorts with a come-

hither look in her eyes. As the women sway and

dance in front of the thirsty men (thirsty in more

ways than one!), they suddenly take out Coca-

Cola bottles and show it to the men, who make a

grab for them. But they are clearly not going to

oblige, even as the men pretend to swoon.

As the women pirouette and preen, bend and

roll on the sand, the temperature is clearly shoot-

ing up, evident from the various sighs that can be

heard in the background. Dhanush has sure

missed something.

FLUID BOUNDARIES(Above) The Coca-Colaad for Turkey borrowsheavily from the Bollywood template


old Indian pride coming into play and our inher-

ent greed for acceptance.” Suthan explains that the

Turkish ad industry usually looks at the West for

influences and it is far more cued to that part of

the world than ours. “This film is, therefore, part

affirmation and embrace of Bollywood and be-

yond in a global sense. This probably is a growing

phenomenon and underlines India’s influence in

the world, both as a strong economic power and

a cultural reservoir,” he said.

Attempts to get Coca-Cola Turkey’s version

proved futile.

HAPPINESS QUOTIENT

Let’s compare this Turkish ad with Coca-Cola’s

Indian campaigns. The Indian campaigns are not

so much about fun as happiness. They are earthy,

the language is colloquial and the situations,

everyday. As Anurag Kashyap, director, of these

Indian videos says in a promotional film: “We

went into the interiors.” And though he says these

are funny, cheeky campaigns, they have a different

flavor from the Turkish one, which grabs eyeballs

for its Arabic-Indian tone.

Coca-Cola’s Indian campaigns last year had

three videos—Coca-Cola Open Happiness, Coca-

Cola Injection and Coca-Cola Rickshaw. All of

them featured the ethereal Deepika Padukone and

her famous dimples, which is half the battle won

anyway. And there is cute Farhan Akhtar too.

“What Coca-Cola always manages to do is touch

the heart,” says Padukone in the promotional film.

Pretty much like the Turkey video, which

makes us forget that this country presently has ter-

ror literally at its doorsteps as it joins hands with

American forces against the Islamic State. But

then, that is the power of advertising. As Leo Bur-

nett, founder of Leo Burnett Worldwide, said:

“Make it simple. Make it memorable. Make it

inviting to look at.” And Coca-Cola’s Turkey ad

does all this. Who knows, it may even have a cas-

cading effect on Turkey’s tourism.

So say, why this Kolaveri Di?

Though Coca-Cola’s

ads are powerful, this

one with an Indian themeis the perfect

example ofhow a

nonsensicalsong set in

exotic localesand with achange in

language canstill garner

huge response.

THE MAVERICK(Above) Dhanush’s

Kolaveri Di became aninstant hit in 2011

The dance moves are interesting and Bolly-

wood-esque as the men and women pair off, a

friend wiggles his well-shaped eyebrows to the

beat of the song. Very interesting, indeed. Even as

the women run the bottles all over their bodies,

the men cool off with water. The cold vapor

streaming out of a Coca-Cola bottle juxtaposed

against the beach in all its sunlit glory makes one

sit up and notice this ad. As bronze bodies gyrate

to the catchy song, the parched throat is slaked.

All of this is good, clean fun and the display of

bodies is shown with finesse and panache.

INDIAN INFLUENCE

Though Coca-Cola’s ads are powerful, this one

with an Indian theme is a perfect example of how

a nonsensical song set in exotic locales and with a

change in language can still garner huge response.

In fact, Kolaveri Di’s official video had garnered

more than 96 million views on YouTube since

2011, whereas the Turkish song has got more than

three lakh views within two days of its release on

YouTube.

Prathap Suthan, chief creative officer, Bang In

The Middle, a Delhi-based advertising agency,

says that advertising often borrows cultural signa-

tures from across the world. “I was more than

thrilled to see that they were inspired to dig into

our Indian palette to find inspiration. This is good

Advertising Coca-Cola


Intellectual TERROR

VIEWS ON NEWSAUGUST 22, 2015 `50

www.viewsonnewsonline.com

NOOSE AS NEWS: Yakub’s story was infused with rhetoric 18

MASAAN: A brave take on life, love, fate and hope48

FINEPRINT: Kalom’s dubious links and Didi’s patronage 26

BBC WATCH: Will the

grand broadcaster’s

wings be clipped?

30

EDIT:PORN AND THE NETIZEN

03

RSS & BJPGROWING SCHISM 52

Governance Section

BIKRAM VOHRA EXPLAINS HOW SOCIAL

MEDIA HAS BECOME THE FORCE MULTIPLIER FOR

JEHAD IN THE INFORMATION AGE

12

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Views On News (VON) is India’s premier fortnightly magazine that covers the wide spectrum of modern communication loosely known as “the media”. Its racy, news and analysis oriented story-telling encompasses current global and Indian developments, trends, future projections encompassing policy and business drifts, the latest from inside the print and electronic newsrooms, the exciting developments in ever-expanding digital space, trending matters in the social media, advertising, entertainment and books.

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PORT, as George Orwell famously

put it, “is war minus the shooting”.

He could well have said much the

same thing about shrill and frenetic

debates on Indo-Pakistan issues on

Indian television. In fact, cross-bor-

der terrorism, talks and ceasefire violations trigger off

hyper-nationalism on the idiot box, sometimes bor-

dering on the extreme. And nowhere is this jingoism

reflected in its worst form than in the programs mod-

erated by our own “Super Primetime” patriot, Arnab

Goswami. The ingredients for any discussion on the

friction between the neighboring countries on The

Newshour that he anchors on weeknights, is a mix of

hysterical ex-generals, defense experts from either side

of the border and politicians. Typically, all of them try

outshouting each other almost as if to prove the basic

principle in sonic science right—the loudest is the

one that makes the most noise.

So Arnab took everyone by surprise when, on

August 19, he held a relatively “quieter” discussion

on the Pakistan High Commission’s decision to hold

consultations with Kashmiri separatist leaders over

dinner just before the first-ever Indo-Pak NSA-level

talks. Of course, as is his wont, Arnab went through

his standard rhetoric about traitors and anti-nation-

als (read the Hurriyat leaders) before diving into the

core of the subject under discussion: Should India

be talking to Pakistan when there were 15 instances

of cross-border firing in the last five days and several

acts of terrorism in recent months?

But the temperature of the debate could not be

raised beyond a point since the panelists—Sid-

dharth Nath Singh, BJP; Maroof Raza, defense ex-

pert; Brijesh Kalappa, Congress; Prof Kamal Mitra

Chenoy and Shabnam Lone, advocate—failed to

bring the discussion even close to boiling point.

That, incidentally, is the minimum required for

Arnab to get truly worked up. However, that eve-

ning even Siddharth Nath Singh’s protestations—“IS

Anchor ReviewArnab Goswami


The Newshour on Times Now is increasinglyresembling a boxing ring with Arnab and the

panelists throwing punches at each otherBY AJITH PILLAI

Shouting Bouts

OLD HABITS DIE HARD(Above) Arnab, as

usual, badgered participants in

a discussion on Indo-Pak talks on

Times Now’sThe Newshour

(Right) Vishnu Som’sprogram on the samesubject on NDTV was

informative and sensitive


will be heard. You cannot stop me”—was not inspiring

enough. In sharp contrast, Vishnu Som’s measured and

not-so-dramatic discussion on NDTV on the very

same subject was far more informative and sensible.

Exactly 24 hours later, Arnab was back with a

double-whammy. All of two hours (minus ad

time) was devoted to the Indo-Pak talks. The

first 60 minutes was all about the BJP-PDP coalition

government in J&K first arresting Hurriyat leaders that

morning and springing a surprise by releasing them

within a few hours. Why was the drama enacted?

Arnab wanted to know and so ostensibly did the entire

nation. The Times Now anchor turned his gun first on

Dr Mehboob Beg, spokesperson of the PDP. “Why

have you become the B Team of the Pakistan govern-

ment? Why have you arrested these Hurriyat traitors—

you cannot call them leaders?” Arnab thundered. Dr

Beg was visibly hurt that his party was being referred

to as Pakistan’s B Team. “Please introspect,” he urged,

“Who is helping Pakistan when you call the elected

government Pakistan’s B Team? Remember Arnab, you

are saying this on national supertime news (sic),” he

added for good measure.

That set the tone for an hour-long shouting match

with thought-provoking interactions, including one

exchange which went something like this: “You asked

me have I finished? Now I am asking you, have you fin-

ished? I will tell you one thing I am asking you a ques-

tion. If you don’t have the courage to answer, then look

into the camera and admit that you can’t.” When the

panelist said he was ready to respond, came this trump

card from Arnab: “How can you say you can answer

my question when you haven’t heard my question!”

That all important question, incidentally, was what

the discussion was all about—why were the Hurriyat

leaders arrested and then released. For those tuning in

to The Newshour for the first time, this verbal intimi-

dation might sound genuinely amusing. But haven’t we

heard this browbeating before?

However, there was more to follow. Another hour

with Pakistani guests linked via satellite. This time, the

preamble was only a shade different: Was Pakistan try-

ing to scuttle the talks by inviting the Hurriyat lead-

ers to meet Pakistan NSA, Sartaj Aziz, ahead of his

talks with his Indian counterpart, Ajit Doval? Arnab

was loud and very vocal for a start as he poured vit-

riol on “traitors and those peaceniks who back

them”. But the Pak panelists soon took the wind out

of the sails of the discussion by stating that their

government was not shying away from the talks and

was, in fact, keen on it. “Sartaj Aziz will be coming

to Delhi. We are ready,” one of the panelists from

across the border emphasized. “You don’t seem too

keen on the talks,” he added. That left the discus-

sions headed nowhere as it meandered over familiar

territory—cross-border infiltration, ceasefire viola-

tions, Dawood Ibrahim, terror attacks and the like.

Luckily, there was no war declared on TV and

hence no casualties. But there have been occasions

when the heated debates left a bitter taste and it al-

most seemed as if some of the panelists would come

to blows. Indeed, the day is not far when TV discus-

sions will be staged in sets designed like boxing

rings—the grand finale could then be a bout be-

tween rival panelists to decide the winner. Market-

ing would love that. Boxing, after all, is not just

about giving participants a black eye but also about

grabbing eyeballs...

MODERATING INFLUENCE?(Clockwise from top left)The panel on TimesNow’s The Newshour on August 19 included Siddharth Nath Singh ofthe BJP; defense expert Maroof Raza; Prof KamalMitra Chenoy; and Brijesh Kalappa of the Congress

DESIGNS THAT MADE IMAGINATIVE USE OF PHOTOGRAPHS,FONTS, COLOR AND WHITE SPACES TO LEAVE AN IMPRESSION By ANTHONY LAWRENCE

Design


Scandals—the gray area of public life. On the cover of Rolling Stone’s10th

Anniversary of Scandal, the use of gray for text, including the masthead, is

juxtaposed with clean cutouts of dashing models to enhance the effect.

Does tomato red incite you to try out

exotic cuisine from across the world?

If yes, the cover page of

Passport magazine, a lifestyle

publication, has succeeded in its

mission. Simple and effective.

The Economic Times graphically traced thehistory of swimsuits a few years ago, rightfrom the late 19th century. An imaginativeuse of space here with a lot of information.

There’s a method to this madness in color. This installation,posted on Pinterest website for artists, is a riot of glitter colors

stuck to a wall. But what is a human skull doing in the center ofthe installation?


Yet another creative lessonby Tulip Books for kids. Its

team has placed bananaleaves in the shape of a

cow, photographed themand sketched other

features to complete thescene. But is the text

font large enough for thetarget reader?

IVEN the prominence given to god-

men and godwomen in the media, it

did not come as a surprise when sev-

eral TV channels lapped up the Radhe

Maa controversy. The story broke on August 2 when

the 50-year-old spiritual leader was accused in a

dowry harassment case.

Nikki Gupta, married into a Gupta family closely

linked to Radhe Maa, lodged a complaint at Borivali

police station in suburban Mumbai, alleging that her

husband Nakul Gupta, a chartered accountant, and

her in-laws were persuaded by Radhe Maa to make

dowry demands from her parents.

Gupta said in her complaint that her parents had

gifted substantial amount of jewelry at her wedding,

but Radhe Maa allegedly had asked her in-laws to put

pressure on her family for more dowry. She was also

made to work at her ashram in Mumbai. This was

when things went wrong for Radhe Maa.

COLORFUL GODWOMAN

After a case was registered against her under the

Dowry Prohibition Act, the Akhil Bharatiya Akhara

Parishad, the apex body of Hindu ascetic organiza-

tions, banned her from participating in the Shahi Snan

at Kumbh Mela in Nashik on August 29. Soon photos

of Radhe Maa in a miniskirt went viral on the net.

Footage of her dancing to Bollywood hits wearing

brightly colored sarees also made news.

From August 2 to August 14, Aaj Tak had 24


G

The controversial and colorful godwoman garnered viewer interest as newschannels had debates, talk shows and special programs on her

BY VON TEAM

Survey TMM ExclusiveTV Coverage

Radhe Maa: Talk of the Town

01 2 3 4 5 6

5

10

15

20

25

NO OF BREAKING NEWSAaj TakABP

India TodayTimes Now

APNSamachar Plus

01 2 3 4 5 6

2468

10

12141618

SPECIAL PROGRAMSAaj TakABP


APNSamachar Plus

24

15

10

64

2

1614

10 0 0

01 2 3 4 5 6

0.51

1.52

2.5

33.54

4.5NO OF DEBATE SHOWS

Aaj TakABP


APNSamachar Plus2

4

1

0 0 0

breaking stories, ABP News, 15, and Times Now, 10. The

story attracted considerable notice because of the nature of

the subject. Here was a godwoman, born Sukhvinder Kaur,

from Dorangala village, Gurdaspur district, Punjab, who

at the age of 23 became a disciple of Mahant Ram Deen Das

of the 1008 Paramhans Bagh Dera in Hoshiarpur. He over-

saw her deeksha (initiation ceremony) and named her

Radhe Maa. Her style of blessing her disciples is unique—

singing and dancing with them. She became popular and

attracted thousands of disciples from across the country.

Hers was a success story.

Apparently, the quantum leap in her mass appeal came

after she came in touch with the family of Manmohan

Gupta, the chairman of MM Mithaiwala which runs a chain

of sweet shops in Mumbai. Sanjeev Gupta, a family mem-

ber, is the managing trustee of the Mamatamai Shri Radhe

Guru Maa Charitable Trust. He also promotes her divadar-

shans in Mumbai through advertisements and hoardings.

VIEWER INTEREST

Radhe Maa’s colorful life lent itself to special programs on

many channels. Aaj Tak led with 16 of them during the Au-

gust 2-14 period. ABP News had 14 and Times Now, one.

Debates were also featured on the channels. ABP News led

the pack with four such discussions, Aaj Tak had two, and

Times Now also saw the issue good enough to hold a debate.

The discussions ranged from “Who made Radhe Maa a

Godwoman” to a “Pious vs Pretender” debate.

Why was there so much focus on a discredited spiritual

leader? Perhaps one reason was that several channels saw

that as sensational news in a week when there were appar-

ently no big stories. Others felt that since there was so much

viewer interest, there was a need to educate them. But there

were still other channels which sensationalized the story

with only TRPs in mind.

It must be pointed out that NDTV, India Today and

Times Now raised other issues as well. GST, OROP, terror-

ism, the derailed monsoon session of parliament and the

Naga Agreement were all given due importance and focus.

Regional channels like APN focused on parliamentary pro-

ceedings, bills and project cleared by the Cabinet and issues

of governance which were far more newsworthy than the

Radhe Maa controversy.


NEWSDATE NEWS CHANNEL TIME

8:55 AM 10:41 AM 10:42 AM

6/8/15

6/8/15

6/8/15

7/8/15

7/8/15

7/8/15

8/8/15

BJP worker Avinash Kumar shot deadby three unidentified men near GandhiMaidan in Patna.

Parliament logjam continues for thirdconsecutive day; Sonia Gandhi attacksModi government, calls it arrogant.

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singhcondemns Udhampur terror attack inparliament; blames Pakistan for attackon BSF convoy.

Tiger Memon called his family on July30; told his mother he would avengeYakub’s execution.

Justice Dipak Mishra receives deaththreat; was member of the panel thatrejected Yakub Memon’s plea.

Delhi Police arrests journalist ZuberAhmed Khan on his way from Mumbaito join terror outfit ISIS.

FIR filed against Radhe Ma in a case ofdowry harassment.

8/8/15Cloudburst in Mandi, HimachalPradesh; Dharampur bus station submerged, four buses washed away.

11.18 AM

8.19 AM8.00 AM

8.00 AM 8.47 AM

9.21 AM 9.22 AM9.20 AM

11.20 AM11.17 AM 11.18 AM


10.25 AM10.00 AM

8.20 AM 8.35 AM

8.48 AM 9.00 AM

10.39 AM

9.25 AM

10.27 AM 10.28 AM

10:37 AM 10:39 AM 10:40 AM

9.58 AM 10.05 AM 10.07 AM 10.10 AM

Here are some of the major news items aired on television channels, recorded by our unique 24x7 dedicated media monitoring unit that scrutinizes more than 130 TV channels in different Indian languages and looks at who breaks the news first.

DATE NEWS CHANNEL TIMENEWS


7.05 AM 7.05 AM

10/8/15

10/8/15

10/8/15

11/8/15

11/8/15

12/8/15

12/8/15

Stampede at Baidyanath Temple inDeogarh in Jharkhand leaves at least11 dead and 24 injured.

Nitish Kumar, Lalu Prasad Yadav to launch“Swabhiman” rally against Modi’s DNA remark; will take signatures of 50 lakh peo-ple and send their blood samples to Modi.

Earthquake measuring 6.2 on theRichter Scale strikes Hindu-Kush area ofAfghanistan; tremors felt in JammuKashmir, Delhi and Punjab.

Kejriwal criticizes Delhi Police for Yogendra Yadav’s arrest; tweets peace-ful protest is his lawful right.

PM Modi praises Mulayam Sigh Yadav’ssupport to end parliament logjam.

Sushma Swaraj responds to Congress ac-cusations in Lalitgate; blames Congressfor lack of investigation during its term

Nitish Kumar, Lalu Prasad Yadav declareseat- sharing formula at press conference;RJD, JDU will contest 100 seats each, Con-gress will contest 40 and NCP three seats.

12/8/15Arun Jaitley takes a jibe at RahulGandhi; calls him an expert withoutknowledge.

9.10 AM 9.39 AM 9.40 AM9.08 AM

3.49 PM3.49 PM

9:29 AM9:28 AM

10:57 AM10:53 AM 10:56 AM 10:58 AM

2:10 PM 2:11 PM 2:12 PM 2:13 PM

3.53 PM 3.53 PM

9:30 AM 9:31 AM

5.46 PM 5.48 PM5.45 PM

7.06 AM 7.06 AM

3:40 PM3:39 PM 3:39 PM 3:40 PM

DATE NEWS CHANNEL TIME

7.42 AM 7.43 AM

13/8/15

13/8/15

13/8/15

14/8/15

14/8/15

14/8/15

16/8/15

Blast in a masjid in Trenz village of Shopiandistrict, Jammu and Kashmir, injures 10.

Bombay High Court lifts ban on Maggi;samples of all nine variants to be tested inthree different labs before Nestle can startmanufacturing the noodles.

Congress protests in Parliament; NCP,TMC MPs support Sonia Gandhi inboycott of parliament.

13 pilgrims, including 6 women, killedas pick-up van collides with speedingtruck on NH-33 near Chowka , 40 kmaway from Jamshedpur.

Dowry harassment case registeredagainst Radhe Ma; asked to appear inKandivali police station in Mumbai.

Prakash Javdekar lashes out at Congressfor washout of Monsoon session; callsthe party anti-poor, anti-progress andanti-democracy.

Arvind Kejriwal’s AAP government to waveoff electricity bills of defaulters; JJ colony residents will be charged `250 per monthfor unpaid dues .

16/8/15 PM Modi begins UAE tour today; first Indian prime minister to do so in 34years.

11.38 AM 11.39 AM 11.40 AM11.37 AM

11.50 AM11.50 AM

7.51 AM 7.52 AM 9.19 AM7.50 AM

8.10 AM 8.10 AM

10.39 AM 10.40 AM

11:40 AM11:08 AM

10.40 AM

11.51 AM

11:55 AM

12:34 PM 12:37 PM 12:12 PM


NEWS

7.44 AM 7.46 AM

11.51 AM

8.11 AM 8.14 AM

10.41 AM

12:39 PM

DATE NEWS CHANNEL TIMENEWS


12:52 PM 12:53 PM 12:53 PM 12:54 PM

1:55 PM

16/8/15

16/8/15

17/8/15

17/8/15

17/8/15

18/8/15

18/8/15

Eight killed in blast in Pakistan’s Punjabhome minister’s office; home ministerShuja Khanzada trapped in rubble.

Saina Nehwal becomes first Indian towin silver at BWF World BadmintonChampionships; loses to World No. 1Carolina Marin

Day 2 of Modi’s UAE visit; will engage intalks on terrorism and energy coopera-tion; will also address Indian diasporalater in the day.

Modi visits Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosquein Abu Dhabi; Omar Abdullah dismisses itas a tourist moment.

ED seals two of Lalit Modi’s bank accounts in Singapore; requested authorities to send money back to India.

Suvra Mukherjee, wife of PresidentPranab Mukherjee, dies at the age of 74after being hospitalized for 11 days.

PM Modi targets Nitish government inArrah; announces ̀ 1.25 lakh crore package for Bihar.

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FTII has always beenabout freedom of

expression and theright to creativity. Butthe present crisis hasshown that the govt is

pushing ahead withsaffronization of

the campusBY ABHAY VAIDYA


UGUST 18, 2015, will go down as a “black day”

in the history of the Film and Television Institute

of India (FTII), Pune. On this day, the police was

called in by the institute’s director to arrest agi-

tating students.

This decision was clearly bull-headed and the

police compounded this blunder by coming in at midnight to carry

out arrests, obviously to avoid the full glare of media attention. By this

solitary act, the government bureaucrats exposed their flank at India’s

premier film and TV training institute. Rather than trying to resolve

the crisis, the government only exacerbated it with the police action.

“I am stressed and appalled by the arrests. This is the first time that

AWhat’s the Agenda?

ControversyFTII Stalemate

overnanceG


balled into an issue that became a political oppor-

tunity for the Congress first and then the AAP.

More than that, the latest FTII strike by students,

which entered into its third month on August 12,

exposed the government’s autocratic style of

functioning.

After the controversy over Pahlaj

Nihalani’s appointment as the chairman

of the Central Board of Film Certifica-

tion (he had made videos for Modi’s

election campaign), the government

invited fresh trouble by appointing

people on the FTII Society with open

RSS-BJP affiliations.

The students were quick to sense

what was happening and opposed the ap-

pointments of not just Chauhan but also of

Anagha Ghaisas, Narendra Pathak, Rahul

Solapurkar and Shailesh Gupta. These were

the names that replaced the original choice

listed by the then FTII director DJ Narain—

Amitabh Bachchan and Vidhu Vinod Chopra

among others for president and Naseeruddin

Shah, Rajat Kapoor and others for members.

I&B minister Arun Jaitley responded by reject-

ing the student demand outright and pointed out

that in no institute do the students decide who their

director or chairperson should be. The students

were at once branded as being unreasonable, asked

to call off their agitation and go back to their studies.

This was the official line of the BJP.

DIFFERENT ETHOSWhile the BJP bigwigs were treating the FTII as

the problem has gone outside the campus and cops

had to be called in. It is not a good sign and this

should never have happened,” said director Shyam

Benegal, reacting immediately after the police ac-

tion. Benegal felt that Chauhan should have taken

the initiative to visit the campus and meet the stu-

dents, but he never did.

SNOWBALLING ISSUEThe police action followed a series of mis-steps, all

of which indicated that the crisis was growing bigger

by the day. From a students’ protest against the

appointment of Gajendra Chauhan, TV actor and

BJP member, as chairman of FTII Society, it snow-

The students opposed Chauhan because of his weak credentials in comparison to directors such as Adoor Gopalakrishnan and Rajkumar Hirani who would have brought prestige to FTII.

POLITICAL DIRECTION TO DISSENT(Above) AISA activists demonstrating

against the appointment of Gajendra Chauhan(right) as FTII chairman, in New Delhi on June 16

tization in the name of modernization, re-structur-

ing of syllabus, upgradation and whether the highly

subsidized structure would be scrapped.

CHAUHAN’S CREDENTIALS In the present case, the agitation is not so much

about Gajendra Chauhan per se, but about creden-

tials. The students opposed Chauhan because of his

unimpressive body of work in contrast to, say,

highly respected directors such as Adoor Gopala-

krishnan and Rajkumar Hirani, who would have

brought prestige to FTII with their stature.

The students’ fears were not unfounded and

were bound to raise an alarm, which is precisely

what happened. Rather than address these fears, the

Modi government and the BJP saw the FTII strike

as an act of indiscipline and went about dealing

with it sternly.

Bureaucrats began to build pressure by turning

the screw little-by-little. The agitating students were

told that they would face rustication; those “over-

staying” in the hostel were identified and asked to

The FTII has seenabout 40 agitations

in the past fivedecades. Even when

Mohan Agashe was atits helm as

director, there wereprotests over

fears of the institute’sprivatization.

HOLD OVER ARTS(Right)

Pahlaj Nihalani’s appointment as thechairman of Censor

Board had also worriedthe film fraternity

any other institute, the fact is that the FTII, estab-

lished in 1960, is not any other institution. Students

don’t come here to quickly get their diplomas and

degrees, vie for placements and move on to jobs with

attractive salary packages.

The FTII by character is a liberal institution

which has always resisted authoritarian control. It is

about freedom, creativity and ideas. In terms of ide-

ology, it has always tilted towards the Left. A film-

maker’s life is a life of uncertainty and struggle and

the students are well-aware of this reality.

Students from varied backgrounds compete

fiercely to become creative professionals. Freedom

and the pursuit of creativity have always been of

paramount importance for the students and this is

evident from a visit to the campus. Graffiti, installa-

tions and slogans painted on the campus walls are

all about freedom of expression.

The FTII has seen about 40 strikes and agitations

in the past five decades. Even when an accomplished

actor like Mohan Agashe was at its helm as director,

there were protests over fears of the institute’s priva-

ControversyFTII Stalemate

overnanceG


Anil Shakya

vacate and employees on contract were asked to

leave as there was no work at the institute. I&B

officials also instructed Prashant Pathrabe, the new

director of FTII, to immediately undertake the

long-pending assessment of film projects of 50 stu-

dents of the 2008 batch, even if the films were in-

complete. The students protested, saying that the

projects were incomplete because of administrative

and infrastructural issues. In this, the students were

supported by the faculty. When Pathrabe refused

to budge, he was gheraoed by the students in his

cabin for about six hours, after which he called in

the police in consultation with I&B ministry offi-

cials. On August 19, four bouncers were deployed

by the FTII management for Pathrabe’s security.

This did not go down well with the students and

the faculty.

GOVT MISCALCULATIONThe police action resulted in widespread, negative

reaction and the ministry hastily announced that a

three-member team would be sent to Pune “to

assess the ground situation” and submit

a report to resolve the crisis. The gov-

ernment clearly mis-calculated the fall-

out of the FTII crisis.

The government still has an oppor-

tunity to undertake corrections. The

institute needs to flourish in its liberal

environment and it needs real auton-

omy and transparency in its appoint-

ment procedures. One way out of this

mess is to establish a mutually accept-

able panel of experts which would work out a com-

promise between the government and the students.

“Even Anupam Kher and Paresh Rawal would

have been acceptable in place of Gajendra Chauhan

because they have far higher cinematic merit,” said

filmmaker and FTII alumnus Salil Desai. He felt

that the government had bungled badly by ap-

pointing Chauhan in the first place.

The government will succeed in destroying this

premier institute if it decides to run it with a heavy

hand and a hidden agenda.

WON’T FOLLOW THE GOVERNMENT SCRIPT(Left) FTII studentsprotest against thehigh-handedness of the government in appointments at JantarMantar in New Delhi

(Below) DirectorPrashant Pathrabe wasgheraoed by agitatingstudents on the campus in Pune


Anil Shakya

CHAIN OF HOPESchool children jointhe protest against the proposed CoastRoad in Mumbai onAugust 14


A road proposed on Mumbai’s western sea

front has kicked upquite a storm. Despite

questions beingraised over the

ecological damage itwould cause, the

government has givenmost of the clearances

BY DARRYL D’MONTE

EnvironmentMumbai’s Coast Road

overnanceG

Road toPerdition?

THERE is a serious issue concerning

people’s right to know when it comes

to the controversial Coast Road, pro-

posed on Mumbai’s western sea

front. It was mooted by the former

Congress chief minister Prithviraj

Chauhan, whose government was

voted out of power last October. But he couldn’t get it off the

ground in his tenure. However, the Brihanmumbai Municipal

Corporation (BMC) did appoint a committee to advice on the

road, the alignment of which was up on its website for several

months. Subsequently, the alignment was incorporated into

the 20-year Mumbai Development Plan (DP) from 2014-

2034, but it was unceremoniously junked when experts and

citizens pointed to gaping loopholes and inconsis-

tencies in the document. This set the stage for a

new DP.

FAST CLEARANCES

It is illegal for an alignment approved by an official

committee to be reworked without a proper offi-

cial authorization like a government resolution

(GR) for such a purpose. But the Shiv Sena-dom-

inated BMC is obviously in a high comfort zone

with the BJP-led coalition state government, not

to mention compliant ministers in New Delhi like

Minister of Environment and Forests (MoEF)

Prakash Javadekar, who has given the road


SERVICE TO THE RICHThe Bandra-Worli Sea Link is

useful mostly to those who commute in cars

DIRE SITUATIONThe 2005 Mumbai floods occurred because there was no outlet for rainwater

mental impact assessment included in it, contra-

dicts the thrust of the report by pointing to all the

environmental problems that reclamation will

cause to Mumbai. The city recently observed the

10th anniversary of the devastating July 2005

mega-flood, in which some 700 people perished

when 944 mm of rain fell over (mainly suburban)

Mumbai and its outskirts in some 12 hours. There

was no way for the rain to escape.

On July 27, the deadline for sending in objec-

tions, the BMC found that there were too few—

unlike a few thousand in the case of the DP—and

extended it till August 27. By August 10, it com-

plained that it had only received some 400 objec-

tions, most of which were repetitive.

JUST A PRETENSE

Significantly, it said that these reiterations wouldn’t

be taken into account—which gives a clear indi-

cation that it is dead-set on going ahead and is

only going through the motions of consulting

“stakeholders”. In the past, as in the case of the

iconic Bandra-Worli Sea Link (BWSL), which

forms a central section of the road, fisher folk

protested vociferously at the public hearing and

disrupted it, but the hearing was officially declared

as being held as required under the law.

In 2001, the Indian People’s Tribunal on Envi-

ronment and Human Rights held a proper public

hearing on the BWSL, in which this writer was a

commissioner. It gave an adverse report

(http://www.iptindia.org/wp-content/pdf/re-

port/An-Enquiry-Into-The-Bandra-Worli-Sea-

Link-Project.pdf) on the ̀ 400-crore project which

eventually cost four times as much. It is used by

only 45,000 cars a day as against 1,20,000 esti-

mated today, which means that the public is

subsidizing seven percent of car-owners or com-

muters using motorized transport to travel to

work, as will be the case with the Coast Road.

The belief that this is an eyewash is only rein-

forced by the fact that Javadekar has already pro-

vided most of the environmental clearances,


overnanceG

The Hinducarried a long

Sunday magazine

feature by itsMumbai staffer,

highlightingthe human

predicament ofa fishing

village whichwill be

truncated bythe road.

environmental clearances, and Minister of Road

Transport Nitin Gadkari who is gung-ho about

building highways. Gadkari was responsible for

construction of 55 flyovers in the city when he was

PWD minister in the BJP-Sena state government

in the mid-1990s.

True to form, about a year ago, the BMC

appointed STUP Consultants and Ernst & Young

to draft a new alignment as a Detailed Project

Report (DPR) for a fee of `8 crore. This was sub-

mitted early this year to the BMC, which—for rea-

sons best known to itself—sat on it till June when

it released an executive summary along with the

voluminous document. Citizens were given only

a month to send in their objections.

The report, to put it mildly, is a hotchpotch of

ill-digested raw data with sweeping conclusions,

including the contention that the road, for which

some 170 hectares are

going to be reclaimed

100-200 meters off the

coast, will have no en-

vironmental repercus-

sions. Even the prose is

wonky, which makes

one wonder what an

international consult-

ant like Ernst & Young

was doing co-author-

ing it?

It was difficult even

for public transport ex-

perts to wade through

the voluminous data,

with traffic projections

on the 35-km-long

route by the hour, pro-

jected for a score of

years. The report, like

the DP in another con-

text, is also riddled with

errors. Ironically, the

mandatory environ-


barring a few to do with the Coastal Zone Regu-

lation law, which are in the pipeline. All this was

before throwing the plan open to public consulta-

tion. This is a complete travesty of the entire

process of governance, which requires people

affected by a project to be allowed to air their

grievances prior to the commencement of the

project in any manner.

To compound the confusion, the Maharashtra

government has—following the recent visit of

Netherlands’ Prime Minister Mark Rutte—invited

Dutch consultants, to Mumbai to advise on the

alignment and also explore the possibility of

incorporating a metro line along the route. At the

meet, Rutte and Dutch consultants reiterated that

in Holland, all stakeholders are consulted before

embarking on a project because, pragmatically,

this saves time and money.

FLAGRANT VIOLATIONS

Nothing of the kind is happening in Mumbai,

where there is a flagrant violation of governance

norms. Even well-informed citizens like Cyrus

Guzder, a businessman associated with the her-

itage conservation movement and the Bombay

Environmental Action Group, were in a quan-

dary: how do they protest against a road project

without even knowing what its alignment is and

what it envisages by way of reclamation? This is a

fundamental deprivation of the right to informa-

tion, especially when it concerns a project which

will change the face of the city irretrievably.

In the absence of public information, the

media has stepped up to the plate and been

consistently reporting the tortuous process of de-

cision-making on this project. This writer himself

has written four articles, pointing to various defi-

ciencies in the road plan (for example

http://www.thequint.com/india/2015/06/08/mu

mbai-coastal-road-rail-link-just-speaking-dou-

ble-dutch). The Hindu carried a long Sunday mag-

azine feature by its Mumbai staffer, highlighting

the human predicament of a fishing village which

will be truncated by the road (http://www.the-

hindu.com/sunday-anchor/the-long-road-to-

progress/article7411612.ece).

The most detailed critique has come from two

young academics from Kamala Raheja College of

Architecture in the city, Hussain Indorewala and

Shweta Wagh. They have painstakingly—once

again, in the absence of official information—

plotted the alignment from the route provided in

the DP and, later, the DPR. Surprisingly, it has

fallen on citizens in the suburb of Bandra [disclo-

sure: this writer is the President of the Bandra

West Residents Association which is

The city recently observed the10th anniversary of the devastatingJuly 2005mega-flood, in which some700 peopleperished.

YES MINISTERS(Above, L-R) Environment MinisterPrakash Javadekarand Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkariare gung-ho about theproject



overnanceG

spearheading the protest] and other suburbs,

while the residents of south Mumbai, which fea-

tures the posh areas of Nepean Sea and Warden

Roads, with Malabar and Cumballa Hills towering

above, seemingly somnolent.

In the article: “Mumbai’s coastal road plan is a

welfare scheme for the well-to-do” in Scroll.in in

April, the two writers say that the official position

is that “a freeway would “take away traffic from

internal roads”, reduce Mumbai’s notorious con-

gestion and cut down pollution levels, thus dimin-

ishing public “health hazards”.

The two further cite the official stand that the

coastal road would supply “significant green

space” to the city by reclaiming 160 hectares of

land from the sea. It would also beautify the city’s

western edge by creating recreational spaces.

On the whole, the committee’s report

claimed, the freeway will result in a “quantum

leap” towards enhancing the “quality of life” of its

citizens. Anyone with a modicum of knowledge

of coastal cities knows this is a falsehood.

There has not been a single article in favour

of the project in the English media. Even the

Marathi press, after some initial disinterest, has

begun to awaken to the need to

expose the false claims of the

project. The popular daily, Sakal,

recently carried a double-page

centre-spread titled “Marg Ku-

beracha” which echoes the two

academics by terming it a road

for the rich.

On July 29, the same paper

carried a report titled “Mum-

baicha Coastal Road Samudracha

Jeev Ghenar”, i.e. the road will

rob the sea of its life. There is a

symbiotic relationship of the

Marathi media and the fishing

community, who are already

seeking legal recourse against the

project which will not only de-

prive their community of their vista of the ocean,

but their very livelihood.

Postscript: On August 14, a day before Ban-

dra residents were to hold a human chain after

hoisting the flag on two public promenades

maintained by residents’ associations, committee

members received repeated phone calls from the

local police station, the CID and even

Mantralaya (the state secretariat). The callers in-

quired about the nature of the protest and

whether the safety of school children taking part

in this entirely peaceful demonstration would be

jeopardized. Someone purporting to be from the

Anti-Terrorist Squad actually asked a convent to

desist from sending their children, which pre-

vented 90 girls from protesting. The demonstra-

tion passed of peacefully, with some 500 children

in both locations, along with scores of residents

and fisher folk. At Carter Road, this writer pub-

licly quoted chapter and verse from Article 19 of

the Constitution which guarantees both freedom

of expression and the right of peaceful assembly.

Even trade unions have the right of such assem-

bly, let alone law-abiding citizens. Are these the

earliest signs of an illiberal government?

The projectwill not only

deprive thefishing

community oftheir vista of

the ocean, buttheir very

livelihood.


.

RNI No. UPENG/2007/22571 Postal Regd. No. UP/GBD-204/2015-17

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