Friday, April 15, 2011

MEDIA ANTICS

A couple of days back I was watching a prominent news channel which was selected by my wife. It was telecasting news about entertainment but reminders kept popping up stating “ Be careful if you eat GOLGAPPAS”, “ Biggest Sting Operation”, “ Urine in GOLGAPPAS”, “ Watch next”. May not be in same order. This raised my antennas as my wife and grandchildren sometimes do relish this roadside snack. So I was glued to TV to see what it is. Many thoughts crossed my mind specially after having seen so many news items about adulteration of common products like milk, ghee, KHOYA etc etc. And that too after recent episode of KUTTU ATTA.


But when it was finally shown I was so aghast. It just showed a lone vendor selling GOLGAPPAS at not very crowded spot somewhere in Mumbai. He was being watched by a lady from window on upper floor of nearby building. He suffered sudden pressure built up in his bladders and relieved himself in a utensil which he emptied on the side later. This utensil was utilized to put spicy water in GOLGAPPAS. It was an isolated incident, though what he did was unpardonable but the build up by using so many POP Ups would definitely have made lot of persons wonder as to what adulteration was coming to. This could have been shown as a news also bringing to knowledge of viewers the unhygienic deed of that vendor.


And the result. Well, in newspaper of yesterday there was a news tucked away in a very by the way manner that MNS workers are targeting snack vendors, particularly those selling GOLGAPPAS or PAANIPURIS in Mumbai. This I feel has taken political hue as most of those selling these items are non-maharashtrians. Also this gives another source of HAFTAs to those targeting them.


Don’t you think Media should be more responsible instead of raising a bogey to let some unscrupulous persons make hay out of isolated unwanted act of just one person?

20 comments:

Lady Whispers said...

Media has become a business off late....and if one watches India TV....what fake news u find....i have given up on most media channel for that reason....alas its a powerful tool which can be misused.
And Uncle do visit my blog...there is my birthday post :)

Been off for a while now back...

Changed my pen name but its the same Scribbling Gal :)

Shilpi said...

Yuck! That's a disgusting news btw!
Being from Media line, I would say yea Media is becoming a business day by day..c'mon everybody wants to gain some booty! You cannot really blame them! But apart from few news channels who are trying hard to gain viewers attention by any means, there is still some sensible journalism who works for the society and nation first!
Not just Media, every field has some bad and some good traits :)

Deepika Vasudeva said...

generalization of this incident for all the vendors is too wrong.just coz one person does that or was caught doing it.. it doesn't mean everyone out there is unto this disgust.
Media has certainly done blunders in past... highlighting one small issue and ignoring other huge issues has made media so unreliable for references...

hamaarethoughts.com said...

Yuck...Shit
Disgusting!
I think there are no license ...people are doin business like stray dogs on the road..wandering here and there..and there are no food inspectors looking or checking the food!

Pramoda Meduri said...

very classical exampls u have give.. yeah.. media shall be more responsible for that matter, shall work for ppl rather than for TRP s..

Noor-ul-Ain Hanif said...

I am fond of golgappays but this news make me :s :s well now I 'll avoid to eat items from street vendors!

Alka Gurha said...

It is a new trend to sensationalize news and scare people....and I call it media terrorism.

Purba said...

Breaking news is a much abused word - anything and everything passes off as one!

Sakshi said...

Responsible Journalism? Well, do you remember when media was reporting 26/11? When was the last time media actually did some positive reporting... it is a sad state when media makes news, rather than reporting it!

Komal Ali said...

That's sad.
What's even sadder is that people have lost the sense to analyze news how it should be analyzed. We fall for pretty much everything that media says.

Take care

Jigyasa said...

Really sad & upsetting! I checked the hue & cry over this issue on face book with people reverting to all kinds of comments!

No wonder some other channel will make a scoop of no public toilets available and hence the common man suffers! After all, media is into creating news & not reporting us!

But at the same time....we cant these days trust even the branded stuff as that too is adulterated in a smart way....with entire copy of the packaging etc! Life is vulnerable and so are the goods we consume!

A Restless Mind With A Sensitive Heart! said...

The braeking news gets hilarious at times!!! and this case.... just to create some spicy story that's it. It's simply that jo dikhta hai woh bikta hai!!!

this was bad.

RESTLESS

Jack said...

S G :

You said it so clearly. It is a pity. I have visited you.
Take care


SANJANA :

I know it is so in every field. We have so many unwanted things in medical profession too. How I wish that people who are in field for doing good to humanity do not get tempted to do something unethical. Take care


DEEPIKA :

I think to do things by principles has become a thing of past. They could have shown it as news and filed a case against that vendor. Take care


HARMAN :

I agree with you that whatever little control exists is not being implemented properly and those responsible to ensure that are just making money. Take care

Jack said...

PRAMODA :

It hurts and one loses faith in system. Take care


NOOR :

Relax. Don't let this stray incident rob you off your joy. One black sheep does not make the whold flock black. Adulteration is almost in everything. We should choose vendor who maintains high standards of cleanliness & hygine. Take care


ALKA :

Right you are. Have you seen how they report some of the sensitive issues like rape etc.? Take care


PURBA :

How I wish we could do something abut it? Where is conscience of such persons who try to play with our emotions? Take care

Jack said...

SAKSHI :

For how long should we suffer this? Something needs to be done definately. Take care


KOMAL :

His act was revolting and what media did was totally disgusting as evident by attacks on other innocent vendors. Take care


JIGYASA :

I will back that scoop about non-availability of public toilets as that would reduce public nuisance to a large extent. But not what this channel did. You are right, adulteration is rampat and again it is source of income to those who are supposed to curb it. Take care


RESTLESS :

I remember there was a movie made many years ago. Two newspapers were trying to outdo each other to gain more readership. One hired killers to murder a prominent leader very late at night. They printed it as headlines on front page for circulation on next day but unfortunately the would be killers got caught before they could accomplish the task. Hope competition of media does not come to this now. Take care

Ire said...

Media loves and thrives on the hype they create around simple things making them seem complex. Utter Rubbish.

Poor Paani puri walas.

Always Happy said...

Gosh! that is yuck, no?

but you are right uncle Jack. Media shoud be more responsible as they have great power but alas! for them always bad news is good news.

By make this particular news a sensational news media have just tried to put all the other innocent golgappa vendors out of business.

Jack said...

NIKITA :

It is sad, though I am not at all condoning the disgusting act of that vendor but to project every vendor like him is very unethical on part of that news channel. Take care


A H :

What that vendor did is deplorable but did media have a right to place every other vendor at par risking their means of livelihood?
Take care

Suruchi said...

that was actually gross Uncle J,
and media has anyways a long time ago, stopped becoming what it was supposed to stand up for-rsponsible journalism...

the stupid sensationalizing is so over done, that I prefer to get news more from the newspaper than these news channels on tv:/

Jack said...

SURUCHI :

What that vendor did was highly unpardonable and punishable but what that channel did was very unethical and beyond any norms of limits. Take care