Tuesday 7 June 2011

Broadcast Powerplay

The fact that everyone feels bombarded with news of scams, and deluge of anti-corruption crusades on the telly is only an indicator that the media has become oh so powerful in  its reach, impact and effectiveness that they will seize every opportunity to make the most of every positive or negative byte it has on offer.
While free press/media has its advantages for any country, it has its disadvantages too. Uncontrolled media blitzkrieg has to be brought under the fold of a regulator, that  knows how to respect the freedom of press, creativity, and at the same time evaluates the deleterious impact of its extremities on the overall health of the nation, being subjected to continuous free programming of the ugly kind. Its time for a re-look of media regulation and broadcast policy.
The Anna episode and Baba episode is only an indicator that as India prospers, there'll be members emerging from the society wanting to bring about positive change, using raw aggression or clumsy non-aggressive strategies, their motive genuine or otherwise. While thats healthy even in a half baked democracy like ours, it will also lead to rogues trying to make their way into this. Many will fall by the wayside, as not every one can rule, and that the numbers that can be accommodated at the top is limited. Baba did his fast, Anna did his, and that democracy allows them; the govt ejected out Baba's non-violent mass gathering in the name of maintaining order and decorum in the capital city, which again, democracy allows.