Journalism and activism in the time of decaying democracy
- Imphal Times Editorial :: December 20 2019 -

A journalist must seek the truth from facts, from the facts the truth is revealed.

The truth sought would be then spoken to power.

The fact now is the government is not allowing any democratic voice against its policies, at the same time claiming that peaceful protest is acceptable.

The views from all sides must be heard, the principle of democracy, is being violated.

The facts are peaceful protesters are stopped from protesting. These facts reveal the truth that there is a severe gag on democratic voices.

With a severe gag on democratic utterances from the public, it would be a myth that we are ruled by unbiased people.

When it comes to unbiased reporting, it is only possible when the rulers are unbiased, in a world where democracy is.

Ours, as of now, is not the case. Many have lost their lives now protesting against CAB.

The protests that erupted in Assam and Tripura have travelled far and wide in Indian campus where students are being brutally lathi charged.

What matters here for us is the facts and the facts matters because they reveal the truth. The truth is what has been said above.

Where does journalism end and activism begins? This question does not have a clear answer. The divide does not have a clear line.

Much debates have happened amongst those who study journalism, as a profession.

When we see objectively in the world of journalism, we find that it is also a world of political beings.

We need to understand this crisscrossing of journalism and activism. We must remember the great political and social movements and the journalists who were involved in it.

How can we forget the young Marx who was a journalist. We should remember John Reed, the American journalist whose body is now buried in Kremlin as a respect to his service in the great Russian revolution.

On the one hand, we have journalist who laid the foundation of American invasion of Iraq by reporting wrongly that there are weapon of mass destruction in Iraq.

On the other hand, we have journalist with strong political views against exploitation and oppression such as Amy Goodman persecuted by the American government.

When we look into India’s fight against British Colonialism, we see Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi and Bal Gangadhar Tilak becoming journalists.

We should also remember our puwari. Lamyanba Irabot is the father of journalism in Manipur.

These instances make us think about the crisscrossing that journalism and activism have and the blurring of boundaries between the two.

Lamyanba Irabot was a journalist because Manipur at that time needed journalism and he saw it.

It is tool of the people to seek the truth from the things that they see happening.

Further, the profession though is the most important it should not take away our humanity.