Perpetuating core and periphery
- Hueiyen Lanpao Editorial :: March 17, 2015 -
Stuart Allan's introductory essay titled "Hidden in plain sight – journalism's critical issues" to the book Journalism: Critical Issues edited by himself begins with a quote from George Orwell that says "At any given moment there is a sort of all-pervading orthodoxy, a general tacit agreement not to discuss large and uncomfortable facts."
Immediately after the quote, he says: "These are troubled times for journalism." Allan goes on to state that the state of crisis is even leading to the danger of journalism losing its place in a democratic country.
He says that many in the "once proud profession" are wondering if they have been gradually exposed to "the relentless pull of populism, politics and profits on its rapidly fraying threads."
Allan is referring to the crisis of journalism in the West, though there were contributors to his book from other parts of the world.
When one reflects on these issues, one cannot help but think about what is happening to the media, particularly the news media, in India.
This thought about making an inquiry into the state of the media in India not only from the perspective of industry-laden economics but also the status of the "once proud profession" should be the foundational impulse of any queries on perplexing situations.
The popular understanding of the media in India is increasingly dependent upon what is being taught in the mushrooming media institutes throughout the country.
In the case of news media, many have been taught how one acquires "news sense" over a period of time having done "reporting" and "desk" jobs.
Is there uniformity, a set of parameters that decide what constitutes news or information?
Moreover, what is the credibility of those who are in the business of gathering and producing news and information from areas considered non-mainstream?
There are gamuts of issues now: on the one hand, there is the issue of "information deficit", "neglect" and "stereotyping" of regions, classes and communities by the media, and on the other, there is the issue of viable existence of these very media based on market logic.
Even within regions in a State, it has been observed that there is asymmetrical flow of information.
While trying to convert whatever that constitutes the mainstream, there has always been a tendency to neglect fringe areas thus perpetuating the existence of the core and the periphery in little islands of imagined territories.
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