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Karnataka
By Our Staff Correspondent
Inaugurating a two-day workshop for journalists on development journalism organised at the Abdul Nazir Sab Institute for Rural Development by the Karnataka Patrika Academy, Prof. Chandrashekar regretted that journalists had an obsession with politics and politicians, and they tended to overlook different aspects of social life. The "politics-centric" approach was not confined to national newspapers, but extended to local dailies and magazines. Instead of dealing with the burning problems facing the general public in different areas, newspapers relished publishing speculative reports on Cabinet expansions. "If you publish a report about girls not attending school because of the absence of toilet facility, the authorities concerned will take note of it. Focussing on such problems faced by the public was better journalism than carrying reports on a politician's meeting with another and attributing motives to it." Citing the reports on the trishul movement in Rajasthan, Prof. Chandrashekar said newspapers should analyse the reasons behind the need for imposing a ban on distribution of tridents, rather than deliberating on the politics behind the move. He made light of journalists who interviewed ministers on phone and published factually incorrect reports based on the telephonic conversation. "This is called telephone journalism. Often, the reports contain wrong statements contradictory to what we actually say." Issuing a clarification would unnecessarily prolong the matter, he added. Regretting that the grasping power of journalists was not up to the mark, Prof. Chandrashekar said even the statistics provided during the legislature sessions were reported erroneously most of the time. "Most journalists lack a professional approach," the minister said. He underscored the need for journalists to acquire technical knowledge of different subjects such as horticulture and agriculture after a few years of experience in the field. The technical knowledge, which should include history of the field, would help them come out with better stories. He said corruption was not restricted to politics and politicians. Even journalism was caught in the web of corruption, he lamented. He cautioned the newspapers against functioning as the mouthpiece of the Government. Newspapers should perform independently, he said. Prof. Chandrashekar made these observations after the journalist, Eshwar Daithota, in his introductory remarks, urged the media to develop a partnership with Government in highlighting development activities. "I do not agree with this view," he said. Though the media should report development activities of the Government, journalists should not have any kind of partnership and need not be the mouthpiece of Government. Besides, there was no special place for development journalism in present-day journalism. The two-day workshop has been organised by the Karnataka Patrika Academy, the Mysore District Journalists' Association (MDJA), and the Administrative Training Institute. N. Arjun Dev, Chairman of the academy, presided over the inaugural function. The MDJA President, Rajashekar Kot, and the ATI Director-General, Anita Kaul, were chief guests. H.B. Dinesh, Secretary of the academy, welcomed the gathering.
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