Showing just how political they can be, Pakistani media elites are treating themselves to trips all over Europe and the US – while condemning President Zardari for traveling on official business.
The Jang&Geo leaders can currently be found out and about in London. The Dawn Group leaders find themselves in New York City. This socializing goes on whilst newspapers call for the President to cancel his diplomatic trips. If the papers call for the President to stop his duties as head of state so that he may travel to the flooded areas, why are these media elites not held to the same standard?
President Zardari is the man elected by the people of Pakistan to represent them to the world. Unfortunately, the Pakistani media is either ignorant of this or they simply wish to keep him from doing his job properly - which is not surprising as the media is now a tool to manipulate the minds of people against their elected leaders rather than to inform them of what is going on in with their country. The sad fact is that instead of meeting their own responsibilities of reporting on the issues, the media has devolved into a manipulative, obstructionist machine.
Khud bhi nahin kaam karte aur doosro ko bhi nahin karnay detey.
A post by the fact-checking website, Pakistan Media Watch
exposed how some in the media are heartlessly exploiting the flood victims. By using the tragic circumstances to score cheap political points against the federal government, these individuals have proven that nothing is sacred. What Pakistan needs is a media that serves the people in its own capacity, and does not try to become another political party.
In this time of national grief, the journalists in Pakistan should be at the front lines of the disaster. Shouldn’t the media serve as the medium that shows the rest of the country and the world what the flood victims are suffering through? Isn’t there a political pundit brave enough to leave his or her comfortably dry studio and record their show from Pakistan’s impoverished & flood-ravaged regions? President Zardari’s administration has granted Pakistanis a free press. But when can we have a media that does its job?
We have more than enough political parties. We need pundits and journalists whose main goal is to serve the people, not play politics.
Monday, August 2, 2010
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Dear Sana,
ReplyDeleteI did read the article on Pakistan media and their commands.. media everywhere is now seemingly getting more political than ever before.. sometimes I feel that media is misusing its inherent powers.. yet we have to work out the ways where some sane people keep an eye on not believing them as often happens with most of the masses.. sometimes even a rumor becomes a news item.. some self-ordained code of ethics needs to be pursued by our intelligent journalist friends..
I did want to tell you that I am reading Benzair Bhutto's story.. yet I had bought in Hindi for two reasons.. first I could not afford the english version for its price.. second I think and believe I could read it faster in Hindi.. I might miss some of the fun of the original though..
Love & regards
Abhaya Sharma
(http://abhayasharma.net)
(http://chirbit.com/abs31may)
CEOs of Jang etc cannot seriously be held to the same standard as politicians.
ReplyDeleteThey run a company, not a nation
They are not journalists, camera men, relief workers, psychologists, engineers, architects, agriculturists, or aid distributors,
What will their being in the "front line of the disaster" accomplish? We need people out there with expertise only right now
This blame game and finger pointing that everyone is indulging in is unnecessary and gross.. It really takes away from the tragedy and imbues it with an aura similar to that of the witch hunts