A practical guide for journalists in the times of media collapse

Pratim Ranjan Bose 

In 2014, addressed a seminar at a reputed management institute detailing news media as a sunset industry. This was not classified information. My presentation was backed by evidence.

Over the last few years, I saw values crumbling all around. The test of a man is how he behaves when under pressure. Media finances were crumbling because of wrong policies pursued by owners, managers, editors; and what they did in response is also before our eyes.

Digital or no digital, there is no trend correction at all. And, all evidence suggests the troubles should only intensify from this point. What was a rumbling has become a tornado, and a massive disruption is foretold. Once again this is no classified information and COVID is merely an excuse or a catalyst that fast-forwarded the destruction.  

Writing this because, I read the news of a senior news wire journalist committing suicide in Ranchi. Was he shortlisted for sacking? We do not know. Media tells about everyone else but not many talk about media. That’s not because, no one knows what’s happening there. It’s because everyone has a vested interest in maintaining the status-quo.

But, status quo is a utopian thought in today’s world. You bleed more to protect it. Look across the world, no business remains relevant for more than 10-15 years. In fact, averages are way lower. If some houses remain relevant for a longer period it's because of new businesses they invested in. Postal major became a logistics king. Polyester maker is now better known as a tech giant. Digital tech players are finding fresh prospects in renewable energy.

From this point of view, media houses were an exception to the general business environment. Apparently, they remained relevant for too long by selling the same product and without much change in sales methodology. Logic says, trouble was overdue.

 I have some idea, where they are heading and what are the options before them. But that’s a topic I would like to discuss on some other occasion. What concerns me more is the future of journalists. My understanding is journalists have a gala time ahead, provided they are investing in themselves and not guided by traditional career options.  

A journalist is basically an information professional. He must know theories but must not see the world through theories. He looks at the world from the perspective of ground realities, which are ever changing.  If he can challenge those theories and give solutions he reaches the next stage.

To put it in context, therefore, a journalist should be capable of connecting global and national views with the local perspective. Not an easy job at all. This is the most sought-after knowledge, particularly in a country like India, where social behaviour differ even within a district.

Drop your wallet on the pavements of Bodh Gaya in Bihar and come back after an hour, it will remain intact. Repeat the same experiment a few kilometres away at Gaya town and you may have a different result. The gap between the two is evident in selective success or failure of national projects.

There is another important factor in this conjecture. A journalist can see things due to two reasons 1) His mind is never cluttered by theories and perceptions and he is ready to watch everything with an open mind. 2) To achieve the first goal, he must maintain a degree of integrity. I am not talking from an idealistic standpoint.  I am a realist. I am merely asking journalists to not short-sell themselves.

A journalist sells knowledge. Assuming he has knowledge and is constantly sharpening it, he should work on skills necessary for selling the knowledge, which is crucial for his survival or success beyond media. You are blind if you do not see the writing on the wall. So, keep working on your future. Why die?  Why act in a haste and be on your knees? Why trust them who are not trustworthy?

Win the sentiment. Be recognized at your own merit. Do not carry the brand of your newspaper on your sleeves. Build your own brand while working as a journalist. I did that. It didn’t happen overnight. Neither, was there any concrete plan from the beginning. I simply went with the flow and the moment things crossed a limit, I set my goal.

Luckily, for me, the trigger came a year ago before COVID. So, when they took the excuse of COVID to shed jobs, during the lock down, I had already stepped into a new life. Mind you it's your life, do everything to achieve your goals. It is your priorities which matter. The rest is inconsequential. 

 

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Article 370, Pakistan's new map and the prospect of Kashmir chocolate exports!

Pratim Ranjan Bose

If India were China, someone would have manufactured Kashmir shaped chocolates, painted in green, with white crescent moon and a star pinned on it, and sold them to Pakistan via-some Arabic named company in Dubai.

Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan might have announced a government scheme to present each of its citizens with a piece of ‘Kashmir’ of their own. One of his corrupt aides, could have taken charge of packaging and distribution. “Kashmir-ka talluk Pakistan se hai,” the gift wrap would claim.

The kind of mental state that he is in since August 5, 2019 - when India tabled the bill for abrogation of Article 370 and 35A in the erstwhile Indian State of Jammu and Kashmir and dividing the State into two Union territories - everything is possible.

The fault doesn’t lie with Khan. He became Prime Minister in August 2018 with the support of staunch Islamists who see the world through glasses with a deep green tint. Yes, he also promised to take action against corruption and since then the country is abuzz with financial scandals - involving his aides, involving China and China Pakistan Economic Corridor.

Khan is now on a weak wicket. His popularity is waning and going by the history of the country, takeover of the administration by Pakistani Army cannot be ruled out, unless China comes to his rescue. And, the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has to take full blame for his misery.

Having begun with the Balakot airstrike on February 26, 2019 that shook Pakistan, by virtue of sheer audacity of the mission, Modi destroyed the age-old political paradigm in Pakistan centering Kashmir and India.

Everyone, on either side of the border, who had a stake in that politics, suffered.

Pakistani Army lost a major plot. Pakistani politics can no longer blackmail India in global forums because there exists no State of Jammu and Kashmir. Ladakh has been demanding separation from Kashmir for decades. They finally got it.

Kashmiri politicians led by Late Sheikh Abdullah, who fooled India by converting a temporary piece of law (Article 370), created for the annexation of the princely State, into a near-permanent feature and enjoyed the benefits of a country-within-a-country, are ruined.  

They can no longer deny rights of minority Hindus and Buddhists, and convert the land that was ruled by a Hindu king, into a preserve of only one religious community. The Union Territory of Kashmir revived the secular character of Kashmir.

Over the last one year, some 20,000 Hindu and Sikh refugees from West Pakistan and nearly 10,000 sanitation workers got domicile status in Kashmir that includes not only voting rights but access to State welfare schemes. They were marginalised for 70 years.

Despite their complaint over prolonged lockdown or internet ban, common citizens are gaining. Simplification of and rules – in line with practices in other parts of India - saw beeline land registration bringing the Union Territory a record Rs 100 crore of revenue. The money came from Kashmiris only, they were waiting for years to register their property. 

Yes, many people have complaints. They lived in one political paradigm for seven decades. The restructuring will hurt them. But this is a temporary phenomenon. If the once-turbulent North East India can become peaceful, how long can Kashmir deny peace?

If the administration doesn’t support the ‘economy of stone-pelting’, as Kashmiri politics did so far, everything will change rapidly. And, that story has just begun. Pakistan can delay the process by letting loose those Hafiz Sayeeds, but not for too long.

The sword of FAFT (Financial Action Task Force) is hanging on their head. They took advantage of the geopolitics to get access to funds in the past. But the days have changed since then.

Geopolitics became complex but global finance became even more complex. It would be difficult for Pakistan to survive in today’s world, with a ‘Terrorist State’ stamp that too with such a weak domestic economy.

Support from China is not assured because they too are witnessing mounting pressure both from within and outside.

In the last few weeks alone six Chinese steel mills have closed down, as US and European markets are becoming inaccessible. India, the last big technology market, started closing doors to China. The impact will be felt.

After 31 years since the fall of the Berlin wall, global politics is set for a major churn and no one knows where it will end. Ofcourse, Khan must not think that long. He is suffering from tremendous mental agony since India changed the status of Kashmir in August 2019.

At one stroke, it erased the history of India’s past mistakes of taking the case to the UN. Pakistan enjoyed that handle for too long. Modi ended it by overnight change in the status and geography of the land.

Where will Imran Khan go now? How should he face those Islamists?  Dejected, he resorted to releasing a new map of Pakistan that includes Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, excluding the areas illegally occupied by China, and parts of Gujarat etc.

Not known if Khan is inspired by Nepal or their common support base China, which has a track record in releasing maps that includes areas from other countries. Indians enjoyed this comedy. The internet was at splits. 

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Tweeter: @pratimbose

 (Pictures from net.