The sensational world of media and
journalism has witnessed many tragedies over the time. The freedom of thought and
speech displayed by some courageous journalists, have ended in grim fatalities.
Here I present to you what investigative journalism is, and nature of steps we
need to take to promote and strengthen it.
Well, we all know about how news, telecasts
are contrived to serve the whims of those who are powerful and thus depriving
the common masses of the correct information. Freedom of press and journalistic
ethics has been treated as a part of the freedom of speech and expression
guaranteed by Article 19(1)(a) of the constitution. Still, time and again,
these rules have been breached. For instance, some of you might remember the
sting operation by CobraPost (an acclaimed Indian non-profit news website and
television production house), called Operation 136. The series of
investigations under this operation exposed many Indian media houses willing to
peddle Hindutva, which could lead to communal polarization for electoral gains,
and to defame political rivals as a part of a malicious media campaign, all for
money. (You can find the link for the detailed descriptions and video below.)
Well then, it is not as much of a shock to know that India is placed at number
138 out of 180 countries in the World Press Freedom Index, 2018.
Paid News, as it is stated, is a phenomenon
(rather a sinister phenomenon) in media outlets that refers to the systematic
engagement of mainstream media outlets in publishing favorable articles in
exchange for payment.
Well, to combat these mischievous
happenings, we also have a group of journalists who work with dedication and
zeal for the truth and serve the same to the public. Gauri Lankesh, the
Karnataka journalist, who was gunned down, was an activist and spoke her mind.
She was known for her strong views against right wing forces. But this of
course was not the first case of slain journalists. In 2016, nearly 122
journalists and media professionals were killed globally out of which 93 were
specifically targeted. Narendra Dabholkar, Govind Pansare, M.M. Kalburi are
among the many who have met the same fate. Another chilling incident was the
murder case of crime and investigation journalist, Commander J Dey. (The link
for a detailed description is shared below).
Daphne Caruana Galizia, a Maltese journalist
who was killed in a car bomb for her involvement in the Panama papers
Gauri Lankesh
These people were essentially involved in
Investigative Journalism. It is a process of researching and telling a story,
usually one that someone else is trying to hide. As writers who investigate and
report information with the purpose of facilitating change, investigative
reporters are behind many of the reforms that we see today.
Well I would end here, but before I do I
would like to acquaint you to one more model of investigative journalism. It is
known as the Ken Model. The Ken is a new, digital subscription driven
publication that practices ethical journalism in sectors of technology,
business, science and healthcare. (I have provided the link below.)
LINKS
Youtube channel: Cobrapost
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