The blame game

Once the last flame had been put out and the last bomb defused, the accusations started flying thick and fast.

Indian netizens unite to condemn 8216;insensitive8217; and 8216;unethical8217; coverage of the Mumbai terror attacks

Once the last flame had been put out and the last bomb defused, the accusations started flying thick and fast. There has been a general public outcry on the way the whole crisis of the Mumbai terror attacks had been handled and nowhere is this more evident than on the World Wide Web.

Besides the usual suspects 8212;the government and the intelligence agencies; the media, especially television news channels8212;are being blamed for manhandling the crisis. While the initial and more spontaneous fury has been earmarked for politicians of all ideological hue, the media too is at the receiving end of many a barb.

The criticism being levelled at the media is on two counts; one, that quite often, in their eagerness to get 8216;scoops8217;, reporters gave out sensitive information like the positions of the NSG commandoes. One blogger, Chyetanya Kunte, posted a severe indictment of the way the coverage was handled, on his blog ckunte.com. He comments: 8220;You do not need to be a journalist to understand the basic premise of ethics, which starts with protecting victims first; and that is done by avoiding key information from being aired publicly8212;such as but not limited to revealing the number of possible people still in, the hideouts of hostages and people stuck in buildings.8221;

In another scathing comment on the matter, blogger Ramesh Srivats rameshsrivats.net writes: 8220;Commandos are landing on Nariman House. They seem to be tip-toeing down. They are communicating to each other through hand signals. Secrecy and surprise are paramount. And NDTV is showing this live!!! With informative commentary on how many commandos have landed and so on. Perhaps NDTV8217;s research has shown that terrorists only watch Cartoon Network during missions.8221;

The other ground for criticism is that the coverage was too 8216;emotional8217;.

Blogger Rishi Verma doublespaced.blogdrive.com says: 8220;We need to learn a lesson or six from say, a BBC. Stop giving us 3D animations of Warzone Mumbai and Terror Strikes. Just report.8221; He also condemns the use of graphic images, which, he claims, are used to evoke a hysterical reaction from the public. 8220;It would be great to see some self-censorship,8221; he says,

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8220;I know there8217;re torn intestines lying out there. But I don8217;t want to see them on national television.8221;

Even Facebook groups formed to connect traumatised Mumbaikars in the wake of the attacks, have discussion threads about media insensitivity in reporting the terror strikes. One thread in the Facebook group, One Million Strong for Bombay, openly wonders whether it was the media8217;s inexperience which led to the death of ATS chief Hemant Karkare and others. One member asks, 8220;Was it the media8217;s coverage and the publicity given to ATS Chief Karkare8217;s presence on the terror spot bring it to the terrorists8217; notice? Did that lead to him being targeted and shot dead?8221;

But a few feel the criticism is unfair. Blogger Blessen Varghese meemallumumbaikar.blogspot.com says, 8220;At times I feel, media is an easy prey. You don8217;t find anyone else and you have the media to blame for everything and anything. Agreed that some of them sensationalise for the sake of TRPs, but who8217;s asking you to watch them?8221;