The newsroom of Geo Television buzzed with activity. Intense young reporters hurried in and out, editors shouted to one another as they juggled BlackBerrys and cellphones, and big TV monitors showed the fruit of these frantic labours: another tumultuous day’s news unfolding, live. But few in Pakistan would see the coverage.Broadcasts on Geo's Urdu-language news channel, like those of more than three dozen independent TV channels, have been blocked by the government since Pakistan's president, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, declared a state of Emergency on Saturday.“It was like watching the lights go out, one by one,” said Kamran Rehmat, news editor at English-language Dawn TV, recalling the methodical shutdown of all but government-run Pakistan Television. News-hungry viewers looking for the private channels, which normally attract a daily audience in the millions, get only a blue screen and a message: “No signal. Sorry for the inconvenience.” “It’s so medieval,” Rehmat said. “You think you live in the information age, in the information world, and you wonder, ‘How could this be happening?’”Criticism has poured in from around the world over the authoritarian measures. Here they are almost universally regarded as tantamount to martial law. Foreign governments, human rights organisations and media advocates have condemned the crackdown on Pakistan’s freewheeling independent broadcasters, which for months had provided a steady stream of news and commentary about the burgeoning political crisis. Ironically, it was Musharraf who had allowed private channels to flourish over the last three years. But his self-described policy of “enlightened moderation” changed abruptly this year, when massive street demonstrations against him were broadcast on live TV, magnifying their impact. When Musharraf gave himself extraordinary powers to stifle dissent, private TV channels were among his first targets. He also blocked the reception by cable of international channels such as the BBC and CNN.Tech-savvy Pakistanis are finding other ways to get the news and relay it. Traffic on Pakistan-themed blogs and in Internet chat rooms has exploded since the start of the Emergency. Geo is streaming news content on its website. On Tuesday, an incendiary address delivered via cellphone by fired Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry was swiftly disseminated.Viewers with satellite dishes still can watch the private channels, but they represent only about 10% of viewership, and authorities are moving to restrict sales of new dishes. Even before the sale restrictions, prices had quadrupled to about $330, beyond the reach of all but the wealthy.Private Pakistani TV channels also can be viewed outside the country, in large parts of the Middle East and South Asia. That nets a substantial audience of expatriate Pakistanis, who call, text-message and e-mail friends and relatives back home.But reporters and editors say alternate technology and an audience among the Pakistani diaspora, while providing a lifeline in the crisis, are no substitutes for traditional broadcast channels, their most vital and immediate connection with the greatest number of viewers.Being deprived of their regular audience hasn't stopped news channels from working flat-out to provide coverage. In TV newsrooms, bleary eyes and unshaven chins attest to long hours of nonstop news gathering from across the country.
