Opinion High decibel news

What’s worse,it’s getting louder and more belligerent as TV news throws up clones of that well known voice of the nation on Times Now. Listening to Rahul Shivshankar (Headlines Today),nowadays is like listening to Arnab Goswami one hour before the 9 o’clock debate on Newshour. When was it that noise became more important than the news? If you watch CNN or BBC World News,nobody raises his or her voice. Period. Go from Jon Sopel’s quiet,relaxed but dignified presentation of the news (BBC) to the tsunami of Times Now or Headlines Today and be blown away.

To watch NDTV’s celebration of 25 years in the news business with reruns of The World This Week,India Matters,etc (NDTV Profit) is not merely nostalgic. It is a reminder of where India’s experiments with news produced by private companies began,how “normal” it was back then,and where we are a quarter of a century later: at the receiving end of loudspeakers,that’s where.

So the news of the Naxal attack on a Congress convoy in Bastar was greeted with the big guns on TV booming: “Why did the government lose track of the fight against Maoist terror?” (Times Now). Once you escaped the din and the political squabbling,there were more thoughtful discussions on the Naxal violence: NDTV India had Swami Agnivesh on the atrocities by security forces,while E.N. Rammohan explained that the “fundamental problem” was the lack of tribal advisory councils and of the governor’s involvement in overseeing ST regions. Face the Nation (CNN-IBN) discussed why human rights groups had failed to condemn the Naxal attack. And Rajya Sabha TV (RSTV) is fast replacing DD News as a public service broadcaster. While DD News ran with the prime minister and UPA chairperson visiting those injured in the attacks and their condolence messages (ignoring Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh,who was seen but not to be heard!),RSTV rustled up a discussion on the incident almost immediately.

The Naxals had given N. Srinivasan,the BCCI president,a breather. But it seems he wanted to be a part of the noise,sorry,news. His press conference on Sunday and his adamant refusal to quit or step aside while his son-in-law was being investigated had most TV anchors baying for his blood. By Monday,they had their fangs out for more important people: “nice,cosy little club” is how Rajdeep Sardesai described the politicians across party lines who are in the BCCI but have been Dhoni-like in their silence on spot fixing. “What is holding him [Arun Jaitley back?” demanded Headlines Today. “Sign of double standards”,thought Karan Thapar (CNN-IBN). That was not all: all the news channels wanted to know why well known former players were also keeping mum. Because “they’re all compromised”,explained former player Saad Bin Jung (think on CNN-IBN); because “[they will suck up to anyone”, said Bishen Singh Bedi.

Aaj Tak,meanwhile,was hunting down more spot-fixers on Monday. And nothing could have been more mysterious than the way they went about it: “There are names of bigger cricketers — bigger than you could ever imagine”,the voice-over announced,“You will be stunned,you won’t believe who they are. Be ready for a big jolt”,he warned,and you waited for lightning to strike,or some enlightenment. He then revealed that six more cricketers from five teams had sacrificed cricket on the altar of money,or as he more eloquently put it,“paison ke liye cricket loota”. Can’t wait for the next instalment.

At the IPL final on Sunday,nobody seemed even remotely interested in spot-fixing. There was a match in progress and the crowds and the commentators ignored the controversy completely. Instead,we had Sachin Tendulkar on the air during the match between the Mumbai Indians and the Chennai Super Kings for extra entertainment (Sony).

It is as though the media and the police are the ones chiefly agitated by the allegations of spot-fixing. The others have exercised their right to remain silent.

shailaja.bajpai@expressindia.com