Opinion - News Analysis   

Beyond the drama, the real issues

K. Narayanan

That was something of a record — more than 25 messages pointing out one error. The previous occasion we touched two digits was when a lengthy interview was duplicated. Then the protests were only from Chennai city, which saw the duplication. This time it was from all over the country, and they continued even after a correction was published!

The error was in the "IT trends" column in the Science & Technology feature (June 8, 2006). That this corner of the paper attracted so much attention was surprising and revealed how clearly several readers scrutinise the paper. One look at the heading and that explained it: "Code makers, code breakers: on the Da Vinci Code and the science of secrecy."

The error was in the reference to the Fibonacci Sequence: the text wrongly said each number in the sequence is the sum of the squares of the two preceding numbers. It is only the sum of the two preceding numbers.

If the volume of this response was surprising, not so were the reactions evoked by the Rahul Mahajan coverage, which was extensive and extended. Two banner headlines, two editorials, stories stretching over pages — readers, always quick to react, were bound to do so in large numbers. Many critical letters have appeared on the editorial page. Quite a few were addressed to me.

That led to the question: Why should such communications be sent to the Readers' Editor, whose job is only to ensure accuracy? The display of news, the space devoted to it, the angles in treatment were not part of his functions. These were the Editor's judgment and readers could not question it.

This, I feel, is interpreting the Readers' Editor's functions too narrowly. Under the Terms of Reference, he has to collect, consider and respond to readers' concerns and complaints; seek to ensure the maintenance of high standards of accuracy, fairness and balance in reporting and create channels of communication with greater responsiveness to readers. That makes it incumbent on me to give expression to readers' concerns.

A common thread of all these communications was that The Hindu and the rest of the media were spending too much time, space and energy on the misadventure of an apparently spoilt son of a high profile politician. Crime news is not prime news and becomes so only if any political development of concern to the nation or the world is established, was one view. Another reader found this a disturbing instance of not adhering to the fundamental principle that all news is based on fact. Speculative reporting damages the credibility of a newspaper known for its objectivity and does little to distinguish it from purveyors of sensational journalism. The first day's report, for instance, was based on a TV interview of three youths, alleged carriers of the drugs.

While The Hindu editorially condemned "television-bite driven" journalism and doctors and lawyers talking out of turn, instead of leaving things to police investigation, in its reports it resorted to such "excesses," one reader contended. It also attempted to link everything to the BJP. Did it link instances like those involving Sanjay Dutt, Manu Sharma or Natwar Singh's daughter-in-law to the Congress party? One report cited "unconfirmed, unconfirmable talk" that "Moitra and young Rahul were visiting people in the capital with whom Rahul Mahajan had presumably parked his maal." (What does this word mean?). Citing this, a reader referred to The Hindu's stance in another recent instance that it did not carry reports lacking evidentiary support.

A totally different view came from the "wife of a victim of liver cirrhosis." She said no one realised the pain and suffering of the victim's family and friends. Why was the media hounding a "poor child" who had done no wrong?

The selection and display of news, as also the space devoted to it, is an editorial function based on various criteria. Post-factum, the judgment and discretion may be criticised — and surely the criticism is often subjective — but the right to take the decision cannot be questioned. As the first editorial pointed out, "the twists and turns in the case — dramatic participant accounts, conflicting pathological and laboratory findings, allegations of poisoning, and speculation about double conspiracies" warranted the coverage given to this episode.

A look at what has been published does not support the charge of speculative reporting. Later developments vindicated many of the statements made. The first day's report on the use of cocaine was based on information received, much before the NDTV interview, from authentic sources that could not be named.

Whether the voluminous coverage was warranted is a matter for debate. "Reader interest" as a catch-all justification cannot be accepted; dependence on that factor to the exclusion of independent editorial judgment can lead to a total change of character of a newspaper. "Reader interest" has to be tempered by a sense of proportion and discretion.

Where well-known names are involved, the media stretch themselves to the full and beyond in coverage. After a while, the incident vanishes from the news pages and from public memory. But the drug menace in this country, its fast spread, the age groups who are the victims, are matters that should concern the media continuously. There are various areas to explore and expose: the sources of drugs; the supply networks; ways of inducement; the spread of addiction; related crime and anti-social behaviour; the suffering of families; rehabilitation and de-addiction work; preventive campaigns, and so forth. What attention do the social and economic costs of this menace receive?

readerseditor@thehindu.co.in

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