The Hindu & me   

Presentation always fair and full

By C. Rangarajan

The Hindu is completing 125 years. This is indeed a remarkable span of time in the history of modern India. It covers long years of freedom struggle, Partition, Independence and its aftermath and the efforts towards accelerating economic growth and evolving social cohesion. Through all these years of triumphs and difficulties, The Hindu has been a beacon of sobriety and reason. Its tone was mild, except on occasions. Nevertheless, it was instructive.

Like many millions of south Indians, for long years, I woke up with a morning cup of coffee and The Hindu. Why this attachment? There are three qualities of the newspaper which have stood out — objectivity, clarity and authenticity. Objectivity is difficult to define. At best, it can be defined only negatively. Objectivity implies that the presentation of news is not distorted deliberately to suit the views of the paper. Every newspaper has a view; it expresses this through its editorials. That is what gives character to the newspaper. But there is a distinction between editorial opinion and the presentation of news. The Hindu has striven hard to present the news in a `fair' way, not coloured by its own views. Clarity requires that the news is presented in a manner in which the reader can understand the events. Sometimes, a background is required to be provided to help the readers. The presentation of news by The Hindu has always been `full'. Authenticity demands that the events reported are true to the best of the knowledge of the reporters. This is indeed a difficult quality to maintain in these days of instantaneous and sensational journalism. For long years, my contact with The Hindu has been only that of a reader except for an occasional Letter to the Editor and a stray short story published in the The Hindu Sunday Magazine. However, I recall that in the 1970s, The Hindu started inviting four or five experts to come together, discuss major issues and report them verbatim which ran into four full pages. I believe it was called Outlook. I was privileged to participate in the first of such discussions. That a newspaper was willing to give such a large space was indicative of the genuine desire of the paper to help the readers appreciate various problems in all their dimensions. Subsequently, I have been contributing articles on and off to The Hindu and, more particularly, in a regular way to the `Survey of Indian Industry'.

The Hindu has not remained static. The format has changed; latest innovations in printing technology find their first place in the paper; the centre page articles have become sharper and specialised sections on technology, management and agriculture more informative. All in all, The Hindu provides sumptuous food for thought everyday.

The Hindu is more than a newspaper. It is an institution which has become an integral part of the life of the people. Anchored to the three attributes of objectivity, clarity and authenticity, I am sure that The Hindu will continue to play an important role in the political, economic and social life of this country.

(The writer is Chairman, Twelfth Finance Commission.)

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

The Hindu & me

| Editorial | Looking back | Editorials - Views | Business growth | Advertising | Technology | Art and Culture | The Hindu & me | Business | Sports | Index |

Stories in this Section

• An early lesson at a concert
• 'It belongs to all of us'
• Growing up with it
• Those shattering editorials
• The wealth in the archives
• Striking the right note on reform process
• Presentation always fair and full
• Correcting Churchill
• A 'born fighter' and his close ties
• A case of love at forty
• 'I have one grievance'

Copyright © 2003, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu