Fourth estate or first estate?

Whenever I turn on Indian TV channels, I see nothing but jingoism, braggadocio, flag waving, gasconade, hot air, rodomontade, bluster, cacophony and Goebbelsian bombast – instead of cool, rational discussion and analysis.

Indian TV seems to have gone mad. Truth and facts mean nothing to most of our mediapersons. They compete over who can shout the loudest in calling for war against Pakistanis, and who can excel in yellow journalism. This term originated in the circulation war between Hearst’s New York Journal and Pulitzer’s New York World, where both papers sought to increase sales by using sensational headlines, exaggerated, unverified stories and often even fabricated events.

Most of the Indian media, and particularly Indian TV channels, are worthy successors of Hearst and Pulitzer. The undisputed leader of this Charge of the Light Brigade is Republic TV, and especially its owner-anchor Arnab Goswami, that super hawk whom I have dubbed as ‘Lord Bhow Bhow’ (paraphrasing the infamous Lord Haw Haw who broadcast for the Nazis in the Second World War, and was later hanged), who has turned jingoistic and chauvinistic shouting, screaming, fuming, raging, foaming, blustering, and insulting those who oppose his views on the TV screen, into a fine art. His invectives are usually directed against Pakistan, and often fanning communalism in India (of course, all calculated to please the government and raise his channel’s ratings).

Arnab usually brings hawks, like retired army officers or so called ‘defence analysts’ on his shows, and also sometimes Pakistanis who can be given a bashing. Is this journalism or Goebbelsian diatribe? Other Indian channels, like Times Now, Aaj Tak, NDTV, India TV ets as well as Youtubers are not left far behind.

Some defence experts are not disputing that India will attack Pakistan, but are only discussing the modus operandi. Some TV channels have made the post-Pahalgam attack situation into a BJP versus Congress match, usually bashing the latter.

All this rhetoric and hot air furiously disgorged and spurted out by the jingoistic Indian media is on the assumption that Pakistan masterminded, planned and executed the Pahalgam killings of 26 Hindu tourists. But where is the evidence for this assumption? Even asking this question is seen as anti-nationalism and sedition in India.

One is reminded of Lewis Carroll’s ‘Alice in Wonderland’ in which the Queen of Hearts, says ‘’Off with his head” whenever any suspect is brought before her. When someone asked what about holding a trial giving the man an opportunity of defence before cutting off his head, she said ‘’Trial afterwards. First cut off his head’’.

So the investigation as to who the culprit was can be held later, but first Pakistan must be declared the culprit. Those who committed this heinous act on April 22 later disappeared into the nearby jungles. Who were they? Indians or Pakistanis? Was there a mastermind behind them? Who supplied them with the weapons they used? All this is unknown, and will probably neverbe known.

The masterminds who planned the Pahalgam attack, as well as the killers who implemented the plan, must be laughing at the stupidity of Indians and Pakistanis, Hindus and Muslims, who are at each other’s throats, largely due to the tireless efforts of the great Indian media

The Indian media, far from being the Fourth Estate – representing the people – has largely turned into the First Estate – representing the rulers.

The writer is a former judge of the Indian Supreme Court.