The media’s crisis of conscience

In some ways, the Axact scandal has intimations of a classical tragedy. A powerful individual has fallen because of his own monumental failings in circumstances with which he cannot deal. There is something divine in how such operations finally fall apart. But we do not seem to be able to see it clearly, partly because of our addiction to conspiracy theories.
In fact, we tend to be more concerned about our reputation in the world than about the reality of the damage we suffer internally. Then, there is this easy pretext of a ‘foreign hand’ being involved. There may be conspiracies and the ‘foreign hand’ is not expected to always remain idle. But the fault that lies in us cannot be wished away.
The Axact story is now fully unravelled. The truth is staring us in the face. Pakistan has distinguished itself with a scam of unparalleled dimensions. Yes, fake degree scandals have been there in plenty. But our genius in surpassing them all in such dark enterprises has prevailed.
So, events have raced to a climax in less than two weeks. The New York Times story by Declan Walsh was published on May 18 – a splash on the front page: ‘Fake Diplomas, Real Cash: Pakistan Company Axact Reaps Millions’. It had almost come out of nowhere, just weeks before the launch of Axact’s media empire ‘Bol’ that was designed, with such grandiose pomp and ceremony, to demolish all competition.
This invasion was to be spearheaded by a television news channel. Many of the shining stars of the electronic media, vulgarly overpriced, had been roped in to dazzle the audience. There seemed ample evidence to show that no other media conglomerate in the whole world had Bol’s physical infrastructure and technical facilities. Here was a dream that was meant to surpass your imagination. And it was personified by one man who was adept at telling his rags-to-riches story with such eloquence and passion.
How could this imposing citadel be breached by one investigative story in a foreign newspaper – that too by a reporter who had been banished from Pakistan as a persona non grata? Well, this is what has happened. And in this process, large questions have been raised about the role and the power of the media. We have to deal with great complexity in this respect. It is not just about the New York Times. It is about Bol. It is, most crucially, also about the entire media scene in Pakistan.
Now that Axact has been so thoroughly exposed by investigating agencies, people wonder why Pakistan’s media had not been able to do what the New York Times could do. There are wider implications here. The kind of spectacle that Axact had staged and the fortunes that had been invested in building Bol should naturally have raised eyebrows.
The worth of a journalist is his/her expertise to look beneath the surface or behind the curtain. Bol had as its president the most distinguished investigative reporter of the country. There were others of impressive credentials, known for their protestations about ethics and commitment to values. What happened to their judgement and their self-respect? If the explanation is that huge salaries and the promise of glory in the media market had clouded their rational thinking then the future of the Pakistan media is truly at stake.
In spite of the fact that Bol had been funded by Axact and had been conceived by Axact’s domineering CEO Shoaib Ahmed Shaikh, Bol’s journalistic leadership had insisted that it would be the first channel in the country to be dictated by professionalism and positivity. There was constant allusion to how other channels were controlled, even editorially, by their ‘seths’. We were assured that Bol would be independent and responsible and credible.
Consider now, for a moment, the possibility that the New York Times story had come after Bol had properly been launched, its stars shining brilliantly on the media horizon. How would Bol have dealt with this story? Would its editorial heads be able to assess the credibility of the research conducted by Declan Walsh and his team to demand full disclosure by Axact? Come to think of it, did Axact want Bol as some kind of protection for its manifestly unlawful and unethical business?
We may have some idea about how Bol would have reacted to the New York Times bombshell. It is understandable that Shoaib Shaikh initially rejected the allegations. The leading lights of Bol also expressed their reservations, saying that the allegations were yet to be proved in a court of law. Obviously, they were unwilling to be impartial and objective. When I read Declan Walsh’s story, I was certain about the consequences that have led to the arrest of Shoaib Shaikh and four other Axact officials in addition to other shocking revelations.
Soon, however, the credibility of the report began to assert itself and evidence began to pile up. Then, the editorial leaders did something that is also controversial. They resigned, leaving the staff they had recruited in the lurch. In social media, this act was likened to the captain escaping from a sinking ship. There were references to Titanic, rather pertinent when you recall that Axact was projected as an unsinkable venture. Again, we have to wonder what ethical values media professions must defend in such situations.
Another area of concern, from a professional point of view, is the quality of the coverage of Axact scandal by other channels, potential adversaries of a channel that was not to be. It appears that Bol has effectively been silenced. This, too, will have an impact on the state of the media in Pakistan. As it is, the quality of manpower available to the multifarious channels, mainly in terms of its intellectual capacity, is deficient. Bol, in its hiring, may have additionally distorted the market.
What now? The Axact saga will continue to make headlines. But the media, on the whole, has a lot of soul-searching to do. Why are foreign newspersons better capable of interpreting Pakistan’s reality? Why does the national media shamelessly cater to the lowest common denominator when the country is literally faced with a threat to its survival?
One cannot overemphasise the urgency for our media barons to sit together and do some hard thinking on what the mass media is obliged to do in our present crisis. It is in their own vested interest to raise popular awareness and help create spaces for cultural, social and educational advancement. The media professionals have to do the same at their level. Let us put the Axact cataclysm to good use.
The writer is a staff member.
Email: ghazi_salahuddin@hotmail.com