Stagecraft
and dramatic elements such as conflict, tension and sound, etc., are manipulated
by the anchors and producers in order to engage the viewers. The anchors, often
intoxicated by the power of their medium, pass decrees and sweeping statements.
As a result, with the passage of time talk shows may lose their charm for the
viewers. It is relatively easy and cheap to conduct programmes with invited
guests but quality requires investment, research, diversity, objectivity and
plurality, which is often lacking. As a result of all these factors, such shows
are becoming purposeless for the public at large. However, they may be serving
the purpose of media owners and sponsors. -- Manzoor
Ali Memon
By Manzoor Ali
Memon
THE unprecedented growth of the broadcast media
during the past decade and the latest communications technologies have ushered
in a new era in Pakistan. They have brought about a paradigm shift in terms of
media monopoly and the cartelization of news gathering, packaging and
distribution from the state- to privately owned media channels.
This repositioning became more visible when
cross-media ownership laws were relaxed and enabled owners of the print media
and advertising agencies to acquire broadcast media licences. Resultantly, the
media and their power became concentrated in a few hands that were already in
the business.
The news channels are credited with exposing the
wrongdoings of the ruling elite and revealing the socio-economic issues of the
citizenry. However, the channels are also criticised for promoting violence and
fuelling despondency and political uncertainty. The trend and tone of reporting
in general is rather tabloid. Talk shows are televised on three time slots
during prime time, starting from 8pm and ending at midnight. The format and
content of the shows is largely uniform, repetitive and monotonous. Their
substance tends to be based on speculation by the participants and anchors.
Stagecraft and dramatic elements such as
conflict, tension and sound, etc., are manipulated by the anchors and producers
in order to engage the viewers. The anchors, often intoxicated by the power of
their medium, pass decrees and sweeping statements. As a result, with the
passage of time talk shows may lose their charm for the viewers. It is
relatively easy and cheap to conduct programmes with invited guests but quality
requires investment, research, diversity, objectivity and plurality, which is
often lacking. As a result of all these factors, such shows are becoming
purposeless for the public at large. However, they may be serving the purpose of
media owners and sponsors.
The competition for being the first with breaking
news and ensuring their organisation’s presence in remote areas has led channel
managements to distribute equipment such as camcorders and microphones to those
who have no prior credentials in broadcast media journalism. The hasty growth of
the broadcast media, and the issuance of licences without taking care of basic
requirements such as training, education and wages for broadcast media
journalists, have shaped issues such as violations of codes of conduct,
infringements of privacy, door-stepping (the recording of interviews without
prior consent) and the killing of journalists reporting from the conflict zone.
Is it not unfair for media owners to send
untrained journalists to report from troubled areas? It is unwise to expect
unskilled and underpaid mediamen to look out for their personal safety and
contribute to quality reporting as well.
The protection of privacy is ensured as a
fundamental right in the constitution. Further, Article 12 of the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights protects an individual’s freedom from arbitrary
interference with his or her privacy. I leave it to my readers to judge the
manner in which the local broadcast media covered the Meera and the Shoaib-Sania
cases. Was this not a violation of the fundamental rights of these celebrities
who are, after all, citizens and ought to be equal beneficiaries of the
protection offered to them by the constitution? The international broadcast
media justifies the intrusion of an individual’s privacy only when there is a
question of public interest. Neither public interest nor the cause of freedom of
the media could have been endangered by a decision to refrain from broadcasting
footage of Shoaib and Sania’s bedroom. This is evidence that news channels are
selling sensational, potentially harmful and offensive material in order to grab
advertisement revenues. In this context, how can we expect viewers — especially
those not exposed to education — to correctly decode, deconstruct and interpret
the intent and substance of media messages?
Similarly, the increasing penetration of the
Internet holds the promise of the new media playing a significant role in coming
years. According to the Pakistan Telecommunications Authority website, there are
over 96 million mobile phone subscribers in the country while the number of
Internet users is also rising. The convergence of print, broadcast and the new
media, and interactivity in the form of social networking sites and blogs have
introduced networked/citizen journalism in the production and distribution of
information and entertainment. This media expansion is bound to bring changes in
the media practices of users, practitioners and regulators.
These arguments demonstrate how we were neither
prepared for the broadcast media revolution nor ready for a converged new media
revolution. The question is how best we can make use of the newfound media
liberties and advancements. The answer lies in empowering citizens and shifting
their role from being passive to active, from being recipients to participants,
through media literacy. The purpose of such a drive would be to equip citizens
and journalists with the skills and abilities “to access, analyse, evaluate and
create messages across a variety of contexts”, as defined by Sonia Livingstone,
professor at the media and communications department at the London School of
Economics.
Media literacy aims to educate citizens and
journalists on media production processes and systems, and fosters an
understanding of how and why media messages are manufactured, packaged,
distributed and regulated. Such a campaign could be launched along the model of
Ofcom, the broadcast media and communications regulator in the UK.
Media literacy has so far not garnered the
attention of policymakers and other stakeholders. It should be a fundamental
component of our media and communications policy. The public sector should lead
this drive under a public-private partnership scheme involving broadcasters,
regulators, media organisations, press clubs, educational institutions, media
professionals and citizens’ bodies.
manzooralimemon@yahoo.com
Source: Dawn, Pakistan
9:39 PM
Sultan Shahin
0 comments:
Post a Comment