SENSATIONALISM IN MEDIA

REALITY TV IS REALLY JUST BASED FOR SENSATIONALISM.SO IT IS EXTREME VERSIONS AND

EXTREME CARICATURES OF PERSONALITIES

-ESSENCE ATKINS

ROUTHU BALASAI
PG17020
AP COLLEGE OF JOURNALISM, HYDERABAD
IN A NUT SHELL
1. INTRODUCTION
2. REASONS OF SENSATIONALISATION
3. 26/11 ATTACK AND ROLE OF MEDIA
4. SOME OTHER SENSATIONAL NEWS ITEMS
5.CONCLUSION

INTRODUCTION
Media is one of the four pillars of democracy along with other three pillars
legislative, executive and judiciary. Legislative is responsible for making laws,
Executive is responsible for implementing laws formed by legislative and
Judiciary is responsible for keeping a check on the law and orders and ensure
they do not curtail the fundamental rights of citizen.
Media is the fourth pillar which ensures that all the people in the country must
be aware of what is happening in the country and it also ensures transparency
in all above pillars. If any of these are comprised of their ethics that is the death
of democracy.
REASONS FOR SENSATIONALISM IN MEDIA
Media have to play an effective role in strengthening democratic values. If we
look into history media played an important role in the reformist movement and
those day’s newspapers were run by reformists and idealists. They run the
newspapers for good deeds of society. Newspapers played a prominent role in
independence movement as they helped in provoking patriotism among all the
people in the country. Those are the days media had values and ethics and did
not have profit motive mind set in the owners of newspapers. Now a days the
scenario was changed and media was run by corporate companies, political
parties and media became a business. This is the only pillar of democracy that
is run by private businesses and yet expected to adhere to ideals of neutral, fair
and unbiased view on issues concerning society.
The unique thing in media is unlike other private businesses while increase in
competition results in better products for consumers but increase in competition
in media leads to lowering their standards. With the advent of electronic media,
in the mad race for viewership and TRPs media tends to sensationalism twisted
and manufactured news. More over the paid media became one of the major
causes in lowering their standards. Media have become glamorized, news
presentation became important than the actual news present. Bytes, counter
debates and high decimal debates became major contents for a news channel.

Going back to history the newspapers run by idealists and other social
reformers who don’t run for their self needs but for the welfare of society. But
now a days media became corrupt and competition has grown with the increase
in number of newspapers. With the advent of electronic media the news reach
became so fast and every one want to present their news first in order to increase
their TRP or viewership and even with the growing of social media the news
reach became even more fast and it had forced the media to drag towards
sensationalisation.With the growing TRPs they can attract more brand for
advertising so that they can get more money.This self profit motive ruined the
ethics of media and lead to sensationalisation in news.
26/11 Attack and the role of media:
No Indian will never forget the holocaust done by terrorists in Mumbai on
November 26,2008.It was a horrifying incident which shocked the nation but
what horrifies us more than this was the TV channels coverage of the terrorist
attacks for Breaking news in their channels in competing with one another for
their TRPs.They gave live coverage of whole operation for their own TRP
compromising national security.The handlers in Pakistan who were in control
room at Karachi got live updates of government operations through the live
coverage of channels and kept improvising their attack results which the
operation was dragged for more than 60 hours.
 The TV journalists gave careless updates about arrival of NSG
commandoes in their channels were received by men in control room and they
updated everything to terrorists. Abu Jindal the hindi tutor of terrorists who was
also in the control room in Pakistan told his interrogators in India that live
television reports of operation were a boon to them and their kept advertising
the terrorists to act in a manner which would dilute the operations of
commandoes.The terrorists were constantly updated about the movements of
terrorists and used a secret stairway to escape.
 Many have termed this as Anti National exercise.There is a limit on the
news what to telecast on TV according to situation.TV channels at that time
don’t want to discriminate between breaking news and national security.
The operation continued 60 hours long and the people in India and
handlers in Pakistan were watching 67 channels which were fighting each other
for their TRPs.One incident really felt ashame about media at that time.
While covering operation one bullet flew out of the window and hit one
one of the journalists in the back.The wound was a minor one but the fellow
journalists instead of offering him medical help grabbing him and lifting his
shirt focusing his wound to the camera.They even forgot the minimum ethics at
that time.
When NSG commandoes came to the place their first priority was to
rescue people and later they have to go after terrorists.They did commandable
job then.When rescue began and one of the hostages came out and journalists
surrounded him in no time with questions.That person said there were two
persons in the dining room who have to be rescued.This was telecasted live and
trerrorists was informed about the people hiding and those two innocent people
was killed by them.
This media act came under the viscinity of Supreme Court too.They said
“All the channels were competing with each other in showing the latest
developments on a minute-to-minute basis, including the positions and the
movements of the security forces engaged in flushing out the terrorists, is what
the Supreme Court had also observed. Freedom of expression, like all other
freedoms under Article 19, is subject to reasonable restrictions.An action
tending to violate another person's right to life guaranteed under Article 21 or
putting the national security in jeopardy can never be justified by taking the
plea of freedom of speech and expression. The television channels aiming to
shoot up their TRP ratings were not serving any national interest. Instead they
put their commercial interests above national security.”
 Even after the incident TV continues to be extremely loud medium.There
are no regulations on telecasting news which compromise national security by
the government.Do we really need regulations?Do we really have to wait for
regulations?We shouldn’t wait for regulations,we have to act responsibly in
time of crisis and that shows the real maturity of media.We should not go after
sensationalisation compromising national security.
There are some other news posted or telecasted and sensationalized and
later turned out as fake news in last year.
President RamNath Kovind gained 3.5 million twitter followers in one
hour
This was the news telecasted and posted by major news media like
Republic TV,Zee News,Times of India,Economic Times,Financial
Express.They posted it even without realizing if it was possible.People
wondered to see the popularity the new president.

In reality, President Kovind had merely inherited the followers of

President Mukherjee. Official Twitter accounts of the President, Vice President
and various Ministries are considered digital assets that belong to the
government. Twitter has a strategy for digital transition when the occupant of a
position changes to ensure continuity and preserve the digital history of the
previous occupant. All Tweets from President Mukherjee were archived
under @POI13 The new @RashtrapatiBhvn account started with zero tweets
and all the followers from the previous account. This was a perfect example of
the herd mentality of Indian media when basic fact-checking has no place in the
rush to break news.
Nostradamus had predicted the rise of Supreme leader Narendus
“Indus supremus gudjaratus status natus est
Patrus Theus boutiqus, studium bonus est
Namusprimum narendus est”

“The supreme leader of India will be born in the state of Gujarat

His father will sell tea in a shop
His first name will be narendus (Narendra)”

Francois Gautier invented this tale about how passages of Nostradumus

found by him in an old abandoned trunk spoke about a supreme leader,
Narendus. In a blog titled Nostradamus and India, published in the Times of
India, Gautier shared these hilarious passages. Gautier has been discovering
these old trunks since a long time. Even way back in 1999 he revealed that it
was Nostradamus who had founded RSS 400 years ago.

Even as everyone was having a good laugh about Narendus, Vajpayum,

Advanum and Murlum Joshum, Zee news found it to be an entirely believable
tale, worthy of sharing with their viewers.

During IPL betting a news paper want to cash this news in favour of
them.They published a news on how people were betting money on the number
of dead bodies that arrived for cremation in Varanasi ghats.It was sensational
enough and probe was ordered.It was finally found out that the reporter with
the help of some people manufactured this news.

There are many news items like these dialy telecasting just for the sake of
sensationalisation.There are no regulating laws on media regarding this
matter.Freedom of press was not utilized in a rightful way and TV journalism
is mainly feeding on sensational stuff.They always go after High decibel
debates,creating controversies,gossips etc.Even the viewers are made to watch
only those and he used to them and enjoying it.News channels became source
of entertainment rather than a source of knowledge for people.Biasedness and
paid media is a cancer to the Journalism. Independent journalism was became
popular with the advent of smart phones and social media. Every one creating
a youtube channel and sites creating manufactured news diverting the common
people. Regualtions had to be brought out by government in such a way to
overcome these all problems in the media.But the government itself runs some
channels or newspapers indirectly and they blow the trumpet for the
government 24/7 irrespective of their actions.

CONCLUSION
 Being one of the pillars of the democracy media should not disintegrate
its value because of self profit.Media should adhere to ethics and should
responsible towards society irrespective of this sensationalisation of news.