Burqa On Freedom Of Speech

[Guest]

Chyetanya Kunte a blogger, published an “Unconditional Withdrawal” of his blog post where he had blasted NDTV and Barkha Dutt.
Original post from cache:

<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--> Shoddy journalism   New window
Date: Thursday, 27 Nov 2008 20:39

Appalling journalism. Absolute blasphemy! As I watch the news from home, I am dumbfounded to see Barkha Dutt of NDTV break every rule of ethical journalism in reporting the Mumbai mayhem. Take a couple of instances for example:

    * In one instance she asks a husband about his wife being stuck, or held as a hostage. The poor guy adds in the end about where she was last hiding. Aired! My dear friends with AK-47s, our national news is helping you. Go get those still in. And be sure to thank NDTV for not censoring this bit of information.
    * In another instance, a General sort of suggests that there were no hostages in Oberoi Trident. (Clever.) Then, our herione of revelations calls the head of Oberoi, and the idiot confirms a possibility of 100 or more people still in the building. Hello! Guys with guns, you’ve got more goats to slay. But before you do, you’ve got to love NDTV and more precisely Ms. Dutt. She’s your official intelligence from Ground zero.

You do not need to be a journalist to understand the basic premise of ethics, which starts with protecting victims first; and that is done by avoiding key information from being aired publicly—such as but not limited to revealing the number of possible people still in, the hideouts of hostages and people stuck in buildings.

Imagine you’re one of those sorry souls holed-up in one of those bathrooms, or kitchens. A journalist pulls your kin outside and asks about your last contact on national television, and other prying details. In a bout of emotion, if they happen to reveal more details, you are sure going to hell. Remember these are hotels, where in all likelihood, every room has a television. All a terrorist needs to do is listen to Ms. Barkha Dutt’s latest achievement of extracting information from your relative, based on your last phone-call or SMS. And you’re shafted—courtesy NDTV.1

If the terrorists don’t manage to shove you in to your private hell, the journalists on national television will certainly help you get there. One of the criticisms about Barkha Dutt on Wikipedia reads thus:

    During the Kargil conflict, Indian Army sources repeatedly complained to her channel that she was giving away locations in her broadcasts, thus causing Indian casualties.

Looks like the idiot journalist has not learnt anything since then. I join a number of bloggers pleading her to shut the f⋅⋅⋅ up.

Update: In fact, I am willing to believe that Hemant Karkare died because these channels showed him prepare (wear helmet, wear bullet-proof vest.) in excruciating detail live on television. And they in turn targeted him where he was unprotected. The brave officer succumbed to bullets in the neck.

Update 2 [28.Nov.2300hrs]: Better sense appears to have prevailed in the latter half of today—either willfully, or by Government coercion2, and Live broadcasts are now being limited to non-action zones. Telecast of action troops and strategy is now not being aired live. Thank goodness for that.

Update 3 [30.Nov.1900hrs]: DNA India reports about a UK couple ask media to report carefully:

    The terrorists were watching CNN and they came down from where they were in a lift after hearing about us on TV.

    — Lynne Shaw in an interview.

   1. Oh, they have a lame excuse pronouncing that the television connections in the hotel has been cut, and therefore it is okay to broadcast. Like hell!
   2. I’m thinking coercion, since Government has just denied renewing CNN’s rights to air video today; must’ve have surely worked as a rude warning to the Indian domestic channels.
<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
NDTV's forced this blogger to retract his posts. Threats of lawsuit I believe.
This from the cry-me-a-free-press - NDTV <!--emo&:roll--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/ROTFL.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='ROTFL.gif' /><!--endemo-->

Other bloggers on this:
http://shripriya.com/blog/2009/01/28/shame...nd-barkha-dutt/
http://www.vmohanty.com/posts/open-letter-to-ndtv/
http://www.blogbharti.com/kuffir/media/ndt...o-the-defiance/
http://unjustly.wordpress.com/2009/01/30/l...for-2009-01-30/
http://naiveindian.in/2009/01/30/ndtv-arm-...into-submission
http://retributions.nationalinterest.in/nd...on-free-speech/
http://www.sandeepweb.com/2009/01/29/barkh...joke-is-on-you/
http://thecapeofgoodhope.blogspot.com/2009...timidation.html
http://www.prempanicker.com/index.php?/sit...rs_a_price_tag/
http://indianrealist.wordpress.com/2009/01...hey-hate-blogs/
http://www.desipundit.com/2009/01/28/blogg...lenced-by-ndtv/
http://thecapeofgoodhope.blogspot.com/2009...timidation.html
http://thecomicproject.blogspot.com/2009/0...ution-away.html
http://www.gauravonomics.com/blog/indian-b...-terror-attack/
http://www.labnol.org/india/indian-blogger...rkha-dutt/6853/
http://placidfreedom.wordpress.com/2009/01...nged-yet-again/
http://lifeandsomething.blogspot.com/2009/...ng-by-ndtv.html

[Guest]

I believe another blogger 'chindu' was driven off the internet by 'The Hindu'.
Can someone post details of other such attempts by Indian mainstream media to suppress freedom of free speech online?

[Guest]

there was one which took on indian express spindianexpress.blogspot.com/ , which no longer exists

[Pandyan]

Hindus in the US, Canada, UK and elsewhere can set up blogs and post material which can be emailed to them from people in India who have local access to all the crappy anti-Hindu networks and papers. That way, these scum cannot do anything. I am willing to do it, if someone will email me the material from India and doesn't want to bullied by these scum.

These are the same scum that cry and whine about phreedumbh of presh. They don't deserve any dumbocracy.

[Husky]

<!--QuoteBegin-Viren+Jan 31 2009, 05:34 AM-->QUOTE(Viren @ Jan 31 2009, 05:34 AM)<!--QuoteEBegin-->I believe another blogger 'chindu' was driven off the internet by 'The Hindu'.
Can someone post details of other such attempts by Indian mainstream media to suppress freedom of free speech online?
[right][snapback]94063[/snapback][/right]
<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->At least The Chindu blog is still there:
http://cbcnn.blogspot.com/
"Chennai Based Chinese National Newspaper (CB-CNN)"

[Guest]

Mediaah was taken down by TOI.

[Guest]

The media diva's on Facebook crying foul. Anyone with Facebook a/c to debunk her points in a very calm logical/factual manner? You could start by saying that she should at least be honest to upload her latest mug shot on Facebook instead on the one taken during Rajiv Gandhi administration.