Mrinal Talukdar
In the recently concluded 2024 Lok Sabha elections, every political party is celebrating, but the metropolitan media (read Metropolitan/Noida/Godi) is wallowing in despair and unhappiness.
The Congress is ecstatic to have doubled its seats. The INDIA alliance is overjoyed to have come within striking distance of power. The NDA, BJP, and Narendra Modi are exultant over securing a third consecutive term.
However, the metropolitan media is not only disheartened but also enraged that their predictions of the NDA securing 400 seats fell flat. Adding insult to injury, their credibility has been obliterated, a harsh reality they are desperately trying to deny.
For the past decade, these media outlets have obliterated the boundaries of decency, shamelessly acting as mouthpieces for the BJP and Narendra Modi's government. They have relentlessly hounded the opposition while giving the ruling party a free pass. If they had any semblance of neutrality or journalistic integrity, the BJP would have struggled to secure more than 200 seats.
Two significant developments have emerged from this disgraceful scenario. First, the provincial media in Kerala, Assam, West Bengal, and Maharashtra have risen to the occasion, providing a more balanced perspective and offering some relief to the opposition and the INDIA alliance.
Second, alternative media has gained substantial traction on platforms like YouTube, attracting a growing number of followers seeking an unbiased view, driving people away from the corrupt corporate media to subscription-based alternatives.
This catastrophic situation cannot be pinned on the NDA or those in power; it was a vile competition among NOIDA channels, led by Arnab Goswami, to grovel at the feet of the BJP while sidelining the INDIA alliance and Congress. Rajdeep Sardesai stands out for maintaining neutrality despite the overwhelming pressure, while the rest have sunk to the lowest depths of indecency.
In any healthy democracy, the level of sycophancy displayed by the metropolitan media would be utterly alarming. Their brazenly one-sided behavior has obliterated public trust. As a journalist, I understand that prime ministerial interviews will be scrutinized by the PMO's media advisors, but the groveling questions and subservient body language observed resembled a fanboy podcast rather than a serious journalistic interview.
Conversely, despite limited resources, the regional media in Kerala, Bengal, Assam, and Maharashtra provided the opposition with necessary coverage, ensuring a level playing field for both the NDA and the INDIA alliance. As a member of the media fraternity, I am proud that, except for one outlet, all media houses in Assam and the Northeast played a crucial role in this election, often giving more space to the opposition.
Take Gaurav Gogoi, for instance. Despite the BJP employing every possible tactic against him, the media in Assam gave him fair coverage, a level playing field that was crucial for his victory. In contrast, NOIDA-based channels targeted INDIA candidates while treating NDA candidates with undue leniency. The blatant favoritism exhibited by some TV anchors is embarrassing, especially considering I have shared two ENBA awards with a few of them.
As a result, except for the older WhatsApp groups, most people have abandoned NOIDA channels for YouTube. Channels led by Ravish Kumar, Dhruv Rathee, Avishar Sharma, 4 p.m., and Ajit Anjum now wield more influence and reach than established channels. In Assam, news-based YouTube channels have yet to gain prominence, as local media continues to uphold professional ethics.
The sad part is that even after this profound lesson, these NOIDA channels have failed to grasp the nation's pulse. However, I hope they persist in their ways, as their decline into irrelevance seems inevitable. The digital age empowers citizens to scrutinize every act of a journalist, and history will not forgive the likes of Arnab Goswami, Rubika Liaquat, Anjan Om Kashyap, and other sycophantic figures for their unparalleled bias in a democracy.
