THE DOWNFALL OF INDIAN MEDIA

Once there was a time mass media streams used to show reality behind the fake news being circulated over the social media. Today, the situation is exactly opposite for the Indian media. The standard, especially of television media houses, has fallen to the extent that it has become extremely toxic and responsible for brainwashing people. Let's try to recognize the reasons for Indian media's downfall and possible solutions for it.

What's Wrong with our Media?

The newspapers had moderate impact on us throughout the years and it will keep on positively impacting the intellectual as well as less intelligent audience. But if we talk about television media, you will see there are some serious demerit points that led to nothing but letting down the standard of the whole system of mass media.

(i) The lust for TRP: 

The Indian media houses have converted themselves from information institutions into money making corporation. The low quality news contents with some additional masala tadka or fake news helps them to get more TRP (Television Rating Point). They convert their studios into fish market where the anchors and their guests just shout to prove their point and grab audience's attention.

When a particular topic trends, other media houses show the same thing again and again by which the media houses would make money but in return the normal audience have been heavily brainwashed.

(ii) Easy Manipulation: 

Media houses are very much fond of creating sensational stories out of news that has nothing to do with reality. To make a powerful news report or a documentary, powerful research and hard work is required which is time consuming. The debates on unnecessary topics with no conclusion or consciences are comparatively less time consuming and TRP is already yielding money to these TV channels then why they would even bother to show what really matters.

Different channels, different anchors, same policy

(iii) Pathetic Reporters

Earlier, there used to be professional people who look decently presentable in reading the news to provide right information to audience. Nowadays, most of the news anchors shout during the live debate to grab the audience attention. They are merely actors who are just acting in the name of anchoring but people listen to them as they are professional with knowledge, and that's where brainwashing begins.

How Indian Media is able to Manipulate Us?

Media is known as 4th Pillar of Democracy. This statement is linking media with democracy as well as politics. The Media houses are paid from various political parties; sometimes the words that are spoken in the debate are scripted just to create controversy. The problem arises when the viewers starts taking seriously everything they listen to.

The debate policy became successful in 2014 due to which Arnab Goswami, news anchor of channel Republic India got fame. Multiple media channels started copying the same policy to gain TRP which destroyed the art of reporting and documentation. Gradually, the whole concentration shifted towards biased reporting, defaming, and conspiracy theories which eventually hurt the freedom of speech.

Current situation of the paid media

It is not wrong if I say audience are also responsible for this. Yes, you heard it right. Indian media knows that a genuine news and well made documentation are less likely to gain attention as compared to a senseless debate. This is the reason why sometimes Art films fail at the box office. Media shows what they know people will see it, no matter they like it or hate it and that's where they're winning it by deceiving the entire nation.

We deserve to know the truth; we do not deserve to be manipulated towards things that have nothing to do with us. We should unsubscribe the news channels that show things which are invaluable or misleading until they improve themselves and come up with content that is true, valuable, and knowledgeable.

Conclusion

The ability to think critically is not a difficult job to do. The difference between right and wrong should not be a topic of debate. It is our duty to say anything after examining critically what we see, listen, and think. We are not robots fed up with instructions. Our political interests and religious beliefs should never be the reasons for clashes with human beings who have both of them different from us. This is not about media, this is about us; we as a nation should look into truth and lies.