Ranjona Banerji: If Indian anchors were in Pakistan, they would’ve damned Cyril Almeida

By Ranjona Banerji

This is Trevor Noah, the South Africa-born comedian who took over the satirical Daily Show from Jon Stewart, quoted in Time Magazine: “There is a certain level of naivete when you say Hillary Clinton is worse than Donald Trump. I think that is a very dangerous position to be in. And I think the press has gotten to a place where they are realising that it’s about truth and not neutrality.”

The discussion of course is about the US presidential election and the media’s need to be “fair” to Donald Trump which is what Noah calls a “false equivalence”.

And is this not where we are when you consider Indian news television and its attitude to Pakistan? This week, some of our prominent news anchors were full of rage and pleasure that well-known Pakistani journalist and columnist Cyril Almeida had been barred from leaving Pakistan by an angry Pakistani government. It exposed to them all that was wrong with Pakistan. And what had Almeida done? He had discovered and written about a meeting between the Pakistan civilian government and the Pakistani army about Pakistan’s increasing international isolation and the need to fight militancy. The government apparently told the military not to interfere in the government’s attempts to fight terrorist organisations which operate within Pakistan.

For Indian news anchors, Almeida promptly became a hero because he had exposed the lies of his army over militancy within Pakistan – which led to attacks on India. Of course what these news anchors – I cannot and will not call them journalists – failed, deliberately or otherwise, to see is that Almeida was doing exactly what any journalist would do. He was questioning claims made by the establishment. Now imagine if our Indian news anchors lived and worked in Pakistan? Immediately, Almeida would be tarred and abused as an anti-national. Irony of course is alien to news television in India and so is common sense or even in too many cases nowadays, simple intelligence.

This is what Dawn had to say in its strong and well-argued defence of Almeida and journalism: “There are times in a news organisation’s history that determine its adherence to the highest principles of journalism – its duty to inform the public objectively, accurately and fearlessly…

“Journalism has a long and glorious tradition of keeping its promise to its audience even in the face of enormous pressure brought to bear upon it from the corridors of power. Time has proved this to be the correct stance. Some of the most contentious yet historically significant stories have been told by news organisations while resisting the state’s narrow, self-serving and ever-shifting definition of ‘national interest’.”

You can see those key words there: “the state’s narrow, self-serving and ever-shifting definition of ‘national interest’.”

How are we doing with that problem here in India? We are so proud of our democracy compared to Pakistan, are we not? And yet, you have a Pakistani newspaper up against worse odds than us, standing up for the principles of journalism while we sit back and watch various degrees of capitulation to “national interest” in India.

The same news channels which applaud Dawn and Almeida are unable to turn that same scanner on their own government and its organisations. They attack any Indian journalist who does what Almeida has done. They stand on their pulpits and collect cheap “patriotism” points, pretending that they are our main defenders of Indian borders. It is becoming painful to watch and to accept, as they go against every tenet of journalism.

What you feel is shame. Terrible, excoriating, miserable shame.