We thought we could provoke him into an answer on this one, but he’s actually philosophised on it, and set us thinking. Well, here’s Dr Bhaskar Das in the December 29 edition of Das ka Dum. Read on…
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Q. As the year comes to an end, a question: when you watch a news channel on TV do you think the news is politically balanced? Or is imbalance the new normal?
A. Imbalance can also be a new balance. See, balance or imbalance is a state of mind, depending on which prism one observes a news item. It is difficult to define absolute neutrality or absolute balance as in the age of all-pervading social media, nano opinions also have followers. If you have doubts about it, check the current experiences of Elon Musk, a self-described free speech absolutist, is getting increasingly concerned by left-wing scolds. So, I feel free speech isn’t the problem. The problem is with listening. No one wants to listen to another perspective. It’s my way or highway. A basic tenet of democracy is hospitality to a multiplicity of perspectives and tolerance to an opposable mind (not opposing mind for sure). Hence, I feel form your perspective by evaluating facts from your perspective and maintain your balance. Don’t seek balance from outside sources. That’s a loss of your independence.