MxMIndia

Tag: IndiaToday

  • Will host 3-episode special flagship show Trigger Point anchored by Preeti Chaudhary

    Hey Alexa! Gimme India Today news on UP elections!

    By Our Staff

     

    Indiatoday.in and Amazon Alexa have come together to bring viewers the Ground Zero report for the UP elections.

     

    Notes a communique: “The partnership puts the focus on delivering most factual information and insightful analysis through three episodes of our flagship show Trigger Point hosted by Preeti Chaudhary,” adding: “As the 7 phases of polling nearly comes to an end and exit polls being around the corner, their unique content partnership comes at the crucial juncture in the most anticipated political festival of Hindi speaking belt of India – UP elections.”

     

  • Get someone junior to do the leg work because you're so busy being a celebrity, obviously you don't have the time to do it yourself

    Plagiarism… a common affliction with senior journalists

    By Ranjona Banerji

     

    “I apologise unreservedly,” said Fareed Zakaria’s most recent tweet on August 10. And here’s the statement attached:

    “Media reporters have pointed out that paragraphs in my Time column on gun control, which was also a topic of conversation on this blog, bear close similarities to paragraphs in Jill Lepore’s essay in the April 23rd issue of The New Yorker. They are right. I made a terrible mistake. It is a serious lapse and one that is entirely my fault. I apologize unreservedly to her, to my editors at Time and CNN, and to my readers and viewers everywhere.”

     

    This is how Zakaria describes himself on twitter: “Editor at TIME Magazine. Host of CNN’s GPS: Sunday @ 10am and 1pm ET in the U.S. Blogger at CNN.com/GPS.

    New York, NY”.

     

    Now he stands suspended from all his jobs, for at least one month pending investigation.

     

    The odd thing is, Zakaria need not have picked up those bits from Lepore’s article and passed them off as his own. He could have given her due credit, which would have been the right and honourable thing to do. He could have read as much as he could on the subject and drawn his own conclusions. He could have used facts from a variety of sources and made an argument based on that. But why pass off a few paragraphs from someone else’s work as your own?

     

    Sadly, this is a common affliction with senior journalists. Get someone junior to do the leg work because you’re so busy being a celebrity, obviously you don’t have the time to do it yourself. That obviously means that you don’t have the time to check either. Throw your opinion together, safe in the feeling that your name will carry you through.

     

    Or, it could be that you did the Google search yourself…

     

    Either way, there are no excuses which is why Zakaria hasn’t made any.

     

    Throw your mind back to almost two years ago when huge chunks of Aroon Purie’s publisher’s note in India Today was picked up from a column in Slate magazine. Purie apologised, but obviously, since he owned the magazine, nothing more could be done. Also, it turned out that he didn’t realise that the “research” sent to him by his employees (senior journalists though they may have been) was not written by them but by someone else.

     

    The funny thing is that these are rookie lapses, which come from arrogance, laziness and carelessness. This is not the work of a scientist trying to get published in some respected journal or a PhD student trying to finish a thesis – not that cheating is justified – who thinks they have just one chance to make it. What are the stakes involved for a columnist who writes regularly? Your whole reputation is built on those daily, weekly, fortnightly or monthly words you come up with. Imagine throwing it away in this sloppy manner?

     

    Unfortunately for Zakaria, this puts all his work under the scanner. Trust is so ephemeral.

     

    The odd thing is, one suspects this kind of plagiarism is possibly far more common than this. Stupidity is after all universal. Common sense is not.

     

    Ranjona Banerji is a senior journalist and commentator based in Mumbai. She is Contributing Editor, MxMIndia. The views expressed here are her own. Twitter: @ranjona

     

  • The panel discussed how the technological innovations and its resultant empowerment of individuals have significantly changed the way people consume news today

    INMA 2012: ‘News is not static but dynamic’

    By Shruti Pushkarna

     

    Sanjay Gupta
    [youtube width=”400″ height=”225″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=alB7H-4TpGU[/youtube]

    The International Newsmedia Marketing Association (INMA) hosted its 6th annual South Asia conference in New Delhi on August 7. With its theme of ‘Complexity Advantage’, Day 1 of the INMA conference witnessed some power packed sessions.

     

    One such session, ‘The Future of News’, was moderated by Jacob Mathew, Executive Editor, Malayala Manorama and President, WAN-Ifra. The session saw a lively discussion by the two eminent panelists, Mr MJ Akbar, Editorial Director, India Today & Headlines Today and Mr Sanjay Gupta, CEO, Jagran Prakashan Ltd.

     

    The technological innovations and its resultant empowerment of individuals have significantly changed the way people consume news today. Introducing the topic,’The Future of News’, Mr Mathew raised a few key questions: “Would the existing formats be relevant to the future? How will we ensure that news is available anywhere anytime in any format to be consumed by our readers?”

     

    He added that the growth of print has still not been affected as much in South Asia and that the countries in the region should learn from the mistakes made by colleagues in the rest of the world.

     

    MJ Akbar
    [youtube width=”400″ height=”225″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5gZXE8988w[/youtube]

    Addressing the basic worry around the future of news, Mr Akbar said: “The reason why news will always be in demand is because man is not a hermit. Man lives in a community and in any community, ignorance is the basis of all conflict. Curiosity is elemental to human experience and as long as curiosity remains a vital part, news will thrive.”  He added that news needs a vehicle and that will be provided by news organizations in the future as well.

     

    Mr Akbar alleged that the real problem facing the society today is not the future of news but the future of a ‘journalist’. He pointed out two traps that journalists today increasingly fall into: “One trap is a fish trap where a journalist looks at the bait and swallows it. This trap is a dangerous challenge to credibility of news as this form of journalism is based essentially on what the journalist has ‘heard’. The other trap is delusion trap where the journalist thinks he/she is more important than news.”

     

    Mr Akbar also compared the newspaper to a ‘thali’ which has a variety of food ranging from healthy ‘dal and rice’ to not-so-healthy ‘achaar'(pickle). He said: “No thali is complete without achaar, but on the other hand, achaar cannot replace dal and rice.”

     

    Coming back to the basic point in question of how big a threat does technology pose for the print industry, Mr Akbar said: “No technology completely destroys another. They all continue to exist together. The only thing that will be destroyed in the future will be your business plans which will have to be reoriented.” He added that there is no essential competition between products (radio, TV, newspaper), every product has its own rationale and news organizations have to be ‘format-driven’.

     

    He concluded: “As long as the newsmaker and the news owner understand that news is not static but dynamic, there’s no reason to worry.”

     

    Mr Gupta echoed Mr Akbar’s views and maintained that there will be news as long as there’s society and as long as there are incidents taking place. He said that the new technology does help in uncovering the truth faster and in an easier way sometimes, but the basics of news is to uncover the truth. It is important, he said, that news media engages audience in a public debate over issues that matter.

     

    Mr Gupta added that good journalism is good business and he concluded by quoting Google’s head of news products, Richard Gingras: “The pace of technological change will not abate, and to think of our current time as a transition between two eras, rather than a continuum of change, is a mistake.”

     

  • A favourite with the urban zones and also with the advertisers, English dailies and magazines have shown an average readership trend in 2012Q1

    IRS 2012Q1: English readership throws up usual pattern

    By A Correspondent

     

    A favourite with the urban zones and also with the advertisers, English dailies and magazines have shown an average readership trend in 2012Q1. Leading the list yet again for the dailies is Times of India that has recorded an AIR of 7,652 as against 7,616. Hindustan Times is next with an AIR of 3,805. The Hindu has seen a gradual decline with an AIR of 2,233 and occupies the third spot. The Telegraph comes fourth with an AIR of 1,292 while Deccan Chronicle is fifth with an AIR 1,027. DNA has shown a slight growth recording an AIR of 909 as against 897 it recorded in 2011Q4. The Economic Times follows with an AIR of 792 followed by Mumbai Mirror at 777. The New Indian Express is ninth with an AIR of 678 while The Tribune rounds off the list with an AIR of 624.

     

    (AIR numbers; all figures in ‘000)


     

    The trend for magazines is somewhat similar to that delivered by dailies. India Today, retaining its top spot, has shown a small hike with an AIR of 1,613. General Knowledge Today is second on the list with an AIR of 1,086. The going is downhill for Readers Digest that posted an AIR of 1,043. Competition Success Review is next on the list having posted an AIR of 705. Outlook follows next showing growth with an AIR of 492. Pratiyogita Darpan is next with an AIR of 446. The Week follows with an AIR of 418 while Stardust is next with an AIR of 411. Business Today is ninth on the list with an AIR of 397 while Wisdom ends the list with an AIR of 359.

     

    (AIR numbers; all figures in ‘000)


     

  • The conclave introduces Thinktent, a platform for aspiring professionals and students to interact with speakers. Live budget analysis roundtable managed by Business Today editors

    IndiaToday Conclave 2012: Securing the global promise

    By A Correspondent

     

    The India Today Conclave, India’s largest thought festival for the finest minds from across the country and the world, is scheduled to take place in the capital on March 16-17. The theme this year is The Asian Century: Securing the Global Promise. The focus, as usual, is on contemporary concerns as well as on innovations. But the Conclave will have a wider reach this year. Because India Today firmly believes that the more ideas are shared the bigger they become.

     

    The India Today Conclave goes free with ThinkTent, a brand new innovation this year, to increase the reach of the Conclave and to engage theIndiaof tomorrow-young executives and management students. Conceived as an outdoor event in a massive and comfortable tent, ThinkTent will beam proceedings live, via giant screens, concurrently with the Conclave.

     

    Not just that, the audience will get the opportunity to interact with Conclave speakers, who will also be available for photo ops and autograph sessions. One can register for ThinkTent at the Conclave website and, if selected, can be a part of ThinkTent for free.

     

    The Conclave is also proud to present a debriefing session from the Union Finance Minister, Pranab Mukherjee, a day after he presents the Budget to the nation. March 17 will open with the Finance Minister’s keynote address, explaining his budget. Delegates will get the rare opportunity of interacting with him over a Q&A session.

     

    On March 17, Akhilesh Yadav, the young Samajwadi Party leader, who has pedaled his party to sweeping electoral success, will address the Conclave. But he will not be the only one. There will be the opportunity to listen to a range of new heirs of political dynasties from acrossIndiaand its neighbours-from Namal Rajapaksa, MP,Sri Lanka, to Sajeeb Wazed, Special Adviser toAwami League,Bangladesh, Omar Abdullah, the Chief Minister of Jammu & Kashmir and Shehrbano Taseer, Journalist,Pakistan.

     

    With India Today’s culture of being in step with news, this year there will be a concurrent session, The Business Today Budget Studio@India Today Conclave, on March 16. The live budget coverage will be accompanied by senior editors from Business Today, India’s premier-most business magazine, and experts from the world of finance explaining the implications of the budget and answering queries.

     

    As usual, the Conclave promises to be a star-studded affair. Beginning with an inaugural keynote address by social activist Anna Hazare on ‘Yeh Dil Maange No More Corruption’, the two-day conference will reflect the full range of contemporary interests, passions and concerns: India’s favourite cricketers Virender Sehwag and Harbhajan Singh on the zigzagging fortunes of Indian cricket; superstar Kareena Kapoor on the rise of the New Heroine in Bollywood; His Excellency Anwar Bin Ibrahim, Leader of Opposition and Former Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia, on arguments for democracy and a keynote address by Henry Kissinger, Former Secretary of State of the United States of America and Nobel Laureate.

     

    The conclave will close with  Imran Khan,  Pakistan’s legendary cricket captain and chairman of the political outfit, Tehreek-e-Insaf, delivering the Dinner Keynote address. The event will be followed by a gala dinner, specially created by British gourmet chef, Rob Rees.

     

    With some of the finest minds from around the world assembling inNew Delhi, The India Today Conclave will once again provide the perfect platform for a free and frank exchange of ideas.

     

  • Mr Thappa, who recently left Mail Today, will be working at Mindshare as Leader – Client Leadership, South Asia.

    Rahul Thappa is back @ Mindshare

    By Akash Raha

     

    After his stint at Mail Today, Rahul Thappa has once again joined Mindshare. Mr Thappa will be working at Mindshare as Leader – Client Leadership, South Asia, reporting directly to Mindshare CEO Ravi Rao.

     

    In his last stint with Mail Today, the compact Delhi daily which is a joint venture between India Today Group and Associated Newspapers (ANL), publisher of Daily Mail, UK, he was the COO of the organization. He had joined the newspaper in May 2011, taking over from the then-COO, Mr Suresh Balakrishnan.

     

    Mr Thappa’s earlier stints include working as the Managing Director at Mindshare Malaysia; Business Director, Entertainment Sports & Partnerships at Group M Malaysia; Business Director at Mindshare Malaysia; and Planning & Buying Director, Team Unilever at Mindshare, Malaysia.

     

    MxM had received no official confirmation from Mindshare at the time of this report.