Chapter 5
Media in India
The media in India is one of the
most powerful tools used by the major powers to control and change the Indian public perception about
themselves and about the world. This pattern is also followed in the
international scene with negation of Indic culture and bias against any revival
of civilization ethos. The creeping news about any event in the world including
jehadi information is presented in such a way that the process of evolution and
force of history is inevitable and a forgone conclusion in favor of the Islamic
parties.
Indian
populations are like a experimental subject to be fed with new perception and
information away from reality and in favor of the Islamic and major powers.
Over several decades the general population could be made less hostile and more
favorable to the designs of the major power. In the movie Pleasantville a
boy grows up in a make believe world thinking that his neighbors and friends
are the actual reality and totally oblivious of the reality of the world. The
Indian population is perceived by major powers to be analogous with little knowledge
about the reality and threats in the world. How long have the west been
experimenting with the Indian population with news and indoctrination? It could
be even before independence for more than 60 years. Deception and brainwashing
have been used for a long time by the west and India is one of the
largest targets of deception.
The current campaign to demonize Hindutva
is to defame and remove indigenous political parties, which are not under the
control of the major powers and whose ideology is fully rooted in Indic
civilization. Generally speaking the West is suspicious of civilizations that
are not rooted in Greco Roman culture and in Judeo Christian theology. The
attacks on Christians and minorities, which were non-existent in most
instances, are overblown with the logic that the majority community must be
checked with aggressive reporting even to the point of falsehood. Romila
Thapar, one of the eminent historians, ensconced in an influential position
thanks to the leftist proclivities of successive Congress governments, is
quoted as saying that the notion of a non-violent Hindu is a misnomer and that
it is not borne out by reality. Distorted or even totally false reporting on
communally sensitive issues is a well-entrenched feature of Indian journalism.
There is no self-corrective mechanism in place to remedy this endemic culture
of disinformation. No reporter or columnist or editor ever gets fired or
formally reprimanded or even just criticized by his peers for smearing Hindu
nationalists. This way, a partisan economy with the truth has become a habit
hard to relinquish.
This logic of news reporting is looked
upon as a form of social engineering. A sense of chaos and insecurity is
conveyed by media reports so that a stable environment and harmony is never
achieved in the minds of the larger society. This is one form of psy-operation
(Psy-ops) that has targeted India for the last
three decades. The news creates a notion of change, which reinforces the decay
of the Hindu culture and brings out more of the light Islamic/Urdu culture. By
being very anti-Hindu the media and social scientists hopes to reduce
aggression of the so called ‘majority’ community over the minority community
and bring balance even at the expense of the truth. This logic was pursued even
when the Muslim terrorists in Kashmir were killing the
minorities Hindus by simply ignoring such news and if reported, minimize it in
such a manner that little blame is attached to the Muslim who committed the
crime. The astonishingconsequenc3e of such news reporting on Jammu and Kashmir is that most
Westerners are unaware that there was a substantial Hindu population in the Kashmir valley and that
most of them have been cleansed and or murdered so that today there is hardly a
Hindu left in all of the Kashmir valley. This
aspect of the conflict and the fact that most of the murders are committed by
terrorists sent in by Pakistan is
completely ignored and in fact the phrase ‘cross border terrorism’ was studiously
ignored by the governing elite of the United States, so brainwashed were they
and so ignorant of the resulting ground realities. Here we are postulating the
less egregious motive based on ignorance rather than the equally plausible
explanation that the US is aware of that there is cross border terrorism but has chosen to
deceive the world by propagating the false notion that it is India that is the
transgressor. Such a deceitful posture by the US Governing elite, if true, is at
odds with the self image of the American, who likes to believe that like
Superman he is on the side of good against evil.
The control of media by foreign
governments is done in a subtle manner. Typical of the methods used, are to
indoctrinate the editorial teams and the journalists over time. The Indian
leftists have been used for a long time by the external powers and since they
control the media they are better able to influence the bias in the media. Some
questions which recur often ‘Why don’t you talk to your very reasonable nuclear
rival Pakistan' or 'why do you
have a Hindu nationalist party in power’. Each of these questions is loaded, as
they say in the courtroom, with facts or inferences not yet established by
evidence to be true and designed to shift the conversation from a dubious
premise to a foregone conclusion. The public buys this kind of argument more
readily. The book ‘Cultural Cold War’
describes all the dirty tricks used by the CIA and other
agencies all over the world to change countries and to bring chaos in those
countries. It is well known that the CIA funded
right-wing intellectuals after World War II; fewer know that it also courted
individuals from the center and the left in an effort to turn the
intelligentsia away from communism and toward an acceptance of "the
American way." Frances Stonor Saunders sifts through the history of the covert
Congress for Cultural Freedom in The Cultural Cold War: The CIA and the World of
Arts and Letters. The book centers on the career of Michael Josselson, the
principal intellectual figure in the operation, and his eventual betrayal by
people who scapegoat him. Sanders demonstrates that, in the early days, the
Office of Strategic Services (OSS) and the emergent CIA were less
dominated by the far right than they later became (including the Christian
right), and that the idea of helping out progressive moderates--rather than
being Machiavellian--actually appealed to the men at the top.
David Frawley
writes: The Indian English media dictates against the government as if it
should be the real political decision-making body in the country.(
Because it is urged and influenced by other foreign agencies and academic
institutions such as U Berkeley/U Columbia) It deems itself capable of
taking the place of legal institutions as well, printing its allegations as truth
even if these have never been entered into much less proved in any court of
law. It has vested itself with an almost religious authority to determine
what is right and wrong, good and evil, and who in the country should be
honored or punished. (In current terminology this is known as
manufacturing consent) Like
an almost theocratic institution, it does not tolerate dissent or allow its
dogmas to be questioned.( It creates groupthink, manufactures 'dissent'
forcing everybody to fall in line and creates an old boys network). In the name of editorial policy, it
pontificates, promoting slogans, denigrations and articles of faith in the
guise of critical policy review. ( This is called brainwashing under
freedom )
The media doesn't aim at reporting the
news; it tries to create the news, imposing its view of the news upon everyone
as the final truth. The media doesn't objectively cover elections, it tries to
influence voters to vote in a specific manner, demonizing those it disagrees
with and excusing those it supports, however bad or incompetent their behavior.
We saw this particularly during the recent Gujarat elections in
which the media went so far as to print the type of election results it wanted
to see as the likely outcome, though voters
proved it to be totally wrong.
Where is the Media's
Mandate?
The question therefore arises as to how the
media has awarded itself such a sweeping authority that can override
legitimately elected and appointed bodies? What sort of mandate has the media
been given to justify its actions? Clearly the media has never been elected to
any political post and does not undergo any scrutiny like that of candidates in
an election. It does not represent any appointed post in the government. It
has no accountability to any agency external to its own corporate family. The
media's authority is largely self-appointed and, not surprisingly,
self-serving. Hence the media has become a tool of foreign powers who would
like a particular outcome of an election or policy making inside India or image
creation. The sources behind the media's operation and where they get their
money is also not revealed. We are not informed as to how prominent reporters
and editorial writers derive their income, including how much may come from
outside sources. But clearly they are getting a lot of money from somewhere
that they are not in any hurry to disclose. Though the media likes to expose
the improprieties, financial, sexual and otherwise, of those its dislikes,
which it often exaggerates, if not invents, if you examine how the media people
live, you certainly wouldn't want them as role models for your children! Nor
are we certain who the media really represents. Certain groups, not only inside
but also outside India, are using this English media as a vested interest to
promote their own agenda, which is generally anti-Hindu and often appears to be
anti-India as well. Negative news are portrayed more than positive news.
President APJ Abdul Kalam asks: “Why is the media here so negative? Why are
we in India so embarrassed
to recognize our own strengths, our achievements? We have so many
amazing success stories but we refuse to acknowledge them. Why? Is there an
agenda to reduce the achievements of India.” The only
reason for the negative news is to reduce the self confidence of Hindus and
their place in the world. This is a campaign on a world scale probably never
done anywhere. Is this really possible and is this really happening.
The Media Propaganda
Machine
A section of the Indian media often
appears more as a propaganda machine than an objective news agency. In this
regard the large section of English media of India is much like the
old state propaganda machines of communist countries. This is an important clue
for understanding its operation. The English media of India largely
represents a holdover from the Congress era in which it was a state run
propaganda center for the Congress government that was far left in its
orientation. We can perhaps understand its actions today as a state run
propaganda machine that has continued in power after the decline of the party
that created it. Its prime motive has now become to reestablish that old state
and former ruling party.
The media remains largely a Congress run
propaganda machine. As the Congress has not been able to win elections, it has
emphasized its media wing even more strongly to try to compensate for its
failures in the electoral arena. Yet as the Congress Party itself has often
failed, the media has taken to supporting other leftist groups inside and
outside the country in hope of gaining power. There is a clear hand of western
governments in manipulating the congress party to do its work. This shows how
the Indian government is manipulated as a puppet of the western governments and
has been for a long time for the last 40 years.
Prior to independence and immediately
after, the British have used the media to demonize Hindu groups in India. K Elst
says :
It is a not so subtle scheme of political propaganda to describe the Hindu as
pro-Fascist. It is a cruel calumny, which has been spread in America and other countries. The Hindu Mahasabha stood for
Savarkar’s policy of militarization and industrialization. We recognized that
Fascism was a supreme menace to what is good and noble in our civilization. Due
to Veer Savarkar’s call thousands of young men joined the Army and Navy and Air
Force and shed their blood for resisting Nazi tyranny and for real friendship
with China and Russia. But as the Hindus had the temerity to ask for
National Independence and took the lead in rejecting the Cripps ( commission)
offer, they were maligned and the subtle forces of organized British propaganda
were let loose to blackmail the Hindus.” (Hindu Politics, p.103) The current tendency to accuse the Hindu
movement for cultural decolonization of India of “fascism” is nothing but a replay of an old
colonial tactic. “
There is grand irony inherent in making these accusations against the Hindu,
because it was the grand Mufti of Jerusalem who supported Hitler and the Nazis
during WW II. The communists in India
in fact toed the Russian line when the Russians signed the Molotov Ribbentrop
treaty. It was only when Russia
was forced to join the West in 1942 with the beginning of Operation Barbarossa
to invade Russia,
by the Germans, that the Indian Communists dutifully shifted their allegiance
also. But wait, they didn’t stop there. They went on to oppose the Quit India
movement and made common cause with the Muslim league to sabotage all attempts
at Independence. Despite this stark
record, there are sections of American and Indian medias which will blandly
repeat the Goebellian lie that the Hindu is Fascist
Current image of India
When one speaks of the image of India does one think
of a budding information technology sector, developing infrastructure, a
booming middle class or poverty, communal strife, and constant confrontation
with Pakistan? The majority of
the mainstream Western and Indian media are quite content to push the latter
image of India. They are
supported by many Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) that are also quite
content to portray India with a one-sided
view that keeps them in business. The Government of India and many of its
citizens also seem content with their standing in the world or continually
understate the country at every chance. In a sense, there are many people who
would like India to be poor in
perpetuity.
One example of the image wars is that of
the city of Kolkata (Calcutta). This eastern
Indian city has long been portrayed as a poor, slum ridden metropolis; ignoring
its rich cultural, literary, and economic heritage. Kolkata has become a prime
destination for cause hunting celebrities who ensure that in the eyes of the International
community, poverty remains the city's biggest attraction. Celebrities like
Ricky Martin, Melanie Griffith, and Penelope Cruz have lead a procession of
international donors who use the city's streets as a backdrop for unflattering
photo ops. India's poor : The Dec. 29, 2002 issue of the
Toronto Star highlighted this issue quite succinctly : "It's always the
same plot. When Ricky Martin visited recently, a press release breathlessly
described how the Latin pop star witnessed the poor who "swarm the streets
of Calcutta." In fact,
there is no shortage of impoverished families who line up forlornly outside
public charities for a bowl of rice and curry, just as people show up daily at Toronto's soup kitchens.
But it's hard to find a "swarm" of them, except in a press
release."
Improving India's
image
The Wall Street Journal has also recently
pointed out the Indian image problem when comparing it to China as a potential
destination for investment capital; "So why doesn't India attract more
foreign investment? Largely, India has an image
problem, and that sways investors' view of risk. When investors compare the
polluted streets of Bombay with the
skyscrapers and chic restaurants of Shanghai, it's hard to
put money where the potholes are. "I have known potential
investors to come back from a first trip
to India so dismayed by
the chaotic environment that they have missed seeing the investment
opportunity," says Levack."
India's future could
be very bright. In a recent article Dr M Vidyasagar aptly came to the
conclusion that :"The last two years have been truly amazing in terms of
demonstrating what India can expect in coming years. Thus far only a few tiny
cracks have been introduced into the solid wall of Nehruvian state control that
has prevented India from reaching
its true economic potential. But even with these tiny cracks providing equally
tiny openings in our bureaucratic control mechanisms, Indians have delivered
the world's second fastest growing economy for over a decade now. The future
can only be better, not worse."
Entertainment/Movies
Movies are a powerful media in India to change people
and social structure. The people are influenced heavily by the portrayal of
communities, governments, law enforcement, religion, traditions etc in the
movies. By demonizing these groups the less literate people can be influenced
to revolt, dissent and create general chaos against authority. The angry young
man theme was created during the 70s as the dissent increased in the society.
The rise of a new kind of social cinema, in late 60s and 70s was influenced
heavily by Bengal. Like the 1940s and 50s, when New
Theatres and its Bengali talent had greatly enriched this country's filmmaking,
this latter day revival too was a Bengali influx. They laid the foundation of a
genuine middle class cinema in Bombay which remained
active and profoundly important for several careers. One of the objectives
during the 70s was to project the subaltern histories of the marginalized
society in so called ‘art’ movies. Some examples such as Ankur, Anand etc
focused on middle class and the tribal people. The real audience for such
movies was the academic centers of the west mainly UK and US to study
the marginalized section and create a strategy based on those community. During
80s the main aim to influence the movies was to create benign images of Muslims
so that the general non-Muslim of the subcontinent is sympathetic to Muslim
history and accepts an idea of a Islamic rule. Muslim artists where given preference
and non-Muslims images were denigrated. This subtle image creation is still
going on without any check.