Shubho rightly points out that freedom of speech can’t be selective:
The incidence is startling. Not only because it has exposed the malevolent side of the imposing face of NDTV, India’s largest private television production house but also because the incident has exposed how a prime television media house and its famed Managing Editor can become prickly about ostensible and trivial criticism. It is similarly startling to observe how arrogant a television news channel can be when confronted with uncomfortable questions from its very own audience. It looks more odd when the same NDTV adopts the role of conscience-keeper and become instrumental in arousing public anger against the government and politicians, invites stupid guests in serious looking talk-shows to deliver stupid lectures on matters of public concern, interviews hapless relatives of the victims to make ‘story’ out of their mental anguish.
Blogger News Network makes the important point that genuine journalists who stick to principles need to speak out:
However, the traditional media both in Print and TV in India are conspicuous by their silence on either reporting about the dispute or analysing the implications. Are they showing their solidarity with a fellow jouranalist? or Are they afraid that Barkha Dutt or NDTV would launch a legal attack on them also?
This is a time when the media persons will have to come out in their support to certain principles of Journalism. If they think that “Freedom of Expression” is only for them and not for the others, they will be seen as hypocrites. Hope there are still some genuine Journalsits around who stick to principles who will come out in support of the bloggers.
Venkatesh Sridhar wonders whether NDTV or Barkha Dutt would one day tell us why:
Can you answer to the people of India, why did you take such a step?
A responsible media channel always apologizes for the mistakes it did. I mean, I do not respect FOX News as many people in their right minds dont, but I respect the fact that FOX News admitted it made a mistake by calling Florida in favour of George Bush during the 2000 US Presidential Elections.
So Barkha, on a future episode of We the People, can we debate on why cant Indian media man up to its mistakes?
Giridhar echoes a growing sentiment- boycott NDTV or its advertisers:
While I will defend your right to say something on TV, you can not gag my right to free speech. If I do not like a newspaper, I will not buy it. If I do not like a TV channel, I will not watch it. But, this time, I will go further. For my part, I am going to watch NDTV from today, not for their content but for the advertisements on it. I am not going to buy any products that are advertised on NDTV. I will switch brands to a different company that does not advertise on NDTV.
Ashutosh has some simple, practical advice for NDTV- I hope they read it. I wish he’d written it earlier and they’d read it earlier.
Also, the last line quoted by Ms. Dutt (assuming it is Ms. Dutt) is in her own words, utter and total rubbish. Nobody can disallow anyone else to spout as much rubbish about someone as they want on the Internet. In response, nobody then stops the concerned party from responding as vociferously and clearly as they want. Barkha Dutt could have started a whole blog named “Lies That Chetan Kunte Told You: Setting The Record Straight” and it would have been fine and in fact very much in the spirit of the Internet. The Internet is precisely the vehicle for expressing all kinds of opinions. It’s simple; if Kunte’s allegations were baseless, then NDTV could have easily exposed them by providing some details. If not, then they wisely could have just kept quiet. But by serving him some ridiculous notice, they have simply done the most undiplomatic and unworthy thing that they can.
Wasted feels someone needs to explain the meaning of ‘double standards’ and ‘free speech’ to both NDTV and Barkha Dutt:
Linked by kuffir. Join Blogbharti facebook group.I agree Chyetanya Kunte’s post ‘Shoddy-Journalism‘ was not really professional and lacked facts, but it said nothing to evoke the kind of action that was taken by petty NDTV folks and Ms. Dutt. The apology surely stinks of the double standards that both the entities (NDTV & Dutt) reak of and presents the Indian Media in a new light.