Godi Media

A poster at the Farmers’ Protest in NCR. picture by Aditya Varier for Newslaundry

With the increasing reach and affordability of technology, media has benefitted in terms of growth, as more and more digital platforms facilitate and foster it. The status quo reach of the media shows that mainstream media has expanded to social media exponentially, and now it's as if one is incomplete without the other. With more people on social media, marginalised communities now have a much required and relatively more open space to put forth their opinions and contribute to the existing political, social and economic environment.

But let us not forget, that while these new platforms of media, in collaboration with the original ones, do give more people accessibility to media, to news, we cannot overlook the cost at which this is happening.

Fostering certain individuals’ and communities’ opinions and helping materialize political stances has also had its disadvantages every time that media of any form has been manipulative, prejudiced, or point-blank biased. Its disadvantages have become blatantly visible every time we see members of society being targeted by the media, through what we call media trials. It has had a terrible consequence for justice in our society, and for those who have been socially and systematically persecuted.

When it comes to acts of public persecution, Godi media can always be seen at the front lines. A pejorative term coined by NDTV journalist Ravish Kumar, Godi media can be identified as the Indian rendition of the Lapdog Theory of Journalism at play (deriving from the Hindi term ‘Godi’ meaning “lap”). The terminology is a play on journalists’ self-acquired “watchdog” responsibility. This model implies that news media often share the agenda of the society’s elites, supporting and perpetuating the exploitation and social inequalities on which they profit.

Three assumptions that can be made to summarise this theory are; first, the news media display a lack of independent power, being reliant upon government, corporate and elite sources for both information and economic support. Second, journalists show neither understanding nor interest in the opinions, attitudes and information requirements of any other group other than those of society’s elite establishment. Third, and consequently, the news media are characterized by a consistent argumentative and political bias. This bias benefits these social and corporate authorities to the extent that they appear to act as their trained pooch. In some theorists’ views, this deference amounts to a total submission to authority.

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The disadvantages of this kind of media that I intend to imply here are seen when political parties and stalwarts poison the streams and flows of free and unbiased speech with adulterated and defiled information in order to create a mass public opinion, by presenting false facts.

We must not forget that for those in power, the greatest weapon is the united thought of the people. Corrupting media houses and spreading fake news gives them the power to control public opinion, the power to control the united thought of the people.

Here, ownership of media houses plays a huge role. Ownership maintains the freedom of the press. Political and/or business affiliations on media houses lead to stifled and compromised media, the signs of an unhealthy and unfit democracy. As we see for an innumerable number of media houses, stakes and investments are often linked to either political parties or big corporates. Taking the case of our very own NDTV, as of 2015, owners Radhika Roy and Pranoy Roy who collectively hold 31.9% of the stakes have personal familial relations with politicians Brinda Karat of CPI. Corporation Oswal Green Tech, which holds 14.7% stakes in the channel, is run by Abhey Kumar Oswal, who is the father-in-law of Congress MP Naveen Jindal.

Article 19(1)(a) of the Indian Constitution secures to every citizen the freedom of speech and expression. The Indian Penal Code, Section 153A criminalizes promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc., and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony. Section 295A criminalizes deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings or any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs.

Here, the state guarantees us, promises us not only the right to free speech, but also regulation of formal speech and expression in order to ensure that no single individual, group of individuals, organization, community is deliberately scrutinized, slandered, defamed and/or libeled. In order to ensure regulation of media with respect to these laws, the Press Council of India was established under the PCI Act of 1978 for the purpose of preserving the freedom of the press and of maintaining and improving the standards of newspapers and news agencies in India.

We must not mistake the mere existence of an organization to be an indication of its functioning. Do not mistake the mere existence of laws to be an indication of their efficient implementation. The government has deeply entrenched itself into the media of our nation. I say to you, do not mistake the criticism and propagation prejudices against the minorities as an exercise of free speech.

Actions of Godi media are more evident when media houses tend to pick on certain individuals or communities, and character assassinate other individuals or communities, for personal agendas. Gaslighting marginalized communities and making sure they remain suppressed and voiceless is something that is very iconic of the mainstream media, and this is a straight fact regardless of any sort of opinion. All we see anymore are prime-time 'debates' that depict artificial passion and clickbait topics and titles in order to sway the public, because after all, TRP is still a thing.

I would now like to staunchly point out, that in honor of all those who have seized media as an opportune platform to fight the systematic oppression that tries its best to put them down, it would be unfair to not acknowledge how the growth of media has benefited our society. In honor of all the individuals, communities and organizations out there, who and which have taken to these platforms to stand their ground and fight the instances where the media in itself poses to be the judge, the jury and the prosecution, we must acknowledge the role of media in amplifying their voices, and fighting the fourth pillar of democracy.

The media has been absolutely sold out to those in power, as it storms people with opinions instead of information and facts. With these publicity stunts, such as media trials that media houses conduct, we can derive that they are losing focus from their primary goal.

Let us not forget that the media is supposed to spread unbiased facts and help the public form an opinion, not force one down them.

by : Tanmay Singh