Author: Sangeeta Pranvendra
Publication Year: 2013
Keywords: thesis
Abstract: India is land of the Gandhi and Buddha. Peace and non-violence are historically a part of India's cultural ethos. The Indian people have cultivated and practiced tolerance and unity in diversity and pluralism. At the same time India has a history of terror. It has a history of violence, intolerance and bloodshed. Independent India was born out of violence and blood-shed.
Terror is as much a part of India's collective psyche as non-violence. From North to South and from East to West India bears scars of terrorism. Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir, North East States, and Southern states have faced the ravages of terror and violence.
It is evident over the decades that terrorism is a potential threat to India's unity, harmony and peace. This is turn affects the country's development as it puts pressure on India's human and material resources. It poses a multi-dimensional threat to all that is best in contemporary India.
Terrorism is a criminal act that influences an audience beyond the immediate victim. The strategy of terrorists is to commit acts of violence that draws the attention of the local populace, the government, and the world to their cause. The terrorists plan their attack to obtain the greatest publicity, choosing targets that symbolize what they oppose. The effectiveness of the terrorist act lies not in the act itself, but in the public's or government's reaction to the act.
This purpose of the terrorist is fulfilled with the help of Media. Media has always covered terrorism in a very proactive manner. It is an undisputed fact that coverage of terrorist attacks has always been a priority with media. To understand this one needs to understand the basic similarity between the media and the terrorist: both need an audience for the fulfillment of their goals. The terrorist needs the media for propagation of its aims and the media coverage of terrorist activities has always resulted in enhancement of its viewership and circulation.
Since its birth, nearly two hundred years ago, the print media in India has largely been a mirror of the hopes and aspirations, fears and anxieties, interests and concerns of the people. It has been associated with all struggles and movements and causes aimed at promoting their welfare. Similarly it has always covered terror and terrorist activities in the country. This coverage has been analytical, factual and put concerns of the nation first. Coverage of terrorism has always raised issues of national security and analysed India's foreign policy and foreign relations.
With time came television; and for the last decade and half the airwaves are dominated by a large number of television channels. Television gave a new dimension to the coverage of terrorist activities. It practically delivered the horrific visuals of terrorist attacks into every home. This brought a new dimension into the coverage of terrorist activities. It created an environment where the common man became a witness to the largest and minutest ravage caused by a terrorist attack. It also had a much larger audience compared to the newspaper because of a very simple reason; while the newspaper needs the basic requirement of a literate reader, the television has no such limitation and so the television coverage of terrorism could reach out and affect the sections of Indian society that newspaper has still not been able to cover.
The moving pictures and accompanying sounds are capable of stirring emotions and developing opinions more swiftly than the newspaper.
The current media scenario where terrorist activities are covered by both television and print media is very different from what it was around two decades ago. The viewer is no longer dependent for a once in a day cycle before he gets a fresh lot of information from the newspaper. The 24-hr satellite news channels are a constant source of information; as and when it happens. It is literally a blow by blow account with accounts of the heroes and martyrs. It makes the audience a part of the defeats and victories of the affected, identify with their pain and also develops in the audience an opinion of what it expects from the country's political leadership.
This gives rise to a lot of criticism of the media. More harsh criticism is directed towards television. There is always the debate as to where should the media stop, how much coverage is justified, how deep to delve and how much to divulge; these issues are now a part of intellectual and governmental discourse.
They became more discussed and debated after the Mumbai attack on 26th November 2008. Commonly known as 26/11, the 59 hour attacked shook the nation in terms of the quantum of coverage, its indepth coverage and persistent followup. It was probably the first terrorist attack in the country that caused heads to roll. The country's Home Minister, Maharashtra's Chief Minister and Deputy CM were removed from office. The coverage of the attack brought to fore; in front of a live audience; shortcomings regarding decision-making and emergency response system in the country. It also brought about talk of setting up a government regulator and speeded up the self regulation initiatives for the television news channels. In this context it becomes all the more necessary to study bout the media coverage of 26/11.
The research undertaken is titled: Media and Coverage of Terrorist Activities: A
Case Study of 26/11. The aim of this research is to investigate into various aspects of the 26/11 coverage in media. The researcher will investigate into the various factors that guided the direction of the coverage. The researcher will also investigate the pulse of the media industry regarding coverage of 26/11.
This thesis is divided into Nine chapters.
Chapter 1 defines the nature of the study undertaken and gives a complete overview of the concept of the research. The chapter will also elaborate and elucidate on the methodology of the research.
Chapter 2 elaborates on the media scenario in India
Chapter 3 takes a detailed look at the media laws in the country. It also undertakes an assessment of media ethics.
Chapter 4 details out the concept of terrorism, beginning with the issues related to defining terrorism, various academic and organizational definitions of terrorism and need for a universal definition of terrorism. A study of the terrorism typology will also be undertaken. Further It will research into the media and terrorism relation and understand its finer nuances.
Chapter 5 will discuss the major terrorist attacks in India in the new century.
Chapter 6 will be an overview to the 26/11 attack. It will study the chronology of the attack, Icasualtiesand Review of Literature.
Chapter 7 will be research findings regarding the coverage of 26/11 conducted among the audiences. It will seek answers to what people thought about the coverage. It will basically be an assessment of the people who were the consumers of the media coverage.
Chapter 8 will be research findings regarding the coverage of 26/11 conducted among the editors and reporters who covered the attack. It will seek answers to what was the thrust of the coverage, what were their considerations during the coverage and in their opinion how justified were the allegations that were leveled against them. It will basically be an assessment of the media players who were reporting the terrorist to the public.
Chapter 9 will highlight the trends in media regarding coverage of terrorist activities. It will also provide suggestions that come from within the media industry for self-regulation. It will understand, through the stalwarts of media, the views of the media regarding coverage of terrorism and why they feel it is necessary. It will also elucidate on the checks and balances they have proposed and implemented after 26/11.
Guide: Bhanawat, Sanjeev
University: University of Rajasthan
Shodh Ganga Link: View Thesis
Category: Media Studies
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