Is the media biased? This isn’t a question anymore. Media being the fourth pillar of the constitution is supposed to strengthen our democracy, put forward the issues of the public at large. Now they are just TRP hounding prime time TV serials, much like WWE, scripted. But due to the nature of the show it manages to attract audiences, resulting in soaring TRPs.
Covid-19 not only highlighted the discrepancy of our social sector such as health, labour welfare, disaster management, etc. but also showed how negligent media houses are toward the people and the issues affecting the common man. Prime time news has converted into a debate show that is not at all civil.
It is not like there aren’t any real issues to talk about. The labour migration tragedy, suspension of labour laws, soaring unemployment, sinking GDP, the rising communal tensions, spiking curve of Covid-19, farmer suicides, etc. These are issues every ordinary Indian is subjected to.
But our news channels are more interested in the Sushant Singh Rajput case, which is sub judice and will be decided by due process of law. Media houses aren’t the trial court; they don’t have the right to violate the fundamental essence of the justice system, i.e. innocent until proven guilty. What happened with Kangana is wrong and it needs space in news coverage, but that doesn’t mean that it’s more important than the problem of the common man.
Media houses are like the junk food cart on the roadside, it’s unhealthy, but we are hooked to it because it’s serving things hot and spicy. Even though it is killing us slowly we can’t stop. In this case they are destroying the very fabric of our democracy on prime time.