I was religiously going through all the reports to update, to educate myself on the issue but I found most of them pushing me to approach their printed matter with distrust. Wasn’t the British poet and satirist Samuel Butler right here when he said that the most important service rendered by the press was that of educating people to approach the printed matter with distrust or the essayist novelist George Orwell who once commented that early in life he had noticed that no event was ever correctly reported in newspaper?

Irrespective of what they said what the journalists in most of the leading newspapers in Bihar wrote about were the brays and bleats but, not the roars.

For them, it appeared, journalism is a profession which usually thrives on euphemisms and ellipsis. What they forgot was that a journalist lives principally for his stories—and a story is a story which has to have its own voice, force and piercing truth.

I must confess here that in journalism though many start, few stay.

The innocence of fart too must stink for those spraying smell in our social fabric.

When a news portal quietly practicing journalism for over the last one decade keeping pace with the changing times and tenors: Bihar Times, as it is named first posted the story on how a junior professor was appointed as the Vice Chancellor of the upcoming Nalanda International University [NIU] with an enviously fat some of salary [over five lakh each month], the so called mainstream media in Bihar blissfully ignored the story.

For ten days the story ran unnoticed by the self-professed bearded and not so bearded senior journalists. They chose to be in their comfort zone sitting on pouf with all the routine, government release kind of journalism.

Yeoman Service!

But, when a Hindi newspaper journalist got himself convinced with the story during a casual talk he was successful in convincing his editor too with the true potential of it and the next day Dainik Jagran had a side lead story on the raging issue. The story expectedly forced others to take notice—and, that forced the sozzled journos in their comfy zones to scratch their beard and hair on head.

By that time the impact of the story has reached to those ears who were the mentors and their mendacious meetings in foreign shores. They soon came out of their joyous slumber and pressed the numbers of their men in media. The genuflecting lot jotted down what they were told with full commas and semi-colons.

What if they chose to miss both: the facts and the deadline which are the two cardinal truths of every newsroom in the world? Gone are the days when journalists were losing jobs when they did not genuflect before these two unforgiving principles of their vocation.

Popes of piffle soon involved in damage control.

Some chose to ignore, while others vomited verbatim.

Sun apparently turned pale even in east when one senior journalist always pretending to be in self-professed amnesia wrote a full eight column story in his newly Bihar born daily with all the zeal and determination of an Assam rhino. He wrote all the story based on what madam Madonna of the story reportedly told him.

Sorry to say with all my due respect and humility to him, it smacked puke. Putrid. Never ever even in my dream I’d have expected such a plant in paper under his byline.

May be some personal compulsion, as they whispered from behind!

The very next the same space was gleefully grabbed by none but his bureau head. With equal length and line he too pushed hard to show his loyal form lashed with quotes…and quotes..and quotes again.

But, where was the story, sir? Well, that he hasn’t written ever, whispered the invisible man from behind again.

The other rival dailies too merrily followed the footsteps and did what they could best do oblivious to the facts. It appeared as if they were competing to outsmart each other in who could better cover-up or who could better make-up..or, who could best lubricate the stick of one in their company’s board.

The other two Hindi newspapers woke up late when the morning sun was overhead. The sun was stabbing in the face so they remained glued to their cozy ignorant bliss and washed off their hand from their professional ethics by carrying the story for a routine sake.

It was, however, the local news channels, portals and independent bloggers who rose to the occasion and practiced what they were meant for. What former journalist K K Singh did was the real Gonzo journalism—full disclosure journalism.

Many in mainstream may cast a doubtful spell on K K Singh’s journalistic career but as far as I remember he never ever was such ignorant and Ostrich like the others referred above. If he hadn’t roared, he even didn’t brayed or bleated.

Salute to this sexagenarian Singh---or, Singham of Bihar journalism! We wish many more to tumble out from your professional cupboard and experience.

The private new channels, though late, but picked up the story and did their best to send the story across. Some made special reports, some ran the full story.

For correct news and views watch the private news channels in Bihar today, than to read local dailies. They are sounding not only true but even look truthfully unbiased.

However, the man who did not lose any opportunity to take credit of making an ambitious International University at Nalanda has been keeping mum except throwing the ball in Centre’s court.

Though, he met the former President and the man who had first visualized the NIU in 2006 Dr APJ Abdul Kalam in Delhi recently to woo him back in the scheme but last heard, he returned disappointed.

A team of flamboyant intellectuals of international repute processing..err, professing on the directives of an equally flashy intellectual bureaucrat sometime muddle your project, sir! Because, when you do nothing, eventually you become nothing.

Keep watching and maintain safe distance on the road of Nalanda. Some dangerous curves are ahead.

And, for our media friends what should I say in my final words except to quote the third president of United States, Thomas Jefferson: “The man who reads nothing at all is better educated than the man who reads nothing, but newspapers”.

Try your best not to fall in Jefferson’s kind of newspaper as time only moves in one direction and things—in your case the persons in power---keep changing.

Coincidentally, I’m also a journalist from a national newspaper who blissfully chose not to write even a single sentence on this story.

Guess why!...yes, you’re right ….!!! Pls do the dots as you like.

I’m tired now.

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Disclaimer: The views expressed in this report are purely those of the author and may not in any circumstances be regarded as the official view of BiharTimes.

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Amarnath , your piece in Bihar Times, under the headline, " The NU controversy: Role of Media in Bihar", referring the harakari of national print and elecronic media and their journalists on the controversy on ambitous Nalanda University! Why should we blame poor journalists like us, you and me also-we now have become poor wage earners, worst than coolies, who still have dignity?Days of freedom of press and expression and journalists' ethics have become matter of past! Now it is proprietors of media and power-that-be through out the country shape the news and views-and now the Mudrocisation of media in the entire world has made the situation worse throughout the globe. Less said about journalism, freedom of press and expression is better because things have changed and now the entire media except a few have become tools of serving enlightened self-interests in the globe particularly in India. The case of Bihar is entirely different as "undeclared censorship on media " is vigorously programmed by the Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and his government in the last six years!
You have praised me a lot. I do not deserve this much .But one thing in my life is still there even after my retirement from active journalism and currently working as freelance jiurnalist that I cannot tolerate injustice, exploitation, feudalism-these things have been the motto of life and adopting journalists' ethics in service and outside the service. My such attitude has created many foes among profession s , journalist friends and political class throughout my journalism career . These things are not leaving me even I being an ignored man and sidelined man these days! One thing my principle to help fellow journalists in t rouble has perhaps harmed me enough-but I do not care and believe in the principles of Geeta, ramayan, Bhagwat puran, Kuran, Bible and other scriptures like Upanishads etc and to help even unfriendly people, who come to you for help. In my active journalism career-I have helped journalists in trouble- I have helped them on many scores (I do not want to disclose)but to day I must tell you one thing like helping many of Bihar journalist friends eve n in their deeds and particularly misdeeds like bride burning case involvement of one of the journalist friend during Laloo Prasad regime-he is now a free man tioday, thanks to Laloo and today looks me with contempt! I do not want to tell you more and more stories on this score-just I raised the matter because you have written that many of journalists had been raising fingers on my professional efficieny and integrity! Please excuse me if I have hurt you or any journalist friends just I am a simple man living obscurely in one of the corners and writing more and more, reading more and more, and praying to Almighty more and more

KKsingh

blog www.kksingh1.blogspot.com