Observing Television – A Blog on Broadcast Media

The definition of what is news seems to be changing thanks to television in India. In Media Schools one teaches that news is about facts, opinions are not to be given to your audience or readers. The reader should rather figure out his own opinion on the subject based on the facts given. However, with a need to get more viewers channels have been trying many new methods. One of them has been editorialising i.e. giving your own opinion on a subject. Obviously, opinions have their own bias. Even newspapers have started giving their opinion on a subject. Ten years back when I had undergone training in Broadcast Journalism from UK, the teachers there had warned us of times when everybody would be aware of their legal rights. Defamation and libelous cases, we were told would be the order of the day. No doubt all of us today are aware of our legal rights. We know what is defamatory or libelous. But given that we need to somehow get the audience to see our own news channels… many of us cross the legal and at times the ethical line to ensure that the audience sees the programmes. Many times the channels are successful, but other times they leave their audience with a bad taste in their mouth.

The current economic growth in India is fuelled by the country’s advancement in the area of Information Technology fields. There is still a huge demand for skilled personnel in the area of IT. Not surprisingly even freshers get a good pay package. Further the BPO sector (commonly known as call centres) are giving many opportunities to those looking for jobs. The skills required in this sector are basic but once again the returns are decent. Not surprisingly, in states like Andhra Pradesh (A southern Indian state) lesser number of people are opting for television as a career.

Television Journalism offers fame, an opportunity to meet whos who in the world, a promise to be able to make a difference and a satisfying job. However, it offers good money only to those who are very good in their work and are ready to put in hardwork. Thanks to the fact that there are over 300 television channels and the other media sectors are also opening up in this country job opportunities are many in the media field as well. Even the govt. has recognised the worth of professionals in this field. Well known television personalities such as Rajdeep Sardesai and Barkha Dutt have been awarded Padma Shri (a very respected national award given to individuals who have done well in their respective fields.)

So which is the job field a fresher should choose. The answer may not be easy, however, for the person who not only wants to make a career but also a good name through his efforts, journalism is the way out.

This is a dilemma that is being faced by many News Channels in India Today. With 24 hours in a day to cover, news often becomes a tough proposition. Many times, entertainment programmes are used to fill the time. In fact many Hindi channels also try to cover news in an entertaining way. However, such news items may become sensational or controversial. Imagination is allowed to run wild not only to stretch a particular story but also blow it out of proportion. Nearly a year back one particular news channel covered the personal story of a professor who had decided to marry his own student. Obviously his first wife was up in arms. A channel decided to barge into the house of the professor with his first wife and caught him with his new love. The professor in his defence brought in a new definition of love. The channel followed this event which motivated the professor’s first wife and her relatives to behave very strangely in front of the camera. Not only was the student beaten up, the professor’s face was blackened and handed over to the police. What could have been just a couple minutes story was converted into a half an hour programme. By the old school of thought the story wasn’t worth covering. At best it deserved just a minute. The new school of thought however, aims to look for subjects which evoke curiosity. No more is the on air time considered precious. The more the story is stretched the better it is to fill in the time.

Many believe Broadcast Journalism and Television Journalism are one and the same. Let us take a close look at this. Logically Broadcast should contain both Radio and Television since both signals are broadcast. Radio programmes are still broadcast however, in television we use a specific word for transmission viz. telecast. However, journalism for both the media together should logically be called Broadcast Journalism. When it comes to these media, people work not only as Reporters or Editors but also as Production people. In a mass communication or media course today the journalist is not only taught how to report but also how to handle the camera and edit pictures (video) and sound. I have hence included lessons on shooting visuals i.e directing the cameraman as part of the course. Once again scripting is very different to writing for print. Not only will the visuals need to be represented one has to ensure to write for visuals. The interviews conducted for television whether for a sound bite purpose or as a face to face (one to one) interview also have some technical aspects to be kept in mind.

www.tvjournalist.net has recently been revamped with many new features. To make the site better and more useful a token sum of money is being charged for the different available courses.

New teachers and specialised courses would be added in the days to come. I expect the enthusiastic response from the students interested in the subject to continue.

Cheers,
A. Ravi Shankar