Media Matters-2: "Can anyone become a journalist?"

This column was published in Khaleej Times yesterday:

CAN ANYONE BECOME A JOURNALIST?

By Ramesh Prabhu

More than 30 years ago I got my start as a journalist at a small fortnightly newspaper in Mumbai. I was fresh out of college, with a B.Sc. degree in chemistry and botany (I had obtained a first class in the final exam; Mumbai University had even thought it fit to award me a gold medal in botany).

The fortnightly was called Marine Times. Here, over a short period in early 1981, I learnt something about reporting and interviewing while doing my rounds of the city’s shipping companies. I also picked up a few production techniques at the private press where the paper was put together.

Two months on, I felt my stint at Marine Times had done its job as an appetiser. Now it was time to sink my teeth into something more substantial: Mid Day.

Mid Day was the most popular evening paper in the city at the time and was home to some of the best journalists in the city. At Mid Day, which took me on as a trainee sub-editor in June 1981, I got thrown into the deep end. And was I ecstatic! I felt energised by the snap-crackle-fizz of the newsroom. I did everything I was told, and more. I worked days. I worked nights. I was hooked.

Why am I telling you all this now? Because more than 30 years ago anyone could become a journalist, even someone who did not have any academic qualifications for the job. Even someone with just a science degree.

In my case, though, it helped that my father was a journalist who worked with a news agency, PTI, for most of his career. (Marine Times, where I got my start, was owned by a colleague of his.) From the time I can remember, newspapers were an important part of the morning routine at home. When he returned from work, my father would also bring with him the evening tabloids as well as some magazines. One of my favourite memories is of lying in bed and poring over the latest issue of India Today or Time. There would always be a few books lying around too. Reading became second nature to me; it felt as natural as breathing. And it still does.

So why am I telling you this now? Because even today anyone, with a little bit of effort, can become a journalist. But to become a good journalist, in addition to having the right educational qualifications (more on that in a future column), you will need to keep in mind Prabhu’s Two Laws of Intention.

HABIT-FORMING: It is called a "daily" for a reason. PHOTO: MATHANGI IYER

The First Law of Intention states that you should be obsessed with news. Don’t just read one newspaper. Read as many as you can lay your hands on. And don’t just read. Read closely. Magazines, news websites. On your phone. On your laptop. On Facebook even. Sign up for news alerts. Get a Twitter account. Follow the best journalists in the world. Watch the news on TV. Be aware of what’s happening around you. For one thing, that’s how you get story ideas. Second, you get to learn from the experts how to structure your stories. And you get a bonus in the form of an enhanced ability to make intelligent conversation even with people you have just met and get them to warm up to you. That’s a wonderful talent to have in your armoury when you’re trying to prise important information out of your sources.

Prabhu’s Second Law of Intention states that you should be in love with words. Whether you are a reporter or a sub-editor (and especially if you are a sub-editor), your language skills should be first-rate. You should be a wizard with words. Only then will readers stay glued to what you have conjured up; only then will they read from beginning to end what you have worked so hard to write or edit. As I noted in an article I wrote last year for the 35th anniversary issue of Khaleej Times, “Indifferent writing breeds indifferent readers. Quality writing attracts readers of all kinds.”

An obsession with news; a devotion to words. If you aspire to be a journalist, there’s no better way to rise... and shine.

THINK ABOUT IT: “In the English language, it all comes down to this: Twenty-six letters, when combined correctly, can create magic. Twenty-six letters form the foundation of a free, informed society.”  ― American journalist and non-fiction writer John Grogan, author of Marley & Me

·        Ramesh Prabhu is professor of journalism at Commits Institute of Journalism & Mass Communication, Bangalore. Commits offers a full-time two-year MA degree course.
·        “Media Matters” welcomes questions from readers who would like to know more about careers in journalism. Please send in your queries to education@khaleejtimes.com.

• ALSO READ: Media Matters-1: "There is no job like journalism".

"There is no job like journalism" — Media Matters, my new fortnightly column in Dubai's Khaleej Times

The inaugural "Media Matters" column:

THERE IS NO JOB LIKE JOURNALISM

By Ramesh Prabhu

JOURNALISM is the world's best profession.

I believed that when I first became a trainee sub-editor in 1981.

I believed that when, after more than 20 years as a journalist in Mumbai, Dubai, and Bangalore, I was given a golden opportunity to give back to the profession as a journalism teacher at a media college in India’s Silicon Valley.

And I believe that even today as I revel in the joys of journalism when sharing my experiences with my students, year after glorious year.

Of course, I am not the first person to assert that journalism is the best job in the world. The credit for that goes to the late Gabriel Garcia Marquez, whose essay on the subject has been shared and re-shared multiple times on the Internet.

Nobel laureate Garcia Marquez, the author of the much-loved classics One Hundred Years of Solitude and Love in the Time of Cholera, knew what he was talking about. After all, he had got his start as a journalist in his native Colombia many years before anyone outside his home town had even heard of him. By 1997, when he wrote that illuminating essay, he had become a global phenomenon, but he did not forget his debt to journalism. Here is a telling excerpt from his final paragraph:

No one who does not have this in his blood can comprehend its magnetic hold…. No one who has not had this experience can begin to grasp the extraordinary excitement stirred by the news, the sheer elation created by the first fruits of an endeavour….

No one has put it better.

Today, I consider myself extremely lucky to be able to spend quality time with young media aspirants, many of whom have since forged successful careers in newspapers, television channels, and magazines, both in India and abroad.

I absolutely love what I do. Every year I now get to interact with — and learn from — a fresh batch of students. And I think I am a much better journalist today because my students keep me on my toes with their questions; in order to do a good job of the answers, I am constantly updating my knowledge base.

I also love books, music, films — in fact, almost every form of popular culture — and it’s fascinating for me to be able to discuss what I read, listen to, and watch with Gen Next.

I must add a few words here about how technology helps the faculty-student interaction. I use e-mail to send my course material in advance so that the students can prepare for debate and discussion in my class. I also alert them via e-mail to interesting articles and links. And I publish two blogs. One is The Commits Chronicle, which takes a close look at happenings in the college and on student activities. The second blog, The Reading Room, focuses on reading, writing, and journalism.

Facebook is a big help — I use it as a distance education tool and my status messages are mostly about something important in the books I have read and on news articles that I want future journalists to read. And I upload pictures that my students may find interesting; of course, I write an appropriate caption for every photograph because caption-writing is a skill which I aim to teach in class as part of the journalism course.

Facebook has other productive uses, too: when I took part in a charity run in Bangalore (four times so far) to raise funds for an NGO that works with underprivileged children, I used my status messages as regular event alerts in the hope that at the right time in their lives my students will give serious thought to helping disadvantaged communities.

All this is by way of introducing myself and this new fortnightly column on the joys of journalism. In the coming weeks and months, with the help of “Media Matters,” I hope to enthuse my readers into taking up journalism as a career. Why? Because it is the best job in the world.

THINK ABOUT IT: "Four hostile newspapers are to be feared more than a thousand bayonets" – Napoleon Bonaparte

·    Ramesh Prabhu is professor of journalism at Commits Institute of Journalism & Mass Communication, Bangalore. Commits offers a full-time two-year MA degree course.
·    “Media Matters” welcomes questions from readers who would like to know more about careers in journalism. Please send in your queries to rd.prabhu@gmail.com.

• ALSO READ: "The future of newspaper journalism", my piece in the 35th anniversary issue of Khaleej Times.

Even outsize personalities suffer from anxiety on the eve of a job change

Take Piers Morgan, the often controversial and always-in-the-news British journalist. As he writes in the opening chapter of his most recent book, on June 15, 2010, he stood on the threshold of the biggest moment of his career:

I ran two British national newspapers for eleven years, judged TV talent shows on both sides of the Atlantic, won Donald Trump's inaugural Celebrity Apprentice, and currently host Britain's most popular TV interview show. But right now, all of this seems like chicken feed compared to what I may be about to do — replace the great Larry King at CNN in America.

And was he nervous? You bet! Later in the chapter, Morgan writes about the meeting he had set up with NBC president Jeff Zucker, to whom Morgan had sent an e-mail pleading to be relieved of his duties as a judge on the network's America's Got Talent so that he could go to CNN. Zucker wrote back to Morgan: "Come and see me to discuss your future."

Morgan writes:

So I boarded a flight from London... landed at 8 p.m. in New York, and had a fitful night's sleep.

At midday [the next day], I stumbled down to gulp oceans of wake-up coffee at the hotel with my manager, John Ferriter.

He was bullish about the meeting with Zucker in two hours.

'I don't think he'd fly you over here just to say no. But he's going to want you to dance for your dinner. How are you feeling?'

'Nervous, but excited.'

And there you have it. So why do we ordinary mortals worry when we suffer from a little nervousness on the eve of a job interview, or just before going up on stage to deliver a speech, or even on the day before a class presentation? It's perfectly normal.

By the way, Zucker permits Morgan to go over to CNN but only on condition that he continues to do America's Got Talent as well. Read the book to learn how Morgan manages to juggle two elephantine assignments, both of which require him to think on his feet and at the same time be ready to jump on a plane and head out to a shoot at moment's notice.

Among the many fascinating things we learn from reading Shooting Straight is how Morgan got Oprah Winfrey to agree to be one of his first guests on Piers Morgan Live.

I was working out in the Beverly Wilshire gym [in the morning] — I live at the hotel when I'm in L.A. — when I saw Radha Arora, the flamboyant general manager who has transformed the place in spectacular style over the past few years.

'Who's going to be your first guest?' he asked.

'Not sure yet. I'm trying for President Obama, but I suspect it's highly unlikely he'll do the show until he's seen what it's like.'

'What about Oprah?'

'She'd be incredible, but I don't know her, or any of her people, and she doesn't give many interviews.'

'Oprah's best friend, Gayle King, is in town right now. Why don't you ask her?'

I sent an email:

Dear Gayle,

I believe our mutual friend Radha has warned you that I may be in touch. As you may know, I'm replacing Larry King on CNN.

What you may not know is that I am a stupendous fan of Oprah. And I'm desperate to interview her for my launch week.

I know she's the busiest woman on the planet, but I want to know how I can make this happen. Short of parasailing naked onto the roof of the White House, I'm prepared to do anything.

She replied quickly: 'I will certainly let team Oprah know of your interest. Please don't show up at the White House naked, you may be shot and that might hurt.'

This e-mail exchange took place on September 12, 2010.

Two months later, on December 22, after many more attempts to get through to Oprah, Morgan receives an e-mail from Oprah's publicist, who writes from Australia:

'We're happy to confirm Oprah has agreed to be your opening guest.'

WHAT A COUP! OPRAH AND PIERS MORGAN

What do we learn from all this? Even outsize personalities can get nervous; even outsize personalities need to put in a big effort to make things happen at work. So there is no need to feel overawed by the task at hand, no matter how important it is; just get down to it and you will be able to get it done.

Learn from the best source on the planet how photography, art, and journalism go together

I have just discovered "Proof", National Geographic’s new "online photography experience". It was launched, the editors say, to engage ongoing conversations about photography, art, and journalism. There's more:

In addition to featuring selections from the magazine and other publications, books, and galleries, this site will offer new avenues for our audience to get a behind-the-scenes look at the National Geographic storytelling process.

I can't think of a better way for media students and practitioners to learn how to take pictures and understand what kind of pictures will go with the stories they are working on. Brinda Das, Nikita Sinha (Class of 2015) — remember the conversation we had on this subject a couple of days ago? Check out Proof now.

• I especially recommend "Why it Took Me Eight Years to Photograph My Own Backyard", a masterpiece of story structure (see how the author makes use of the e-mails he exchanged with his editor) and extraordinary photographs of ordinary, everyday scenes.

• ALSO READ: "When you have two hours to shoot ace director James Cameron for a National Geographic magazine cover, how do you do it?"

"Canada’s CBC News Shows What Thoughtful Breaking News Coverage Really Looks Like"

There's so much some of our news channels can learn from Canada's CBC News.

And there's so much media aspirants can learn from reading this explanatory post on Mediabistro's "TVNewser" section by American TV journalist Mark Joyella:

As I watched via the network’s live stream in New York, I never heard a second of dramatic music, never saw a full-screen wipe with a catchy graphic like TERROR ON PARLIAMENT HILL, and never, ever heard [veteran anchor Peter] Mansbridge or any of the CBC’s reporters dip even a toe into the waters of self-promotion.

Compare that to the American cable news networks, where we’ve come to expect that every prime time newscast will begin with urgent music and BREAKING NEWS–complete with multiple on-screen reminders that this is BREAKING NEWS of great importance. CBC’s coverage was, well, very Canadian. And to the nervous system of an American observer of TV news, it was decidedly strange to experience.

Mansbridge, in sharp contrast to the frenetic, breathless delivery we’ve come to expect from American news anchors in times of breaking news (including stories of far less significance than the attacks in Canada), was thoughtful, took his time, and seemed at times to pause, and to consider his words before speaking. Just. Imagine. That.

Read the post in its entirety here.

• ALSO READ: "Canada's Coverage of the Ottawa Shootings Put American Cable News to Shame".

 ***

QUINTESSENTIALLY CANADIAN

• My good friend and former Khaleej Times colleague Shagorika Easwar, who now lives in Toronto, commented via e-mail:

There really is a lot news channels can learn from the CBC. Easwar [Shagorika's husband] and I have long thought so and it's good have our views endorsed!

Seriously, though, it's a great public broadcaster, sane, balanced, and none of the shrill, hyperventilating that goes on in the name of news coverage on some channels.

PETER MANSBRIDGE: THE MAN FOR THE JOB

Peter Mansbridge, of course, is god in some circles. And so, of course, he has his detractors. Senior journalists who look down upon the fact that he is not a 'trained' journalist, not even a university grad. I guess they can't believe he's raking it in while others, supposedly more qualified, are unable to find his degree of success.

There's an interesting back story, not sure if you know it, but have to share it with you. He was working as a ticket agent at the airport in Manitoba when he was pulled in to make on-air announcements because the man who was supposed to make them didn't show up. Someone from the CBC heard him and hired him on the spot for their radio service; Mansbridge was just 19. So I guess his gravitas was evident even back then!

And another fun story. Rafi, Mahmood's son, [Mahmood Mustafa is also a former Khaleej Times journalist] is a huge fan of Mansbridge. When Rafi joined the CBC, everyone got to know how he hero-worshipped Mansbridge and for his wedding, his colleagues got Mansbridge to record a video message for Rafi. You should have seen Rafi's face when they played it. The hall, full of Mansbridge fans, erupted in loud applause. And such a sweet, personal message it was, too, from a national star for someone who was then a rookie. Quintessentially Canadian.
(Shagorika Easwar is the editor of two popular magazines, Desi News and CanadaBound Immigrant.) 

Why I will be buying a copy of Vinod Mehta's new book for the college library

Excerpts from an interview with Vinod Mehta in Mint last week:

Your new book is about your years with Outlook?

No, some portions are about the magazine. There’s one chapter on Ratan Tata. Outlook had problems with him. He filed a court case following our cover story on Radia tapes (controversy). There’s a chapter on Narendra Modi and a long one on the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty. I once met Rahul Gandhi at a party at BJD (Biju Janata Dal) MP Jay Panda’s house. He was drinking Club Soda. When I told him to have some wine, he said so emphatically, “I don’t drink.” He repeated to make sure that I heard it. On another occasion, about a year ago, I found him sitting next to me. He asked me about work. I told him the famous saying that journalists, like harlots, enjoy power without responsibility, explaining my new position in the magazine. It was a little joke but he immediately pounced on that and said there’s no such thing like power without responsibility. That was lovely.

Do you have any equation with Narendra Modi?

Mr Modi and I have a very strange relationship, if I can call it that. There’s a defamation case against me in Ahmedabad that he had instituted about 10 years ago (as Gujarat’s chief minister) and it is still alive. It concerned a minister in his then cabinet called Haren Pandya, who was murdered... You see Mr Modi doesn’t interact with anybody. He has no social life, no kitchen cabinet. There’s a coterie of journalists who are very sympathetic to him, but they all are very upset at the moment because they haven’t been rewarded. Who are these journalists? I can go so far as to tell you that one of these journalists was desperately trying to become the Indian high commissioner in Britain. Mr Modi’s staunch defender, he is a very sober, moderate sort of a person, but on Modi, if you know from TV debates, he goes berserk and loses all sense of proportion. There’s another editor who had done Mr Modi’s party a great service and who runs a newspaper, but he is suddenly out of favour. He is feeling very bad. His close buddies tell me that there’s nothing he could do. Mr Modi either likes you or he doesn’t like you. There’s no convincing him to change his view. Once he doesn’t like you, you are finished.

Some people say that your magazine’s owner kicked you upstairs to the new post.

There may be some truth. The fallout of the Radia tapes (cover story) cost us in terms of ads from companies. Any proprietor would be worried by that. I had been editing the magazine for 17 years when the owner suggested the new position. I jumped at the offer. My wife had also been telling me that I was not doing anything, just slogging. I was not writing, just looking at pages and getting the designs supervised. I was ready to move on.

• Read the interview in its entirety here: "I don’t appear on Arnab Goswami’s Pakistan debates: Vinod Mehta".

• ALSO READ: If you want to understand journalism as it is practised in India today, its joys and its pitfalls, I can recommend no better book than Vinod Mehta's Lucknow Boy : A Memoir.

• Photo courtesy: Ramesh Pathania/Mint

Your new book is about your years with Outlook? No, some portions are about the magazine. There’s one chapter on Ratan Tata. Outlook had problems with him. He filed a court case following our cover story on Radia tapes (controversy). There’s a chapter on Narendra Modi and a long one on the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty. I once met Rahul Gandhi at a party at BJD (Biju Janata Dal) MP Jay Panda’s house. He was drinking Club Soda. When I told him to have some wine, he said so emphatically, “I don’t drink.” He repeated to make sure that I heard it. On another occasion, about a year ago, I found him sitting next to me. He asked me about work. I told him the famous saying that journalists, like harlots, enjoy power without responsibility, explaining my new position in the magazine. It was a little joke but he immediately pounced on that and said there’s no such thing like power without responsibility. That was lovely. Do you have any equation with Narendra Modi? Mr Modi and I have a very strange relationship, if I can call it that. There’s a defamation case against me in Ahmedabad that he had instituted about 10 years ago (as Gujarat’s chief minister) and it is still alive. It concerned a minister in his then cabinet called Haren Pandya, who was murdered... You see Mr Modi doesn’t interact with anybody. He has no social life, no kitchen cabinet. There’s a coterie of journalists who are very sympathetic to him, but they all are very upset at the moment because they haven’t been rewarded. Who are these journalists? I can go so far as to tell you that one of these journalists was desperately trying to become the Indian high commissioner in Britain. Mr Modi’s staunch defender, he is a very sober, moderate sort of a person, but on Modi, if you know from TV debates, he goes berserk and loses all sense of proportion. There’s another editor who had done Mr Modi’s party a great service and who runs a newspaper, but he is suddenly out of favour. He is feeling very bad. His close buddies tell me that there’s nothing he could do. Mr Modi either likes you or he doesn’t like you. There’s no convincing him to change his view. Once he doesn’t like you, you are finished. Some people say that your magazine’s owner kicked you upstairs to the new post. There may be some truth. The fallout of the Radia tapes (cover story) cost us in terms of ads from companies. Any proprietor would be worried by that. I had been editing the magazine for 17 years when the owner suggested the new position. I jumped at the offer. My wife had also been telling me that I was not doing anything, just slogging. I was not writing, just looking at pages and getting the designs supervised. I was ready to move on.

Read more at: http://www.livemint.com/Politics/FZQyvFsoQvz7gLuYXbVf7N/I-dont-appear-on-Arnab-Goswamis-Pakistan-debates-Vinod-Me.html?utm_source=copy

Your new book is about your years with Outlook? No, some portions are about the magazine. There’s one chapter on Ratan Tata. Outlook had problems with him. He filed a court case following our cover story on Radia tapes (controversy). There’s a chapter on Narendra Modi and a long one on the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty. I once met Rahul Gandhi at a party at BJD (Biju Janata Dal) MP Jay Panda’s house. He was drinking Club Soda. When I told him to have some wine, he said so emphatically, “I don’t drink.” He repeated to make sure that I heard it. On another occasion, about a year ago, I found him sitting next to me. He asked me about work. I told him the famous saying that journalists, like harlots, enjoy power without responsibility, explaining my new position in the magazine. It was a little joke but he immediately pounced on that and said there’s no such thing like power without responsibility. That was lovely. Do you have any equation with Narendra Modi? Mr Modi and I have a very strange relationship, if I can call it that. There’s a defamation case against me in Ahmedabad that he had instituted about 10 years ago (as Gujarat’s chief minister) and it is still alive. It concerned a minister in his then cabinet called Haren Pandya, who was murdered... You see Mr Modi doesn’t interact with anybody. He has no social life, no kitchen cabinet. There’s a coterie of journalists who are very sympathetic to him, but they all are very upset at the moment because they haven’t been rewarded. Who are these journalists? I can go so far as to tell you that one of these journalists was desperately trying to become the Indian high commissioner in Britain. Mr Modi’s staunch defender, he is a very sober, moderate sort of a person, but on Modi, if you know from TV debates, he goes berserk and loses all sense of proportion. There’s another editor who had done Mr Modi’s party a great service and who runs a newspaper, but he is suddenly out of favour. He is feeling very bad. His close buddies tell me that there’s nothing he could do. Mr Modi either likes you or he doesn’t like you. There’s no convincing him to change his view. Once he doesn’t like you, you are finished. Some people say that your magazine’s owner kicked you upstairs to the new post. There may be some truth. The fallout of the Radia tapes (cover story) cost us in terms of ads from companies. Any proprietor would be worried by that. I had been editing the magazine for 17 years when the owner suggested the new position. I jumped at the offer. My wife had also been telling me that I was not doing anything, just slogging. I was not writing, just looking at pages and getting the designs supervised. I was ready to move on.

Read more at: http://www.livemint.com/Politics/FZQyvFsoQvz7gLuYXbVf7N/I-dont-appear-on-Arnab-Goswamis-Pakistan-debates-Vinod-Me.html?utm_source=copy

"Is sexism in the 24×7 news channels a reality?"

Last month I received an e-mail from Commitscion Deep Pal (Class of 2003), who has been an anchor with CNBC Awaaz as well as with Times Now and who is now a foreign policy analyst in Washington, D.C. The e-mail concerned a story that had appeared in The Indian Express on September 7 with the headline "Is sexism in the 24×7 news channels a reality?"

Deep wanted to know my views on the piece and he also wanted me to pass on the link to his juniors.

Here is what Ankita Sengupta (Class of 2013) had to say:

From what I had observed during my brief stint as an intern at CNN-IBN in Noida, there were no visible incidents of  discrimination against women or even pushing them to extreme limits to make them look more agreeable in front of the camera. Anchors such as Anubha Bhosle and former anchor Sagarika Ghose are not skinny but they are excellent anchors. They have always managed to attract and retain their viewers by the force of their personalities, and not just by their looks.

Women journalists at CNN-IBN were always treated politely and respectfully and, irrespective of gender, if someone had a good idea, they were always encouraged to go forward with it. 
(Ankita Sengupta is a reporter/sub-editor with Asian Age in Mumbai.)

Faye D'Souza (Class of 2004) also commented:

I believe television is a shallow industry and that is the case around the world. I cannot claim to know the truth about Hindi and regional language newsrooms, never having worked in one. But English newsrooms tend to have a blend of both extremes. As an anchor with a decade's experience I have been told to lose weight, seek help to improve my skin, colour my hair to hide the grey and so on. I have witnessed instances of other young ladies being told to use their looks as an asset on the field, events where female anchors are asked to usher and look after corporate guests (a request that is not made of male anchors). The interesting thing is that these requests are not all made by male seniors. In several cases it was a female boss who would bring these things up. 

On television, I believe, your face is part of your job. And it is the anchors' responsibility to look their best. I also know of several several women (myself included) who clawed their way in and established themselves as anchors without being conventionally good-looking. It is an uphill, daily battle but we have made progress.

Newsrooms today are managed by old boys' clubs but middle management and the floor is dominated by women. It is only a matter of time before these women rise to the corner offices; it is only a question of keeping up the fight!

(Faye D'Souza is editor, personal finance, with ET Now in Mumbai.)

As for my views on media education, which was one of the themes in the Indian Express article, I asked Deep to study the piece I had written for a Pune-based magazine last year. It's all there, I told him:

Media education: From course structure to quality of students, the challenges are immense 

Is sexism in the 24×7 news channels a reality?

How to get story ideas

If you have a nose for news and if you know where to look, it's easy to come up with story ideas.

Here's just one example. I saw an unusual photograph (see below) on LinkedIn, posted by Commitscion Shane Jacob (Class of 2005), on September 29.

Straightaway I saw the possibilities and sent this e-mail to Commitscion Tapasya Mitra Mazumder (Class of 2013), who is a reporter with Bangalore Mirror:

Subject: Story idea?

http://www.greendzine.in/Irrway.aspx 

Police in Mysore are using this device, according to a post I saw just now on LinkedIn.

(Photo attached.)

Tapasya replied almost immediately:

Yes, this is fantastic.

She worked on the story and submitted it the same day. It was published the very next day:

Tapasya wrote to me afterwards:

People in my office were very impressed with me. :P

I called up Mysore police commissioner for information. He gave me the information and passed me the contact details of the ACP who took me through the details like vehicle specifications and all.

My boss was surprised I got the story. And then I told him that you had shared it with me. :-)

And today, almost three weeks after Tapasya's piece was published, The Times of India has an Irrway story on Page 4:

Easy-peasy about sums it up.

• ALSO READ: "Want to develop story ideas? Try Facebook"

In 8 minutes, a response from The New York Times to my e-mail pointing out a typo in a headline

At 7:47 p.m. today I sent this e-mail to Margaret Sullivan, the Public Editor of The New York Times:

SUBJECT: May I point out a punctuation mistake in a headline?

Dear Ms Sullivan,

This is Ramesh Prabhu in Bangalore.

I am a huge fan of The New York Times and many of my blog posts (I teach journalism at a local media college) are devoted to NYT articles and blog posts that I think will contribute to the understanding among my students and other followers of the better aspects of journalism. Here is a relevant post: What our newspapers can learn from The New York Times.

That was by way of background.

I am writing now because I have spotted a punctuation error in a headline for an article on O.C.D. by Jane E. Brody.

The headline reads

O.C.D, a Disorder That Cannot Be Ignored

Surely a period is needed after the "D" (and before the comma).

I attempted to bring this to the notice of the editors by commenting on the article this morning (about eight hours ago). But the headline has not been rectified yet.

I look forward to hearing your views on the subject.

Sincerely,

Ramesh Prabhu
Bangalore

*
At 7:55 p.m. I received this reply:

Dear Mr. Prabhu,

Thanks for taking the time to write. I've let the editors in charge of the blog know of the typo.

Best,

Jonah Bromwich

Office of the Public Editor

The New York Times

***

Is it any wonder I think The New York Times is one of the world's greatest newspapers?

THE HEADLINE THAT GOT MY GOAT.

• Learn more about the Public Editor's role and responsibilities: "Public Editor's Journal".

• ALSO  READ: "Mistakes that annoy readers".

• UPDATE (10:13 P.M.)

The headline typo is rectified. See below:

“We have become Homo Documentis, man the recorder”

EXHIBIT A:

Lead story in today's Times of India that featured the photograph of a young, mentally unstable man cowering before a tiger moments before it mauled him to death. (On its website, the country's No. 1 English newspaper has helpfully provided a video link to the news item which played out on Times Now most of yesterday, proclaiming, apparently with glee: "Caught on camera: Youth mauled to death".)

The same photograph was also published on the front pages of other leading newspapers, such as The Hindu and The Indian Express.

Which brings me to EXHIBIT B, a perceptive piece in Time magazine about an unrelated event but related issue:

We Are a Camera: Life, Death and the Urge to Shoot
At tragic and mundane moments now, we reach for our cameras.

And EXHIBIT C, a thought-provoking question on the Poynter website:

Would you snap a picture or pull the man to safety?

Why won't Indian news outlets question the value of, and ethics involved in, publishing such photographs? Because life in India is cheap.

• ADDITIONAL READING: "Publishing grisly photos" and "How does an editor take the decision to publish pictures that can upset readers?"

• By the way, The Times of India is currently involved in an unsavoury tit-for-tat with Deepika Padukone. For the record, I am 100% in agreement with the views of senior journalist Prem Panicker and The Hindu's Radhika Santhanam, both of whom have launched a broadside against Bombay Times on their blogs. Why is The Times of India what it is today? This piece in the hallowed New Yorker magazine holds the clues: "Citizens Jain: Why India's newspaper industry is thriving".

UPDATE 1
This reaction came via e-mail from Commitscion Faye D'Souza (Class of 2004):

I couldn't unsee that video. It haunts me. 

I think by watching it, I felt like I was part of the group of people who just stood there and did nothing. I remember a discussion we had in class about the duty of press photographers in the Vietnam War, who had to choose between taking a photograph to highlight the issue for the world and thereby stop the war OR saving the child who was on fire.

I don't think the question is about ethics anymore. One, these are not journalists who are looking to highlight the issue. Two, because the all these videos were shot with the aim to entertain and stroke the human fancy for the morbid and the macabre.

UPDATE 2
After I uploaded a link to my post this morning, Commitscion Dipankar Paul (Class of 2009) and I had an interesting discussion on Facebook:

• Dipankar Paul What could the onlookers have done? Jumped in and saved the man? Also, the tiger didn't maul the man to death as you say in your post -- as I wrote on another FB post. https://www.facebook.com/kalya.../posts/10203428911936094...

  5 hrs · Like
• 

  Ramesh Prabhu Re: your post, Dipankar -- "This content is currently unavailable". Why is that?

  5 hrs · Like
• 

  Ramesh Prabhu In any case, the focus of my post is the fact that we seem to have become "Homo documentis", as the Time journalist put it.

  5 hrs · Like
• 

  Dipankar Paul As for the photo being "disturbing", I disagree. It's much like Kevin Carter's Vulture and the Child photo. There is no gore, but we all know how this is going to end. It's important to document human history.

  5 hrs · Like
• 

  Dipankar Paul Here it is: The tiger didn't maul the man to death. It displayed its protective instincts by dragging the man by the scruff of the neck and pulling him away from the commotion like it would do if its offspring were in danger. It just so happens humans don't have folds of skin along their neck, and the tiger inadvertently must have punctured a major artery.

  5 hrs · Like · 1
• 

  Ramesh Prabhu Ah.

  5 hrs · Like
• 

  Ramesh Prabhu By the way, did you click on all the links I have provided in my post?

  5 hrs · Like
• 

  Dipankar Paul I have.

  5 hrs · Like
• 

  Dipankar Paul Homo documentis is just another name for Journalist (or reporter or photographer), isn't it?

  5 hrs · Like
• 

  Ramesh Prabhu Yes, and I think the point Time and Poynter are making is that we have all become "man the recorder". I do think we are right to be concerned.

  5 hrs · Like
• 

  Dipankar Paul The last few paragraphs in the Poynter piece are important. If you see the video of the tiger and the man, you can see that the big cat is curious and confused -- definitely not malicious. The man was in the enclosure for 10 minutes. Where were the guards? Where were the tranquilizer darts? This death could have been averted. Unfortunately, the focus is going to be on #KillerTiger and not the zoo's incompetence/inefficiency.

  5 hrs · Like
• 

  Ramesh Prabhu Here is a relevant paragraph from the Time article:
  
  "But most of the criticism over the photos has been directed, rightly, not at Abbasi but the Post editors who had plenty of time to decide
  whether the photo needed to be on their cover, and ran it anyway.
  
  "This wasn’t a gruesome war photo showing people a conflict they’d otherwise ignore; it didn’t shed light on any ongoing situation. Its only purpose was to say: this is what he looked like just before he died, and we have the picture."

  5 hrs · Like · 1
• 

  Dipankar Paul But, Sir, in this case, there was no way onlookers could have pulled the man to safety short of climbing down themselves. But that's like getting onto the tracks to push the man onto the platform while the train rushes towards you.

  5 hrs · Like
• 

  Ramesh Prabhu And from Poynter:
  
  "But in both of those cases, editors could argue the photos held significant journalistic purpose of informing the public of gross
  tragedies and holding the powerful accountable.
  
  "This photo doesn’t have any of those redeeming journalistic qualities. But it causes great harm, to the family of the man, to those of us who view it and to the community of New York. It is sensational and voyeuristic and nothing more.
  
  "When you publish or pass along photos of pending death without
  purpose, you might as well be posting a snuff film. There is no
  redeeming value."

  5 hrs · Like · 1
• 

  Dipankar Paul Re: ToI editors publishing the photo. After the Deepika Padukone incident, I'm sure they didn't think of creating awareness about the mismanagement at Delhi Zoo. So, in that case, it wasn't the right call.

  5 hrs · Like
• 

  Dipankar Paul But this photo CAN be used to inform, much like Ut's and Carter's.

  5 hrs · Like
• 

  Ramesh Prabhu I am concerned no one gave a thought to "But it causes great harm, to the family of the man..."

  5 hrs · Like
• 

  Dipankar Paul Ah, then we should stop publishing all death photos -- impending or not. Isn't the 'how' an important part of reportage? Photographic/videographic evidence, if nothing else, provides closure and leaves no doubt.

  5 hrs · Edited · Like
• 

  Ramesh Prabhu The concluding paragraph of my post, for what it is worth:
  
  Why won't Indian news outlets question the value of, and ethics involved in, publishing such photographs? Because life in India is cheap.

  5 hrs · Like · 1
• 

  Dipankar Paul There is great POTENTIAL value in publishing such photographs. If the intention is to inform and highlight incompetence, I'm all for it. But if the aim is titillation, eyeball-mongering and plain voyeurism, it's a shame. And today's ToI falls somewhere in the middle.

  5 hrs · Edited · Like
• 

  Ramesh Prabhu I'm very glad we had this debate, Dipankar. Thank you.

  5 hrs · Like · 1
• 

  Dipankar Paul Brings to mind an earlier post about euphemisms.

  5 hrs · Unlike · 1
• 

  Vidya Nayak I am reminded of the Readers' Digest reporter, who had taken the photo of a grandfather who had inadvertently caused his grandchild's death. Years later, he said in an interview that he regretted having caused the family more pain. But at the time, all he had thought of was clicking the photo first and rushing it to the centre for publication!

  4 hrs · Like
• 

  Ann Thomas What an interesting debate/discussion...Thank you Ramesh Prabhu and Dipankar Paul!

  4 hrs · Like

UPDATE 3

• CNN chose not to use the disturbing photo: "White tiger mauls visitor to death at zoo in India".
• The Guardian also chose not to run the photo: "White tiger kills man who climbed over fence at New Delhi zoo"

UPDATE 4
And here are the comments of senior journalist Bala Murali Krishna (via e-mail):

Seriously, Ramesh, do you really expect Indian media to actually think on all these sensitive issues? If you recall, even Frontline from the Hindu group was guilty of publishing gory photos of Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination. If I remember right, it was a sellout issue.