Two freelance reporters win Counter Media AwardAuthor: Express News Service
Jul 2, 2012 10:44 AM
Indian media had developed a structural compulsion to lie, and there was a national obsession with the elite, says noted journalistThe Counter Media Award for Excellence in Development Journalism, instituted by renowned journalist P Sainath, has been given to freelance reporters T K Dayanand and V Gayatri here on Sunday.
Dayanand has been selected for the award in recognition of his relentless work on abolishing manual scavenging in Karnataka. Gayathri has been chosen for her contribution in the field of rural and agricultural reporting and campaigning for farmers issues.
The award carrying `50,000 and a digital camera was presented by writer Devanoor Mahadeva on the occasion of Kannada Journalism Day.
Speaking on the occasion, Mahadeva said: “We have made even beggars rise above poverty line. In such a scenario, we need valued journalism.”
Counter Media Awards have been given to encourage rural and moffussil journalists, who work for the upliftment of the downtrodden.
Sainath criticised mainstream media, and said: “Despite reluctance of the mainstream media to publish their works, the two awardees have done an excellent job. We need to honour such people.”
On the occasion, ‘Bara Andre Ellarigoo Ishta,’ the Kannada translation of Sainath’s ‘Everybody Loves a Good Drought’ translated by G N Mohan, was also released.
Commenting on the book, Mohan said Sainath had made a transition from a glowing world to a dark one. Today’s journalists needed to move in that direction, he added.
Justice Nagmohan Das, who released the book, said the present media had been drifting away from social obligations for commercialisation and the economic policies were going in a different direction.
“We need bright out literature, which enlightens people about the issues and policies, and we should not let sex, crime and sensation take over media,” Nagmohan Das said.
Journalist and media critic Ammu Joseph and senior journalist and environmentalist Professor Nagesh Hegde were present on the occasion.
Documentary Screened
Nero’s Guests, a documentary film on India’s agrarian crisis and the growing inequality seen through the work of renowned journalist P Sainath was screened on the occasion.
The documentary discusses how the issue of farmers committing suicide in India over the last 10 years was ignored by the mainstream media.
Interacting with the audience later, Sainath said today the Indian media had developed a structural compulsion to lie, and there was a national obsession with the elite and the poor were being ignored. “Though the media is politically free, they are imprisoned by profits. Media may be a business but it is not journalism,” he said.
On bailouts and corporate packages given by the government, he said Iceland was recovering well from financial crisis by punishing their Prime Minister and bankers who were responsible for the crisis. “But we support the corporates and let them decide who can be a Cabinet minister. This is a dangerous trend,” he added. He also noted that broadband penetration in India was absolutely zilch, and hence the print media was flourishing here, unlike the US and other countries. “There is a growing disconnect between readers and media, and ‘zones of silence’ have been developed within the media. Paid news is an industrial phenomenon and not an individual choice,” he said.
“As readers, people need to indulge and intervene in media matters,” he added.
Jul 2, 2012 10:44 AM
Indian media had developed a structural compulsion to lie, and there was a national obsession with the elite, says noted journalistThe Counter Media Award for Excellence in Development Journalism, instituted by renowned journalist P Sainath, has been given to freelance reporters T K Dayanand and V Gayatri here on Sunday.
Dayanand has been selected for the award in recognition of his relentless work on abolishing manual scavenging in Karnataka. Gayathri has been chosen for her contribution in the field of rural and agricultural reporting and campaigning for farmers issues.
The award carrying `50,000 and a digital camera was presented by writer Devanoor Mahadeva on the occasion of Kannada Journalism Day.
Speaking on the occasion, Mahadeva said: “We have made even beggars rise above poverty line. In such a scenario, we need valued journalism.”
Counter Media Awards have been given to encourage rural and moffussil journalists, who work for the upliftment of the downtrodden.
Sainath criticised mainstream media, and said: “Despite reluctance of the mainstream media to publish their works, the two awardees have done an excellent job. We need to honour such people.”
On the occasion, ‘Bara Andre Ellarigoo Ishta,’ the Kannada translation of Sainath’s ‘Everybody Loves a Good Drought’ translated by G N Mohan, was also released.
Commenting on the book, Mohan said Sainath had made a transition from a glowing world to a dark one. Today’s journalists needed to move in that direction, he added.
Justice Nagmohan Das, who released the book, said the present media had been drifting away from social obligations for commercialisation and the economic policies were going in a different direction.
“We need bright out literature, which enlightens people about the issues and policies, and we should not let sex, crime and sensation take over media,” Nagmohan Das said.
Journalist and media critic Ammu Joseph and senior journalist and environmentalist Professor Nagesh Hegde were present on the occasion.
Documentary Screened
Nero’s Guests, a documentary film on India’s agrarian crisis and the growing inequality seen through the work of renowned journalist P Sainath was screened on the occasion.
The documentary discusses how the issue of farmers committing suicide in India over the last 10 years was ignored by the mainstream media.
Interacting with the audience later, Sainath said today the Indian media had developed a structural compulsion to lie, and there was a national obsession with the elite and the poor were being ignored. “Though the media is politically free, they are imprisoned by profits. Media may be a business but it is not journalism,” he said.
On bailouts and corporate packages given by the government, he said Iceland was recovering well from financial crisis by punishing their Prime Minister and bankers who were responsible for the crisis. “But we support the corporates and let them decide who can be a Cabinet minister. This is a dangerous trend,” he added. He also noted that broadband penetration in India was absolutely zilch, and hence the print media was flourishing here, unlike the US and other countries. “There is a growing disconnect between readers and media, and ‘zones of silence’ have been developed within the media. Paid news is an industrial phenomenon and not an individual choice,” he said.
“As readers, people need to indulge and intervene in media matters,” he added.
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