Monday, January 7, 2013

Is Media really misinterpreting??

Posted by princessshagun at 8:04 AM


Many a times, orators have commented casually upon important issues resulting in a 'foot in the mouth' situation. A day later we receive statements from them saying, “the media misrepresented their comment” or “twisted their words”.
How often have they accused the media of misinterpreting their quotes? Allow me to quote some of them:

  • Sheila Dixshit, Chief Minister of New Delhi:
In relation to the death of journalist Soumya Vishwanathan that happened in October, 2008, she said things like "All by herself till 3 am at night in a city where people believe...you know...you should not be so adventurous.''
The Times of India on October 3, 2008, reported, “A woman working till late in the night needs a male escort to return home. Else she might just get shot. The sentiment may not please too many Delhiites but that's the implication of what their chief minister thinks.”
Similarly, The Indian Express reported on October 2, 2008, “Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit on Thursday came under attack from politicos and women activists for her comments on the murder of journalist Soumya Vishwanathan that 'one should not be adventurous.'”.
Later, on facing resentment from the people, she blamed the media for “blowing it out of proportion”.

  • Ratan Tata, Ex-Chairman of Tata Group:
In yet another interview, Ratan Tata spoke against Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Few days later, DNA India on December 20, 2012, “Tata Group Chairman Ratan Tata has dubbed as "completely untrue" critical comments against Prime Minister Manmohan Singh attributed to him in an interview and apologised for "any embarrassment" that the "misrepresentation" may have caused to him or the government.”
India Today reported on this incident, “In his letter dated December 10, he referred to his press statement issued on December 8 and said he had clarified that "I have neither 'lashed into the Prime Minister', 'rapped India' nor 'warned government of inaction'."

  • Vibha Rao, Chairperson of Chhattisgarh:
She made the following comments regarding women having an equal share of fault in sexual offences committed against them, “Women, influenced by western culture, send wrong signals through their dress and behavior and men often take the cue from those signals. Women display their bodies and indulge in various obscene activities. Women are unaware of the kind of message [their actions] generate.” She was quoted in an article published in The Hindu.

  • Mohan Bhagwat, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh Chief:
The Times of India reported on Sunday, 6 January, 2013, the statement delivered by the RSS Chief, "A husband and wife are involved in a contract under which the husband has said that you should take care of my house and I will take care of all your needs. I will keep you safe. So, the husband follows the contract terms. Till the time, the wife follows the contract, the husband stays with her, if the wife violates the contract, he can disown her," Bhagwat told a rally here yesterday.”
RSS spokesperson Ram Madhav then cleared up for him saying that Bhagwat has been misquoted and added that he was referring to western marriages being based on a contractual system.

Bhagwat's remark was immediately slammed by the Congress, the CPIM and certain women's bodies for making sexist comments on women and marriage.

All the above quotes have been blatantly said, without the media making any interpretations at all. So my take on the issue is that, No, the media is not misinterpreting their words because they are what they are. Anyone reading/listening to that would draw the same conclusion as to what the media has drawn.
A lot could be done had their words been confusing or had any scope of making changes in it. Sadly, the words spoken have been ghastly loud and clear for any sane person to process as to what intention it really carries. Most of the above have been said during press meets and thus the media carries enough evidence of what has been already said to publish and broadcast it to the world.

Everytime the media gets blamed for blowing things out of proportion, it loses a part of faith the people have entrusted it with. Thus accusing the media of producing their irresponsible speeches must be strongly dealt with.
Media may be blowing many celebrity rumors out of proportion, but situations like these, where someone talks of orthodox mentality which can prove harmful to the society, need to be condemned. Words coming from people who represent a state or a nation have the power to shape the psyche of the people of the country. Thus, they must be immensely careful of what they speak in public. In many a cases, a huge public outcry has been seen. In order to avoid such cases, instead of blaming the media, the orators need to watch their steps, at least when addressing the media.

So the question arises, what do we do when encounter such comments/statements from our politicians, industrialists and other persons of importance?

 

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