For many, many of us, the nightmarish picture Noam Chomsky and Edward S. Herman present in their book “Manufacturing Consent” is a bit outlandish. They argue that many respected and liberal news media organisations actually work in cahoots with corporates to control public opinion. But, we think of our favourite newspaper (or news anchor) and their scoops and stings and it is
[Nikam published this column on May 12, 2010 on his website. See the original here.] For the last nearly a month, the name of Niira Radia has been in circulation. Two publications, Outlook and The Pioneer, raised the issue first almost simultaneously. While Outlook concentrated on th
The spectrum scam is not just about A Raja. To believe that he could have single-handedly caused a loss of Rs1.76 lakh crores is to overstate his capacity and calculating abilities. Nor is this a system failure: On the contrary the system that includes various ministries, departments, official watchdogs like CAG and the judiciary has actually worked. The media again did its bit while whistleblo
India has performed poorly in providing social security protection to its people until recently with "very high vulnerability" to poverty and informal labour practices in the world, according to the International Labour Office. In its first comprehensive `World Social Security Report`, which was released yesterday, the ILO has suggested that India has not done enough in
The annual temperature in some parts of India is set to rise by 1.7 degree Celsius-2.2 degree Celsius (with 1970s as base year) by the year 2030, affecting the four sectors, namely, water, forest, health and agriculture, a report prepared by India’s network for climate change assessment (INCCA) said. The ‘Climate Change and India: a 4x4 assessment’ report, which was re
The corrupt have drained India of $462 billion (about Rs 20.8 trillion) between 1948 and now, says a report by Global Financial Integrity (GFI), a Washington-based think-tank. The report mentioned that India’s aggregate illicit flows are more than twice its current external debt of US $230 billion. “The report finds that the poor state of governance is reflected in a
The Gate is back, long live the Gate! One of the enduring rules of the media teetered on the verge of being abandoned this fortnight before the right thinking restored it to its primacy. Headline writers and TV anchors seemed to have shut the gate behind them when ‘Kargilgate’ erupted. “God’s in his heaven, all’s right with the world” about sums it up. Or if
Sleaze sells. Makers of reality shows such as Bigg Boss and Rakhi Ka Insaaf know this well. So do those who run the so-called news channels which keep decrying such shows only because that gives them an excuse to play the visuals from these shows, mount protracted discussions and draw viewers to their own channels. It is manifestly clear that nobody in the media has been interested in self-regu
As the controversy surrounding microfinance companies in India refuses to die down, a new report scalds the sector saying that it has drifted away from the focus of its work - social good. “The poor do not seem to figure highly in their scheme of things,” the report says. The report titled ‘Microfinance India: State of the Sector Report 2010’ also question
The man may still not be the foreign office’s answer to E Sreedharan. He certainly deserves the MVC for bravery. His mission is to do “strange” things like listening and engaging with people across the world. Strange because most rational diplomats would think Twitter, Facebook and YouTube are either for their kids or radioactive no-brainers for trouble. Some maintain dis
In its latest report, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) paints a bleak picture of global unemployement rceovery, calling it ‘volatile and uneven.’ The report says, “In 2010, the global economy seems to have entered into a new stage where divergence and volatility in number of labour markets have significantly increased and uncertainty over the stability of recovery r
On the face of it, the Manmohan Singh government seems to have acted against Ashok Chavan and Suresh Kalmadi for their alleged involvement in corrupt deals, by removing one from the chief ministership of Maharashtra and the other from party’s parliamentary party. Given the opposition party’s unrelenting campaign and the latest report of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (
As minister of state, Salman Khurshid holds independent charge of the ministries of corporate affairs and of minority affairs. Educated at the St. Stephen’s and Oxford, the 57-year-old advocate is a busy man as he has set out to overhaul the regulation framework for the corporate sector with the new Companies Bill. His views on corporate social responsibility have also le
At times a one-line candid remark exposes political hypocrisy more than several reams of written words. This happened when Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar gave a simple “piece of advice” to aspiring Prime Minister Rahul Gandhi to learn a lesson or two in governance by becoming a chief minister first before giving lectures about development in Bihar. That the message went home
Much as the rest of the world would have you believe about the little freedom and respect accorded to women in Islamic countries, India fares worse than both Pakistan and Bangladesh, according to a new report by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). "81 percent women in Pakistan are treated with respect as compared to 79 percent in India. Even Bangladesh - with 86 percen
You get to know when the boss is displeased. Either you are summoned for an explanation or, if the boss is really angry, you are given the snub of snubs and left to live in constant fear of an execution without so much as a trial and an opportunity to mount your defence. Readers of mafia thrillers are familiar with this drill. So are inhabitants of the world’s largest democracy.
Is there any hope for people’s movements these days? Cynics surely would have an upper hand in a debate on this question. There are too many examples of failed protests. So here is a counter-example, from the land of the Mahatma – or of Modi, depending on how you look at it. Gujarat’s ruling BJP swept local-body elections last month, capturing all major municipali
The alacrity with which the CBI approached the supreme court after Amit Shah was granted bail is only illustrative of the supine nature of the country’s premier investigative agency. Shah, former home minister of Gujarat, was jailed for his involvement in the brutal killing of Sohrabuddin and his wife Kausar Bi by the state police. The CBI has been probing Shah’s complicity in
Ahead of US president Barack Obama`s landmark India visit, an influential US think tank has asked him to endorse New Delhi`s quest for a permanent seat in the UN Security Council. "The White House should endorse India`s quest for a permanent seat in the United Nations Security Council," said the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. "This bold
If somebody were to tell you that the solution to the Kashmir imbroglio will have to be found outside the ambit of the constitution, you will dismiss the suggestion without so much as a second thought. If the same is said by somebody authorised by the central government, though, it is a matter of serious concern. The three-member team of interlocutors sent by the centre to the valley has r
