India has the largest number of news television channels in the world. The number of newspaper ti... more India has the largest number of news television channels in the world. The number of newspaper titles and editions is increasing, as is print circulation. But despite these impressive numbers, the media in India is facing an unprecedented crisis. The traditional business model underpinning the Indian media, which was never conducive to good journalism in the first place, is breaking down due to increased competition and this is placing even greater strain on the integrity of the editorial process.
majority is to cling on to practices which actually only bring misery to their own people? Furthe... more majority is to cling on to practices which actually only bring misery to their own people? Further, as Andre Beteille reminds us in a recent article, the intellectual opposition to secularism often has less to do with religion and more with politics and culture. Alas, such intellec tual arguments hardly help in curbing the violent passions of those who are both religious and economically deprived. □
After siding with Rookmangad Katawal in his brazen defiance of the civilian government in Kathman... more After siding with Rookmangad Katawal in his brazen defiance of the civilian government in Kathmandu, India has predictably washed its hands of the consequences by claiming “what is happening in…
Siddharth Varadarajan recently appeared on the West Asia panel at the first LSE India Summit. Dur... more Siddharth Varadarajan recently appeared on the West Asia panel at the first LSE India Summit. During the conference he spoke to Mukti Jain Campion about his career as a journalist, the problem of corporate and government pressure on the media in India, and how his new platform The Wire is trying to re-imagine media ownership.
[India's] Central government's professed commitment to human rights is worth nothing so l... more [India's] Central government's professed commitment to human rights is worth nothing so long as it won't allow the soldiers indicted for murdering innocent civilians in Kashmir to be prosecuted for…
... With articles by TERI Director RK Pachauri, the Department of Atomic Energy's Anil K... more ... With articles by TERI Director RK Pachauri, the Department of Atomic Energy's Anil Kakodkar and RB Grover, anti-nuclear critics Suchitra YJ and MV Ramana, and TERI researcher MP Ram Mohan, the newsletter seeks comprehensively to tackle the ... By Siddharth Varadarajan ...
From the first day, even as Iraqi television began broadcasting footage of a defiant Saddam untou... more From the first day, even as Iraqi television began broadcasting footage of a defiant Saddam untouched by the US 'decapitation strike' against him, the American and British media have been telling us not to trust our own eyes. Even though you think you're seeing Saddam, reporters told us breathlessly, you can't be sure because the Iraqi leader is known to use a series of body doubles for his public appearances. This claim was often simply asserted as fact, or at best sourced to 'Iraqi exiles' and 'Western intelligence agencies'. To tell you the truth, I was always a bit sceptical about this explanation. First of all, in the years I've been around on this planet, I've yet to see any human being with an exact body double, let alone several such human replicas so perfect in every manner as Saddam's were said to be. And then there was the administrative aspect that bothered me. Was there a special department of the Iraqi government
India has the largest number of news television channels in the world. The number of newspaper ti... more India has the largest number of news television channels in the world. The number of newspaper titles and editions is increasing, as is print circulation. But despite these impressive numbers, the media in India is facing an unprecedented crisis. The traditional business model underpinning the Indian media, which was never conducive to good journalism in the first place, is breaking down due to increased competition and this is placing even greater strain on the integrity of the editorial process.
majority is to cling on to practices which actually only bring misery to their own people? Furthe... more majority is to cling on to practices which actually only bring misery to their own people? Further, as Andre Beteille reminds us in a recent article, the intellectual opposition to secularism often has less to do with religion and more with politics and culture. Alas, such intellec tual arguments hardly help in curbing the violent passions of those who are both religious and economically deprived. □
After siding with Rookmangad Katawal in his brazen defiance of the civilian government in Kathman... more After siding with Rookmangad Katawal in his brazen defiance of the civilian government in Kathmandu, India has predictably washed its hands of the consequences by claiming “what is happening in…
Siddharth Varadarajan recently appeared on the West Asia panel at the first LSE India Summit. Dur... more Siddharth Varadarajan recently appeared on the West Asia panel at the first LSE India Summit. During the conference he spoke to Mukti Jain Campion about his career as a journalist, the problem of corporate and government pressure on the media in India, and how his new platform The Wire is trying to re-imagine media ownership.
[India's] Central government's professed commitment to human rights is worth nothing so l... more [India's] Central government's professed commitment to human rights is worth nothing so long as it won't allow the soldiers indicted for murdering innocent civilians in Kashmir to be prosecuted for…
... With articles by TERI Director RK Pachauri, the Department of Atomic Energy's Anil K... more ... With articles by TERI Director RK Pachauri, the Department of Atomic Energy's Anil Kakodkar and RB Grover, anti-nuclear critics Suchitra YJ and MV Ramana, and TERI researcher MP Ram Mohan, the newsletter seeks comprehensively to tackle the ... By Siddharth Varadarajan ...
From the first day, even as Iraqi television began broadcasting footage of a defiant Saddam untou... more From the first day, even as Iraqi television began broadcasting footage of a defiant Saddam untouched by the US 'decapitation strike' against him, the American and British media have been telling us not to trust our own eyes. Even though you think you're seeing Saddam, reporters told us breathlessly, you can't be sure because the Iraqi leader is known to use a series of body doubles for his public appearances. This claim was often simply asserted as fact, or at best sourced to 'Iraqi exiles' and 'Western intelligence agencies'. To tell you the truth, I was always a bit sceptical about this explanation. First of all, in the years I've been around on this planet, I've yet to see any human being with an exact body double, let alone several such human replicas so perfect in every manner as Saddam's were said to be. And then there was the administrative aspect that bothered me. Was there a special department of the Iraqi government
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