There is a need for young journalists to move outside the newsrooms to redefine news-gathering and recreate a space for investigative journalism in India, says Team Viva
The manner in which we (journalists) accomplish our work is as important as the work itself.” The statement had come from a leading news organisation’s Code of Ethics once. Indeed, when talking about investigative journalism and the multiple challenges faced by truth seekers, it has become increasingly difficult in the current environment for investigative journalism to prevail because of the persecution of whistle-blowers.
Journalist Aatish Taseer, the writer of the Time article of Divider-in-Chief,’ as part of a panel at The Media Rumble at IHC, wondered why does gathering credible news sometimes question the ethics of journalism? The conversation escalated to how investigative journalism has lessened down the years and quoted David Usborne, from Quest Research and Investigations (QRI), who moved from being an investigative journalist with The Independent to a private investigating firm. He had said that he had expected to become a ‘Sherlock Holmes’ but instead became a “journalist on hire,” being paid by wealthy clients to investigate cases. But he started using his subjective discretion to choose cases that do not question journalistic ethics. Adding to this, Josy Joseph, a New Delhi-based award-winning journalist, said, “The kind of media censorship and fear that the current government has spread has not been seen in India since the days of the Emergency.” He added that the days of ‘beat journalism’, where reporters had unfiltered access to corridors of power, are over. Sources have dried up because protection of such disseminators is becoming increasingly difficult.
Among others, the panel discussion The Layers of Identity in Writing and Journalism saw Madhu Trehan, co-founder and editor-in-chief of Newslaundry, journalist Aatish Taseer, former journalist and novelist Prayaag Akbar and Raj Kamal Jha, chief editor of The Indian Express.
Moving further, the panel talked about the common themes of their respective books and how their identities have affected their writing, beliefs and worldviews. The panel expounded the differences between writing fiction and writing for news, focussing upon the role of identity, legacy and historical baggage in writing. Raj, talking about his book The City and the Sea, said, “For me, fiction is a place where I get the space I don’t get in the newsroom. Two plus two equals to four is an established fact but while talking about freedom, I mean that the space to show your respective interpretation of that ‘two’ is also important. My book is about my interpretation and imagination of a certain story. So a personal touch cannot be applied in journalism.” This is why, he mentioned, he hadn’t tried to assert or moralise the incidents in his book despite knowing their regular occurrence.
Looking at another aspect of writing in journalism, Aatish talked about how his upbringing in India and Pakistan helped shape his identity and understanding of political perspectives and how an increasing use of social media is actually dark for Indian politics but could be a rising step for the youth. “Twitter has become a court of its own. There was a time in this country, a decade ago, when people were not very active while talking about its democracy but now we are blown away by politics. Social media and numerous opinions on the feeds have completely redefined journalism and news-gathering amongst youngsters in India,” he said.
The conversation went on to highlight the importance of young people coming into a news organisation with fresh thoughts, akin almost to a method of reverse mentorship. Trehan pointed out at how the young generation is increasingly moving forward to not only politics, but a social reeling where the underprivileged are now driven by ambition and drive. They are pushing away the post colonial geeks and rising to the top. One such example being Gully Boy, which she called “realistic.”
However, Prayaag believed that some people still remain isolated from the rest of the Indian society when it comes to political and social understanding of it. “Even my book, Leila, shows that the urban spaces are becoming fragmented. And I felt like investigating that. There’s only a set of people who have a control over the say of people. Not every part of the country’s population is engaging in its development process. And to bridge this gap, we need more avenues of expression. The internet has done to an extent but more needs to be done. Change has to be brought to a level where you are respected for your opinions even if you are in dissent,” said he.
The panel also saw discussions about the collaboration with smaller newsrooms around the world especially to discuss global issues that have local resonance. It concluded on the note that there is a lot of criticism about this from the media itself but one can’t afford to not try something new. However, as long as the people, we are working for, are benefitting, the industry will thrive. It needs to look beyond newsrooms. “It is the essence of collaborative journalism to work within conflicted relations which is much better than working within newsrooms that are basically echo chambers,” said Trehan.