When it comes to television, it is known that in India, television viewership comprises 674.5 million people, which is about 50 percent of the total population of the country. Television reaches about 475 million people each day in India, as compared with print media which accesses about 282 million people or radio which touches base with 110 million residents daily.
As far as radio is concerned, in India, the network of All India Radio or the AIR as it is popularly referred to, reaches 99.19 per cent of our population. It brings forth programming in 23 languages and 146 dialects in the country as on date and it covers nearly 92 per cent of the total area of India.
In the Internet arena, India has over and above 460 million users and is the second largest online market in the world, second to only China. It is reported that by the year 2021, we are set to cross the 635.8 million user mark. However, despite these numbers, internet is accessed by only 26 per cent of our total population. In these statistics, it is men who comprise 71 percent usage as compared with a very low figure of 29 percent women who use this facility.
A picture is worth a thousand words...
Broadcast journalism, however, is very powerful and not just in terms of the numbers it represents. We all know that a picture is worth a thousand words. We also know that we tend to remember what we hear more than what we read about. This is the way the human psyche works. Hence, what we see or hear about make more indelible impressions on our minds and souls than what we read in print. Thus, it stands to reason that television and radio create more impressions on us than what a newspaper does. In this manner, they have the power to change, to transform and bend our mindset more than the print media.
All these above mentioned statements point towards one fact. That it is the duty, the responsibility, of broadcast journalists to realize the value of their work. That, they must keep in mind social and political ethics while they broadcast news and other stories. These will bear a very deep mark on the people they reach up to. Thus, a lot of care should be exerted in presenting the truth and nothing but the truth.
Do not glamorize news...
What should be always known is that news must not be glamorized. Broadcast journalists should not fall into the trap of getting high TRPs. It is the value, the essence of the whole story which should not get lost in the hype surrounding it. Sometimes, news concerning celebrities, film and sports personalities will beget higher viewership. However, limit the time you devote to such coverage. Try to highlight a wider cross section of events happening all across the country and even the globe. Also, devote time and space to those occasions which will bring in a higher maturity level in our society - do not spend valuable footage on those stories which will just make noise about what a so and so high society person is wearing or saying.
Present social issues with an interesting twist...
It is social issues which must be presented to the populace with an interesting twist. If it is put forth in a dull and boring manner, no one will watch it. All that someone has to do is just click away that particular channel and surf into another. Hence, what we see must be springy, eye catching and noteworthy. This is the golden rule number one followed by successful broadcast journalists. However, it is up to the concerned journalist to add in humor and interest in such a manner that a monotonous subject becomes something inspiring. In this way, he or she can grab eyeballs and ears and make important connect with people about issues which really matter to our society - those topics which will make a difference in making India more aware, more mature, more knowledgeable as a country.
Emoticon Emoticon