Indian TV News : bad to worse?

For those who missed the point, here's latest story.

Uma Khurana is a teacher in a government girls school in New Delhi. Few days ago, Live India reported a sting operation where she was exposed as a flesh trade dealer. Worse, she was accused of converting girl students into prostitutes. I understand that the modern society , our Indian society included, is morally corrupt and most unexpected perversities can happen. And sometimes, they do happen. Even by my utterly low expectations, this news item came as a shock.

The latest reports say that the reporter is being investigated for framing Uma Khurana as revenge for her personal dispute with the reporter's friend. The girl shown in the sting operation was exposed as an aspiring journalist.

Live India is a Hindi news , err, newtertainment channel . Newtertainment = Perverse Entertaintment packaged as news.

The masses of India claim English as their own, but a vast majority watches Hindi news channels. This includes those in posh bungalows, the Jhuggi Jhopri clusters, the builder apartments , the small town folks, the urban pretenders and everyone you meet on the streets of North to Central India. The market is huge. The stakes are high.

If you ask me , I think the English news channels have also become pretty loud and trigger happy ( Sachin's retirement being the latest gaffe). But Hindi ones are a class apart. Not only are they loud,obscene, pointless and perverse, they may actually be promoting crime.

Code of conduct, anyone?