Indian Press releases many False Reports!
It is very surprising, though most of us are by now used to it, that there are numerous media stories in the Indian Press that get rescinded within a day or two.
It is quite common to read among the headlines: “…denied having said that”, “…was misinterpreted”, “…deny report…” etc. all of which are just denying what they allegedly said the day before.
Let’s take the recent examples - today BJP has said that it never reported Uma Bharati’s re-promotion to CM of MP; a few days back Tehelka apologized for its “interview” of Rahul Gandhi - and these are only two events in the recent past.
Where does the mistake lie - is it the Media churning out false stories to gain mileage? Or is it the politicians who blurt out something that they later regret and deny having said? It has to be either this or that - all stories of misinterpretation are devious, for if a person has said something, it is up to us to interpret it in any way we like.
However, even in the interpretations, the Press sometimes plays mischief - it highlights portions of releases, or reports only one angle about an event or an organization which could quite naturally lead to misunderstanding the true intentions.
Anyway, coming back to the false reporting - somebody lower down in BJP could have played mischief by leaking a false report to the Press; and I totally believe that Rahul Gandhi is capable of saying absolutely foolish things like he did to the Tehelka reporter!
Oops…have I given a clean chit to the Indian Media, which is actually not all that innocent?
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I think both sides of the picture are possibilties to some extent. Sometimes reporters misquote sources. They should do a better job in double-cheking when in doubt. The mantra taught in many J-schools is When In Doubt Leave It Out. But looks like someitmes the publishers do not want to leave stuff out because they can sell their copies. Things could change once people in India start suing media organizaitons against issues such as libel.
On the other hand, it is also true that many political figures do not understand that what they say on the record cannot be retracted. Most people with conscience would not say something and say another later on. And that is why there are fewer instances of retraction or denial on TV interviews.