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State
media and polls Mr. Kadirgamar began in fine form, outlining what he sincerely felt instinctively was the proper way a state media should conduct itself at a time of election. He believed that the private media was private, but the state media is owned by the people, and therefore had a greater onus towards the people. The state media bosses under him however took a different view - they argued that because the private media was supporting the Prime Minister, the state media had a duty to correct that imbalance, and therefore, support the President. Mr. Kadirgamar has now caved in to this latter argument by the looks of his letter this week to the UNP secretary, and with it relegated himself from respected public figure to everyday politician. And when Mr. Kadirgamar asks how could the state media give the UNP coverage when the UNP does not come for interviews, he does not say what it has got to do with a state media daily news bulletin containing six news items for the PA, two for the JVP and one for the UNP and an attack on the Buddhist monks contesting the polls. The private media may have its own agendas, but no self-respecting newspaper would deliberately twist facts or ignore public events. If they do so, they run the peril of losing credibility and with it, readership/viewership. And who says the private media supports the Prime Minister? The state media bosses do - as if one day, if all the private newspapers endorse the President and her alliance for the next elections, the state media will thenceforth support the Prime Minister and his alliance. It is, indeed, such a shame that even the likes of Mr. Kadirgamar was unable to make a difference. In most democracies, there is no such thing as state media. In some countries like Japan, there is even no Media Ministry. Political leaders are left to their own devices to win the support of the Press. It is only in Communist countries that one found state control over the media, and political commissars heading the institutions. The world is moving away from this phase into a new Information Age. It’s not that the hogging of the state media is the sole prerogative of the PA. Successive UNP administrations have opted to make no change to this pathetic situation by inducing professionalism instead of propaganda, only to complain when the dice is stacked against them. It is so unfortunate that the state media, with all its resources and funds, is not providing intelligent articles of political debate or chat shows with independent moderators and decent analysts discussing issues an intelligent electorate richly deserves. Of late, state TV has begun telecasting some skits on election violence and how opposing candidates fight over the 'manape' (preference) vote, and then get together while their supporters continue to kill each other. That’s the way state media ought to be utilised - to benefit the political process and the people who fund it - not a political alliance that controls it. |
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