In the past 3 days, 3 agenda driven news peddled zealously by the mainstream media and the intellectual elite were proven to be utterly false. With the accused in the Mecca-Masjid Blast Case cleared of charges by a special court of the NIA, the ‘Saffron Terror’ narrative of the Congress party was dealt a fatal blow. Then, the unfortunate murder of Junaid which was given a communal spin by the media and the intellectual elite was revealed to have been prompted by a dispute over seat-sharing rather than any communal cause. And of course, the desperate attempt by certain sections of society to malign a Hindu festival by alleging that semen-filled balloons were hurled at them was revealed to be false as well.
Despite their agenda being proven false time and again, the media has hardly displayed any inclination towards rectifying the problem that plagues their profession. It appears they have consciously abandoned their professional ethics and have devoted their full attention towards working as full time propagandists. The media has forsaken its primary duty to report facts as they are and has resorted to accepting at face value anything that suits their agenda. The basic skepticism that should accompany the reportage of such outlandish claims was merrily sacrificed at the altar of propaganda.
Over time, a trend has emerged in the media. The mainstream media will create a narrative over an incident the details of which are yet murky, then whip up a torrent of anti-BJP and anti-Hindutva sentiment, then latch on to a series of other similar incidents to peddle their agenda. Invariably, after a few months, their whole narrative falls apart after crucial details emerge which prove beyond any shred of doubt that the entire narrative was based on half-truths and entire lies. However the damage is already done by then. By the time the details emerge, the media is already busy building another narrative that will fall apart in the next few months and thus, life goes on. History is testament to the fact that the source of the problem cannot be trusted with rectifying it. The media has made it obvious that peddling fake news is a feature of their profession and not a bug. Therefore, the cost of peddling such fake news and deliberate communal polarization of crimes must be made high. Stringent measures must be enforced to ensure that while the media is free to indulge in malpractices, they have to pay significantly for that privilege. Thus far, Narendra Modi has shown little inclination towards punishing miscreants in the media who have made maligning the Hindu identity the sole objective of their existence.
Not a single apology has been issued by the Congress Party or the mainstream media for their continued attack on the Hindu identity. They have simply shrugged off the details which have put a nail on the coffin of their agenda, and are continuing with their propaganda as if nothing ever happened. It is imperative now that the costs are raised for the mainstream media and that they are made to pay for every transgression they commit. Unless such provisions are made, Hindutva and the BJP will continue to suffer at the hands of propagandists who have long since abandoned their affiliation to journalistic ethics.
