What have Muslims done to become the biggest stars of TV, behind only Prime Minister Narendra Modi, but not of newspapers?
Why, nothing, actually. It’s what the media has done unto them. Television news channels can’t live without them; newspapers can.
Which is why when the PM said that opposition parties accused “us…but the truth is that these people are the ones saying Musalmaan, Musalmaan…”, during his speech in Bhopal Tuesday, he was not entirely accurate. TV news – Hindi news channels more than English ones – chant ‘Musalmaan Musalmaan’ throughout each day, 365 days of the year.
And, often they do so by quoting politicians of all parties, including the BJP, and organisations such as the Bajrang Dal or the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen.
The print media, the English section at least, is far more miserly in its references to Muslims—or to Hindus. Is this difference because “Musalmaan’ attracts TV viewership or because it neatly fits into the majoritarian political narrative?
Whatever be the reason, this week is as good an example as any: first, there was the controversy over Barack Obama’s remarks to CNN International on “Muslims” in India. This was followed by the Uniform Civil Code introduced into the “2024 agenda” by Modi (India Today) in his Bhopal speech. Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma’s sneering comment regarding “many Hussain Obama in India’ was became a high octave headline on news channels.
The PM’s pitch for ’one nation, one law’ is major news and received its due in newspapers too, but the Obama incident barely got a look in at Hindustan Times, The Hindu, or The Times of India. And when it did, Monday, it was because of Union Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s scolding of Obama.
Once she had spoken, the news channels found their voice: “Obama doublespeak exposed… Nirmala tears into US ex-Prez,” said Times Now. Its sister channel Times Now Navbharat found a Muslim angle to refute Obama: “Modi ke saath Musalmaan,” it wrote.
Some news channels detected the dark shadow of conspiracy hanging over the Obama kissa: “Musalmaan par takkar, international chapter,” said India TV. Which brings us to none other than Arnab Goswami — “Barack Obama joining the tukde tukde brigade,” he hollered and proceeded to smear the former president’s reputation, calling him “bloodthirsty” with more “Muslim deaths” on his hands than anyone else.
This kind of histrionics can only be to attract viewership.
Other senior BJP leaders, including Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, rapped “Obama ji” on the knuckles and TV dutifully sang out shrilly about each one of them. The most unusual voice news channels used to “slam’ Obama was that of Johnnie Moore, ex-commissioner of USCIRF who also found his way into The Times of India, too, where the paper said he “takes on Obama”.
Otherwise, there was a curious lack of enthusiasm for Obama in the print media, perhaps because, as The Indian Express wrote in its editorial ‘Obama Quote Unquote’, the “Delhi establishment’s” reactions was “uncalled for”, even though the former US leader’s “timing and tone sounded off-key”.
Why Obama chose to publicly say what he has said before, while Modi was in the US, is a mystery but CNN International and the correspondent Christiane Amanpour succeeded in creating an international incident.
Also read: Star-struck TV channels lavish praise on Modi like Americans spread peanut butter on bread
PM’s pitch
As was to be expected, PM Modi’s “110 minute stunner” in which he “scoffs” at the Opposition (CNN News 18) was the only news on TV after he had delivered it. We heard replays, excerpts and then learned discussions on “Modi v/s rest” (CNN News 18). There were many references to “Musalmaan bhai behen”, which was only natural given that the PM devoted considerable time to them — “Pasmanda Muslim ke saath… BJP ka haath”, reported Bharat Express.
While TV channels also highlighted Modi’s “scathing attack” (Times Now) on the Opposition, newspapers combined this with the Uniform Civil Code angle to his speech: “PM pitches for UCC, slams oppn’s ‘vote bank politics’,” read the TOI headline.
What the newspapers did, successfully, was to explain Modi’s remarks, in his speech, that the Supreme Court had endorsed the UCC. The Hindu, TOI and Express provided detailed backgrounders to the SC’s point of view.
It’s not news
What the newspapers don’t do is chase after ‘Musalmaan’ like TV news. And the TV stories can are indiscriminate, just as long as Muslims are involved and can be named. Hence, “Aurangzeb v/s Savarkar” suddenly appeared on Times Now Navbharat; India TV had the story of a young Hindu girl who had converted to Islam, but was then deserted by her husband and threatened with violence and death.
‘Breaking news’ Wednesday morning was of “Lift mein bakra” (TV 9 Bharatvarsh) and soon enough India Today picked on the animal too: ‘War over goat,” it reported, adding that a Muslim family in Mumbai had brought a goat into their flat, located in an apartment building, for Bakr-Eid, and other (Hindu) inhabitants had objected with chants of “Jai Shri Ram”.
This is tabloid journalism but it targets the ‘Musalmaan’ too. Is it even news?
If there have to be stories, why can’t there be more like the one from Badrinath where Muslims and Hindus met and settled that Bakr-Eid would be observed in Joshimath and not Badrinath? (News 24)
The author tweets @shailajabajpai. Views are personal.
(Edited by Prashant)