I vainly search for my favourite television anchors like Karan Thapar and Barkha Dutt. I am told that they have been taken off. Who has done this is a matter of conjecture. Some say that it is the pressure of the Narendra Modi government while a few others lament that it was the doing of …
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August 2, 2017Conceptualise the idea; don't question, just seek information; a no doesn't always mean no; be patient, be persistent – these are some dos and donts a book prescribes for journalists on taking the RTI route for their stories. In “Journalism through RTI: Information Investigation Impact”, senior journalist Shyamlal Yadav tells how the transparency tool has …
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July 7, 2017Members of the media fraternity on Tuesday decided to boycott the proceedings of the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly in protest against the government's decision not to allow video, still cameras and mobile phones inside the House. As soon as the members entered the House, media persons, representing local, national and international media organisations walked …
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July 4, 2017German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said it is "vitally important" to punish those responsible for the "disappearances" of people and especially journalists in Mexico, a media report said. She has also called for the freedom of the press and protection for journalists, two areas in which she promised to help. In 2017 alone, at least …
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June 10, 2017Two foreign journalists headed to Iraq were arrested at an airport here after bullet-proof jackets and gas masks were recovered from their check-in baggage, police said on Tuesday. Anthony Cheng from the UK and Florian Witulski from Germany were set to fly to the Iraqi city of Mosul to cover the ongoing war when they …
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May 30, 2017Most Indians' sense, or rather lack, of punctuality, has been the butt of jokes and often derided. For example, IST (Indian Standard Time) is distorted to spell Indian Stretchable Time! Yet Indians do not seem willing to change. Be it marriage ceremony, party, meeting or any event, reaching late has become a habit. So much …
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May 28, 2017Three days after over 20 city-based journalists were beaten up by police while covering the Left parties' protest march to state secretariat — Nabanna, the city police on Thursday arranged special jackets for media persons so that they could be identified among the crowd during a similar event organised by the BJP. Police distributed fluorescent …
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May 25, 2017Three journalists were among those injured in lathicharge by the city police during a march by Left Front leaders and supporters to the West Bengal Secretariat on Monday. While a senior police officer confirmed injuries to three journalists and promised to identify and take action against those responsible, the Press Club of Kolkata condemned the …
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May 22, 2017Journalists' excessive consumption of alcohol and caffeine leads their brains to function below par, but the love for their job protects their mental resilience, MIT scientists claim. "Journalist's brains compared to other groups showed a lower level of executive functioning – the ability of the brain to regulate emotions, suppress bias, switch between tasks, solve …
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May 21, 2017Minister of State for Home Affairs Hansraj Ahir on Tuesday informed the Lok Sabha that the government has no immediate plans of enacting a new law or amending existing laws to specifically deal with the attacks on journalists. Replying to a question in the Lok Sabha on the attacks on media persons, particularly in Bihar, …
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April 11, 2017Mediapersons performing duties during the Jat agitation at sensitive places in Haryana will be provided body protectors and helmets for safety during any situation of violence. This was announced by Haryana Director General of Police (DGP) K P Singh in Fatehabad on Monday. The DGP enquired about the well being of police personnel and mediapersons …
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March 20, 2017The Punjab government, led by chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh, has decided to exempt mediapersons from payment of toll tax on the state highways. A decision to this effect was taken on Saturday at the maiden cabinet meeting of the new government in Punjab. The cabinet also decided to set up a Press Accreditation Committee, comprising …
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March 18, 2017In a major breakthrough, Manipur Police have identified the militant group that had been threatening local editors. On December 26, a hand grenade was left in the office of the Pandam News evening daily with a note saying that it was a "new year gift to the editors". This triggered a 24-hour cease-work strike by …
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January 10, 2017At least 57 journalists have been killed around the world in 2016 while doing their job, Reporters Without Borders said on Monday. The press freedom group said 19 were killed in Syria alone, followed by 10 in Afghanistan, nine in Mexico and five in Iraq. Almost all of those killed were locally-based journalists. Although it …
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December 19, 2016China has dealt with 84 cases involving fake journalists and media outlets since a campaign against pornographic and illegal publications was launched in June. A recent case publicised by the National Office Against Pornographic and Illegal Publications on Monday revealed a fake reporter surnamed Ma in China’s Hebei province was given six years imprisonment and fined 100,000 …
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September 26, 2016Few realise that even journalists have to keep in mind local sensitivities when gathering information. Often one’s personal emotions have to be suppressed when covering an event. A very senior octogenarian scribe once described how he had to interview an eminent person, who was afflicted by leprosy. Resisting the urge to cover his nose in …
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September 19, 2016