With reference to my article titled “Spy Vs Spy:
The Anti-Climax” I am reproducing below a strongly-worded, hard-hitting and even
insulting letter received by me from a
distinguished print media journalist for whom I have a lot of regards and
affection and my reply to him:
I know you will probably ignore this message and
send it to the bin. But I wonder what you meant by "Barkha's people"?
At a time when she did great harm to the
credibility of our profession, you defended her stoutly. You tweeted angrily,
wrote sharp letters to Prem Shankar Jha and admirably held on to your position.
Now you use her name to condemn all of us into a
single stereotype, falling for each one of them.
The Radia Tapes exposed the under belly of
journalism. You didn't find abutting wrong in them. But you choose to
constantly take cheap pot shots and speak derisively of journalists every
chance you get.
If you feel so strongly about journalists, why do
you use the rediff or Outlook platforms so extensively? Isn't that a form of
moral dishonesty?
MY REPLY
Thanks. I never ignore messages & reading
material. I read your message too with great interest. My article is not a
criticism of anybody. It is a satire including of my own profession. I have
never used any journalistic platform. I write only for my blog and for web
sites of SAAG and Chennai Centre for China Studies. People take from there.
Some ack and pay. Rediff regularly pays. Outlook and Pioneer have never paid a
single paise since they started using my pieces in 2000. I have never asked
them either. TOI and HT ask me to write twice or thrice a year and pay me
without fail sans my asking for it. I write not for publicity or money, but to
share my thoughts with others. I have about 20,000 regular readers in SAAG.I
write to share my thoughts with them.
I have always been a great admirer of Barkha and a
critic too when warranted. I continue to be her great admirer and hold her in
high esteem. This article was not a criticism of Barkha. I used her Tweets as a
peg to focus on the way the media reacts to such cases. Take care. Raman
5 comments:
I have been following your blogs for a fair amount of time now.I find them to be fairand balanced.One does not have to agree wth the contents of your blog or the views expressed therein as long as the motive is fair and impartial.
Everybody is entitled to his/her views.We must learn to be tolerant and accept the views of others with equal respect.Unfortunately, we seem to have forgotten this.And this causes endless problems in our society today.
Why are we giving attention to "Aman ki aasha", "Radia babe", "lets vacate Siachen for the poor Pakis so that I can get a Kargil type footage when they cheatfully occupy them" journalist?
What is it about Barkha that you admire ?? I am intrigued to be completely honest. I find her a contemptible self serving hypocrite.
Good and informational blog Hotels in Puri.
so Mr Raman,you're into satire now.Could have fooled me!
Post a Comment