What's With The News?

What is with the news, but really?

Before, news meant the evening or the morning editions of newspapers or 12-hourly broadcasts on the radio, written tastefully, detailing something of interest that had already happened.

Then came the news channels on the TV. Remember N.E.W.S on DD? Every night we would wait eagerly to see what had happened.

The advent of 24 hour news channels on cable was met with surprise and apprehension by the elders in my family, and dismay by my mother and me. Was it not enough that we had to spend one hour per day watching the news? Were we to be tortured the whole day!!!

My grandfather and father soon tired of the 24 hour news. Especially because of all the lame things that were being categorised as 'sensational', 'breaking news', 'headlines' etc etc, for want of real news. Breaking indeed. They broke my poor grandfather's heart, for being a journalist himself, he had high hopes for the expansion of the news network. He imagined a place and spot for all those important news items, well written articles, that he had to refuse - as an editor, for want of space. Alas! He was disgusted with the lack of detail where it was rightfully due and the suffocating, unwanted details for 'news' that wasn't even worthy of that moniker. And the repetition! Enough to drive one mad with fury.


I think I get my love for the printed word from my grandfather. He would always recall his days as a journalist fondly, and regale us with anecdotes about his stints in the various departments of the newspaper. 

As if that wasn't enough of an ordeal, now we have news being created, bred, secretly guarded, and let out in bits and pieces supposedly to keep the viewers glued to their screens. What does it matter if they are unable to move, terror stricken at the gross disdain that news channels show towards the common man? The attitude seems to be 'You shall see what I show' and not 'I shall show what you want to see'. I refuse to watch it. I do.

And now, I am being deprived of the guilty pleasure I derive from reading the online editions. Ask me why. I am sure you know the answer already. Every time I click on the link to an interesting article, mentally preparing myself to read it, a video pops up. REALLY??!! Why am I being forced to see what I want to read? Agreed a picture can speak a thousand words, but I am not sure a video speaks in the same language.

Oh. Oh! Let's not forget 'the week that is going to be'. Now we present to you what is going to happen in the future. And if it happens, we shall rub in our predictions till you wish we weren't born. And if it doesn't happen, we shall mince our words, and present to you an altered truth. Of course, you misunderstood us! Everything is news.

Why is there a dearth of the written word? Why can't I be let in peace to READ an article of news? And then, as if this is not enough blasphemy, we now have 'twitter' and 'facebook' reviews. The week, day, hour, minute, second that has been on twitter. No. I refuse to be the landfill where you can dump whatever you want.

Give me back my written article. Give me back my review of really important news. There are so many life changing things of wide-spread impact happening. And I am not speaking of the royal wedding. I do not want to know if there is a doll, pizza, broom or cheese stick made to commemorate the wedding. I definitely do not give a damn if they got the ear, nose, mouth or hairstyle wrong of the royal couple. argh..

Does anybody else find this frustrating?