Wednesday 12 July, 2006

Dead bodies on TV...please desist

The TV channels are falling over each other trying to show as much gore as possible. Not only does it scare and disgust the viewers, it also robs the dead of the dignity they deserve.
I would be writing mails to all news channels...could anybody please supply some email addresses?
This might seem a diversion, but I think it is time we put an end to this macabre voyeurism.

21 comments:

  1. plz try sending smses too...

    ndtv: sms 6388
    ibnlive: sms 2622

    editor@ibnlive.com

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  2. I hope the display is not disrespectful to the victims ...

    It is also important for us the people to absorb the intensity of the crime so we may remember it when when we release terrorists.

    Closing our eyes to reality only helps the perpetrators of such crimes.

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  3. I totally agree with this the media in india does not respect people and there needs to be some kind of censorship.

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  4. You are correct.This guys seemt to do more nonsense than actually happend

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  5. agree with gieve.

    newscasters should respect the gore they are filming, but it also sends out a stronger message to the local and international community that these deserve much more serious attention than american idol and saas bhi kabhi bahu thi.

    whats more, its good that the media shows the full extent of the horror than the western tendency to keep everything behind wraps and give the public a false sense of security.

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  6. I second Gieve unconditionally !

    All the hard-earned tax payers money swolled head first by these diabolic pythons !! spittin out "Thank you suckers" !!

    The damage has already been done !!

    THE TRUTH IS OUT THERE !!!

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  7. The enormity of this tragedy is self evident. Distributing these pictures so quickly is not meant to inform but to increase media ratings.

    The dead and injuried and their families need and deserve respect not exposure during this difficult time.

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  8. I also agrees with this that news channel should avoid showing gore. Mumbaikars may accept the feeling of sad,anguish,anger but they are not frightened, neither should they be promoted to.

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  9. at cooper hospital in vile parle, the TV crews actually added to the mayhem when the injured and the dead were being shifted on stretchers.
    i remember this young man crying and the cameraman was tryin to get a close up shot of him.
    the insensitivity is disgusting.

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  10. If you feel strongly about the images beamed on the Indian TV channels, blog against it, that is the lest we can do. I am trying to aggregate all such links here.

    If you choose to blog do drop the link at this post or my post.

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  11. we WITHOUT DOUBT need to know what's happnened...
    but IMMIDIATELY after the blasts?
    some consideration shown to those dead and their families could be nice...
    and shoving mikes in the faces of those who have just discovered a dead relative asking them what EXACT Time they did they discover that he had died?
    why?
    why now?

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  12. Nandan, you have picked up a right topic !!

    This is the mail I sent to India TV (mail@indiatvnews.com) at 1:30 AM today.

    India TV,
    I was watching your coverage of the Mumbai Blasts and am very upset by your choice of journalism. Showing the gory images shot by some curious onlookers was really a cheap thing to do. Thousands of people of Mumbai and their families waiting for them at home were looking for information on their loved ones. So showing lists of injured and dead would have been much more appropriate than showing the bloodshed.
    Even during 9/11 in US and 7/7 in US, there wasn't a single image of a dead body shown in any media. People like you are using the freedom you have to gain cheap publicity and to create sensation. Please understand that ..showing the gory images of bloodshed spreads fear .... and that was the main agenda of the terror groups behind today's mishap. So in a way, you are helping the terrorist in their agenda.
    Rajat Sharma and gang ,.... get a life. Either help the situation or get lost !! You guys are PATHETIC !!

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  13. Times Now - SMS 8888

    I agree that all news channels should desist from showing gory scenes of dead bodies.

    At the same time lets all ensure that we stay united to show the crackpots that they r the fools who think they can crack us.

    God Bless the amazing people who were the first to react and save so many lives, before the authorities could react.

    I have of late got more respect for the mumbai police with its more helping nature, which I saw yesterday on andheri-kurla road, stopping autos/taxis and putting passengers in them, so that things stayed as normal as possible.

    Way to go my amchi mumbai fellows.
    God Bless you all.
    Dhananjay Singh

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  14. hey guys..
    as much as i agree that v shud noe the extent of the horror caused due to the blast...i strongly feel that the tv channels r just sensationalising everything..its not a very gud sight to c the scenes over n over agen...nobody deserves that..i hope they get over it...
    take care all of u...
    n keep posting

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  15. The truth is known to all. Channels need not substantiate the truth by showing the graphic images. May be a little warning before the gore is shown, would leave the viewer with his own choice.

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  16. rrmital@rediffmail.comagupta@expressindia.com
    steena@vsnl.com
    reenamital@expressindia.com

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  17. hello nandan,
    You r right in a way but u know in situation like these news channels are the fastest mode which lets information out.It provides information to old people and illiterate who cannot access the net like you and me to get information online.
    It is sad but the truth which everyone has to accept.
    But you can surely make the media aware of the hype they create on certain sensetive issues.

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  18. SERIAL BLASTS IN MUMBAI. IT'S HIGH TIME INDIA FOLLOW THE EXAMPLE OF ISRAEL AND GETS INTO POK AND FINISH THE TERROISTS BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE!





    Thursday, July 13, 2006

    Dear Sir.

    It pains me to see that India, time and again, has failed to wield the hammer against the lowly terrorist, often letting its citizens down. And despite what our leaders would have us believe, we are a soft State: a fact fully understood and exploited by terrorists.
    After every such attack, the political establishment makes some threatening noises, hails the spirit of the civilians, holds aloft the pennant of peace, even launches buses to inimical nations, and then sits tight on its backside till the next wave of bombs rips the stuffing out of its citizenry. Then it is back to the same idiotic idiom.
    But the common man, who actually bears the brunt of terrorism, has a different view, as that train ride told me. India needs to hit them where it hurts the most: squeeze the breath out of their networks, starve them for funds, take out their leaders (who we claim to know are hiding in this country or that), smash their hideouts, terrorise their associates.
    No sooner is such an opinion voiced than human rights groups, 'saner' elements in the political firmament, self-styled negotiators and strategists jump into the fray to say: 'No, no, we should engage these 'people' in a dialogue. We are a peace-loving nation and terrorism needs to be resolved through peaceful means, through tolerance, through negotiations, abiding by international laws.'
    We are told: 'We need to fight terrorism by understanding what triggers it and then remedying the situation. And by making 'them see reason.' Reason, my foot! The next thing you know' that bloke will be stuffing a dynamite stick down your throat and lighting the fuse.
    Many people agree that international terrorism cannot be brought to an end only by the use of bombs and military might, but neither can it be ended with mere talk. What is needed is a heavy dose of ruthless action to go hand in hand with tactical and strategic negotiations.
    The nation should be ready to negotiate, with the underlying condition that if there is any terrorist act against its citizens, there will be hell to pay.

    This is not some original thought. We hear it all the time. The common man says:

    * Strengthen the infrastructure and the intelligence network.
    * Educate the society on how to remain alert and control panic.
    * Set up crack commando groups -- comprising snipers, specially trained and equipped assault teams, state-sponsored combatants -- who will engage in unconventional warfare.
    * Dry up the terrorists' sources of funding: drug trafficking, robbery, extortion, playing on international stock markets, donations.
    * Keep a hawk's eye on hostile locations and smash them up.
    * Take out leaders of these organisations, no matter where they take refuge.
    * Tighten the nation's borders even more, except maybe for trade.

    Not an easy task, but not impossible either. The might of the Indian State is hardly something to scoff at. Disuse of power is worse than its misuse. It is time for Indians to roll up their sleeves, spit on their hands and get to work.


    Best Regards

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  19. The common man as a bystander or as part of a rescue or security team too plays a role in this, in allowing dead bodies to be displayed, atleast in a manner that is insensitive. This largely reflects upon our society's callous attitudes towards such things.

    Whenever possible, one should do something to give respect to a dead body. This can involve closing the eyes, covering the body with a sheet, protesting against its photographing, moving it away from the middle of the road, and so on.

    Respecting the dead is respecting the living.

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  20. I also agrees with this that news channel should avoid showing gore. Mumbaikars may accept the feeling of sad,anguish,anger but they are not frightened, neither should they be promoted to.

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  21. Nandan, even after 2 yrs they haven't changed. The sadism and insensitivity of the TRP-hungry news channels have only doubled. They are still competing with each other to be the first one to show the bloody images and gore.

    They cant do anything about the ineffectiveness of the system, politicians or cops. So they attack grieving family members asking all sorts of irrelevant, irritating and insensitive questions!

    Some of us would feel that they are doing the right thing. After all they are only showing the reality. My friend, so many disgusting realities happen around us every day and if the channels start showing everything, the NEWS and B grade Porn movies wont have any difference.

    There really needs to be some sort of censorship.

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