Dipankar Gupta, professor in sociology at Jawaharlal Nehru University, in Mail Today:
“I would rather go for low-brow tabloids any day. At least they address matters that concern us and connect with our little lives….
“The popular press and the media, in general, are blamed for wallowing in sensationalism and pandering to gross readership and viewership standards. That may well be true, but news around Aarushi‘s murder, the brutal massacre of the old couple next door, the fashion fantasies, the tales of bribery and corruption, are the kinds of things that really matter to us. At least, they are closer to our lives….
“True, tabloids are generally not very professional, but how clued in are the rest to purvey and relish the other kind of news? Given this lack of dogged professionalism at all levels, we might as well openly acknowledge the virtues of tabloid journalism. At least they come up with the real news!”
Cross-posted on sans serif
churumuri 
I agree with this in so far as journalists and journalism are concerned. It is not as if journalists who write on other subjects –economy, politics, social problems –are any more or any less informed that those who write on crime and neighbourhood issues. While the mistakes of the latter group are wont to be spotted and discussed threadbare, not many know the intricacies of the other subjects. So the same goof-ups and irresponsible reporting don’t get highlighted as much as it does in tabloid journalism.
The day when a newspaper/channel’s reports or analysis on international politics, economy and other so-called weighty matters are similarly dissected by the common man would be the day when broadsheets true colours are revealed –they are populated by paparazzi (in a broad sense to cover the journos as well) of the armchair kind!
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Why are there so many upper caste Bengalis in JNU and Indian media?
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Tabloid or Dailies, last mile survivors will be the ones rich in quality, and on the local news.
Soon the print media dynamics is going to change or is changing…someone oversaw this i suppose that is why broadsheets are slowly foraying into tabloid business.
I think, one should never underestimate the importance of local language, culture and its immediate surrounding.
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Pornography also connects with our little lives.
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G3S.
pornography is a word in the right direction but it does not go far enough.
this thing is more vulgar and aims to violate non-consenting non-actors.
its more like snuff.
what nonsense man, dipankar gupta. people are not pissing for reporting the real news of the murder. people are pissing on the snuff that was made of it.
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Times of India pioneered ‘dumbisation’ of news in India, in the name of market demands.
Result? Times of India became rich. The youth became dumb.
Subsequently, hysterical TV news channel made Times of India look like a greenhorn, with its Balaji tele-serials kind of news reporting. Sensationlise. Scream. Breaking News even if a VIP farts.
Shorn of any intellectual depth, today’s news reporting is turning us into a nation of soap addicts (Arushi murder case is like a soap opera, people are glued in to the sets to watch the next episode on the news channels).
How can we turn Bangalore into a knowledge city, when our media focuses on everything else but knowledge?
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Nowadays I prefer Internet Blogs for National Media. Internet is the way to go. It is free and colloborative and you can get to hear all the view points. I would any day prefer Churumuri to Deccan herald or TOI. Although Churumuri depends on these news paper for its news and does not have a formal reporting coverage, it does highlight the news which is most significant. Way to go Churumuri.
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Ouch! How patronising can you get Prof Gupta.
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True.. your buddy’s tabloid – Lankesh Patrike (or whatever that rag is called) connects with your ‘small’ life :-)
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