It is a strange line of argument, since pundits have written reams on how social media has limited penetration. To claim that farmers and other local folk in Muzaffarnagar were getting incited by updates on social media is beyond ridiculous! Did Sardesai have proof that tractor-riding farmers checked their Blackberries and iPhones for Twitter updates? Did he hear of villagers who took a break from rioting to check their Facebook periodically? If not, his allegations are baseless and HE can be accused of rumour-mongering. Please note that unlike social media, mainstream media still has huge reach and clout in these areas. Rumours tend to spread due to lack of information and the consequent floating of half truths and conjecture. Instead of playing ostrich, if media had done their job and reported the situation earlier, the administration would have been pressurised to act in time. Moreover, a lot of rumours on the ground could have been quashed at inception. Sardesai’s allegation was particularly galling since his own colleague Ashutosh, Managing-Editor at IBN7, went to town with rumours. He made some very serious allegations without providing a shred of corresponding evidence!
Posted on: Thu, 12 Sep 2013 12:37:58 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015