Regrettably, Mashriq is not the only Urdu newspaper whose coverage of the gory events in West Asia has been so shamelessly biased. Worryingly, much of the Urdu language media in India sounds like an Isis mouthpiece. Anyone reliant solely on the Urdu press for information and opinion (and a large section of Muslims reads only Urdu newspapers) would think that Isis is a benevolent and devout religious organisation dedicated to upholding Islamic law and values rather than a blood-thirsty terror group. As much as the Urdu media is guilty of unethical professional conduct in peddling a one-sided picture of a very complex situation it reveals a disturbingly sectarian worldview that critics are likely to seize on to question the secular claims of Indian Muslims. Besides, it has dangerous implications for Shia-Sunni relations in India. Despite their historical differences Indias Shias and Sunnis—unlike their counterparts in Pakistan and most Muslim countries—have a proud record of living in harmony. And any action that may have the effect of bringing this shameful conflict home should be a matter of concern for all right- thinking Muslims. Already Muslim internet chat rooms are buzzing with Shia versus Sunni arguments partly whipped up by this skewed coverage, and there is a danger of it spilling over into the wider public discourse if we are not careful. An analysis of the Urdu press by NewAgeIslam, a progressive Delhi-based news website is revealing. The websites editor Sultan Shahin has shown great courage over the years in challenging Muslim orthodoxy and channelling the debate on Islamic issues into a progressive direction. He believes that by and large the Urdu press is secular but it gets confused and tends to veer to the Right when it comes to reporting religious issues. And that’s what is happening now. firstpost/india/half-truths-lies-urdu-press-1624723.html via Aniruddha Roy
Posted on: Tue, 22 Jul 2014 08:41:23 +0000
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