Ten years on: why the Hoot needs you to pitch in
The Indian media needs a watchdog like never before. Please contribute so that the Hoot can continue to be a space where media practice is tracked.
Image: The Hoot’s first owl
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2001- 2010 has been a decade of growth for the media in India. It saw the proliferation of print media in regional languages, the burgeoning of satellite and cable television channels, the information revolution on the Internet and mobile telephony.
2001 was the year when we started TheHoot.org, in response to a need felt by journalists who were concerned about the way media was headed. Ten years down the line the media is bigger, more successful, far more in your face, and still a cause for worry. Only this time many more people other than just journalists are concerned about the state of the media. Much has happened in the decade gone by: media trials, live terror coverage, fighting Naxalism and Pakistan out of TV studios, and pretending the bottom half of Indian society does not exist.
Meanwhile, all kinds of people own media. Do we know who they are? Segments of the media are also beholden to many interests. Are we aware of the conflict of interest issues which dog media practice? Of the recurring instances of paid news and cheque book journalism?
The Hoot is now ten years old. And the Indian media needs a watchdog like never before. It is a huge sector for our sharp-eyed owl to watch. Every week its writers present a candid view of how the media is doing its job, of media issues that matter. We now know that the media covers up for its own. When nexuses are exposed by the Radia Tapes the Hoot does not pretend that nothing has happened. It becomes a matter-of-fact platform where such ethical challenges can be discussed.
Apart from providing a space for critiquing the media, the Hoot commissions media research in different parts of the country. We have looked at issues affecting the practice of journalism in Bihar, Kashmir, Nagaland, Assam and Manipur, threats to the media in Orissa, and carried a study on the people who appear as guests on TV shows. We have examined the co-relation between print advertising and print media coverage, where controversial institutions are concerned. The Hoot has a Free Speech Hub which tracks free speech related issues in the country on a daily basis. Our five-state study of coverage in the regional media will soon begin running its findings.
However, right through the decade gone by, finding finances to run the Hoot has been a challenge. The corporate sector would rather befriend the media than alienate it by funding its critics. The wealthy want the powerful media as friends. Grant funds for media watch are not easy to come by in a country where there are many causes to fund. While many citizens have contributed small and big sums over ten years, the grant funding we have received has been meagre. The Hoot’s current funding will end in a year’s time. Funding for the Free Speech Hub has not been renewed.
Our website has well wishers in civil society and in journalists who believe in the core values of the profession. They need to pitch in and help us build a corpus which is the only sustainable way to fund an ongoing civil society initiative. Please contribute so that the Hoot can continue to be a space where the media is held to account. Please forward this to others you know.
Responsible media can build a vibrant democracy, irresponsible, sensational or dishonest media can weaken it. We get the media we deserve. Unless we make an effort to change that.
To learn how to contribute, please visit our Support The Hoot page. And check out who all have supported this initiative over the years.