Sunday Snippets
First difficult lesson in journalism - excerpt from the book
‘The Second Chance’.
…
As Vinod was heading for office, he saw some goons forcibly
evicting some slum dwellers from a small barren plot. The slum dwellers were
shouting themselves hoarse in desperation and were agitated against the forced
and unlawful eviction drive. Until just a few days ago, if Vinod had happened
to pass by such a scene, he would have simply ignored it and gone ahead with
his work. However, now he was a journalist. He had a huge responsibility on his
shoulders.
He quickly parked his scooter on the roadside and went closer
to the area of action. None of the parties noticed him initially, as they were
too busy in their vociferous altercations. However, when he started enquiring
about the matter, he drew some stern looks from the leader of the goons. The
leader looked at him with a pitiful expression and said acerbically, “O Hero,
what is your problem? Mind your own business…”
Vinod’s heart missed a beat. However, he thought, “Nothing
ventured, nothing gained,” and reiterated to himself that he was now a fearless
journalist. He said, “This is my business. You cannot forcibly evict these
people from here…”
The slum dwellers were confused and surprised to find a
messiah in Vinod. No one knew him there.
The leader wondered whether Vinod had any political backing,
to challenge them so fearlessly. Normally, a common man would stay away from
such situations.
He came closer to Vinod and asked, “Who are you?”
“I am Vinod. I am a journalist of Republic Times. I shall
report this news in our newspaper, if you do not stop this illegal eviction
drive right now.”
The leader laughed hysterically, mocking Vinod and signaled
his men to continue their work. Then he said in a cold voice to Vinod, “Look
Mr. Vinod, do whatever you want. We shall continue our work. Remember that we
are Seth Dharam Veer’s men. Now, if you choose to stay here for some more time,
I cannot guarantee your safety. So, stop playing with fire. Think wisely, act
smart and disappear from here.”
He smiled viciously. Vinod was now scared stiff. He realized
he was skating on thin ice. He involuntarily stepped back and then moved away
from the scene to his parked scooter. However, from a distance, he took some
pictures from his camera, just to have some evidence. He noticed that his
heartbeat had raised a bit during this entire episode.
The moment he reached office, he went to Kothari’s cabin and
told him excitedly, “Sir, I have a sensational piece of news. Some goons are
forcibly evicting some hapless slum dwellers in Gandhinagar. I intervened and
tried to stop them, but they threatened me with consequences…”
“Wonderful, Vinod. I am proud of you. This would be a good
scoop for us to report.”
“Yes sir, I suggest that we call the police immediately, and
with proper protection, let us mobilize the residents around that area, to stop
this unlawful eviction.”
“Yes”, Kothari said thoughtfully. “By the way, do you have
any idea, on whose behest those goons were acting?”
“Yes, sir. He was very arrogant when he told me that he was
working for Seth Dharam Veer…”
There was a sudden change in Kothari’s expressions. He asked
cautiously, “Did you reveal your identity in front of them?”
“Yes sir, as responsible journalists, we should not be afraid
of anyone. I told them that I am a journalist working for Republic Times."
Now the concern was palpable on Kothari’s face through his
uncomfortable expressions. Vinod noticed it and asked, “Why sir, any problem?”
Kothari explained in an irritated tone, “We receive our
highest revenue on advertisements from Seth Dharam Veer’s companies. He is our
important client. We cannot publish any matter, which can harm him in any
manner.”
Vinod was struck dumb to see that Kothari was defending Seth
Dharam Veer, only because he was an important client of Republic Times! “So,
where are the ethics of journalism? What moral rights does Republic Times have
to say boldly ‘Truth Shall Prevail” in its tag line?
Words failed him. At that time, the phone on Kothari’s desk
rang. Vinod could see traces of fear on his face, as he picked up the receiver.
“Hello? Kothari here. Good morning?”
Those were the only words spoken by Kothari during that two-minute
telephonic conversation. For the rest of the time, he was only murmuring words
like “Yes, sir”, “Agreed” etc.
After replacing the receiver, Kothari wiped the beads of
sweat from his forehead and gulped down one full glass of water from his table.
He looked at Vinod worriedly. His voice sank to a husky
whisper when he told Vinod, “You have landed us in deep trouble…”
Vinod could sense the trouble. However, his mind was still
not accepting his fault.
Kothari collected his thoughts and spoke in a calm tone,
“Look Vinod, please delete the photos you have taken in your camera today.
Moreover, you are not going to write any report on that incident. Is it clear?”
“Yes sir.”
“You may go now…” Kothari was never so curt in his behaviour
with Vinod.
Vinod left the cabin in a dejected mood. He had learnt the
first lesson in journalism the hard way.
…
‘The Second Chance’ releases in May 2018.
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