TRP Scam India: Mumbai police summon Republic TV's executive editor and journalist

Mumbai: The Mumbai Police on Tuesday issued a summons to Republic TV's executive editor and a journalist working with the channel in connection with the fake TRP racket it is probing, an official said.

Niranjan Narayanaswamy, executive editor - news, and journalist Abhishek Kapoor have been summoned by the Crime Intelligence Unit (CIU) at 12 noon on Wednesday, he said. On October 10, Republic TV had aired a document, which purportedly belonged to Hansa Research Group and "there are reasonable grounds to believe that the summoned persons are acquainted with certain facts and circumstances of the document and same is required to be ascertained from them", the summons said.

The CIU on Tuesday recorded statements of Pravin Nizar and Nitin Deokar of Hansa agency. The Special Investigation Team of the Crime Branch also visited the office of BARC and made enquiries with some officials including its scientific and technology officer, the police official said.

Vinay Tripathi, arrested by the CIU in the case, has been brought to the city on transit remand and four other accused who were arrested earlier in the case have been sent in police custody till October 16, he said. 

The fake TRP scam came to light when ratings agency Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) filed a complaint through Hansa Research Group, alleging that certain television channels were rigging TRP numbers. Hansa is one of BARC's vendors on engagement with panel homes or people's meters.

Last week, Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh had claimed that Republic TV and two Marathi channels -- Box Cinema and Fakt Marathi -- manipulated TRP. Republic TV rubbished Singh's claims.

Caught on Camera: CNN Reporter gets interrupted by raccoon just before live broadcast

A CNN reporter was just about to go live on television when he was interrupted by a racoon outside the White House.

The encounter, which was caught on camera on Tuesday and was shared widely on social media shows CNN senior Washington correspondent Joe Johns shouting “get lost” and throwing something before he turns back to face the camera. According to a CNN report, Johns was seconds away from going live to provide an update on the president’s health when he spotted the raccoon.

His colleague Omar Jimenez who shared the video on Twitter captioned, “Protector of the night. The hero we deserve. Joe. Johns. The raccoons never stood a chance.” The video has received over 1.9 million views and 5.4k likes as netizens hail Johns’ racoon fighting skills.

Protector of the night.
The hero we deserve.
Joe. Johns.

The raccoons never stood a chance. @joejohnscnn pic.twitter.com/ImyBjZXw42

— Omar Jimenez (@OmarJimenez) October 7, 2020

Some users are also asking if they could avail Johns services and get rid of the racoons at their locality. “Like a bouncer at a night club!” said one user, she further said, “Joe, Can you stop by and get rid of our racoons when you're done there? I like your style!” While another Twitter user said this might be President Donald Trump’s way of attacking the media who have been critical of his administration.

Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict: 4 journalists injured in Nagorno-Karabakh fighting

Yerevan: Two French and two Armenian journalists were injured Thursday in the South Caucasus separatist region of Nagorno-Karabakh, where heavy fighting between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces this week marked the biggest escalation in years of a decades-old conflict.

The two Le Monde reporters were wounded in morning shelling in the town of Martuni, the newspaper said. Armenia’s Foreign Ministry said they were being taken to hospital, and accused Azerbaijan of bombarding the Martuni region. A cameraman with the Armenia TV channel and a reporter with the Armenian 24News outlet also sustained injuries in the Martuni shelling, Armenian officials said. It was unclear how badly the four journalists were hurt. A Russian journalist with the independent Dozhd TV channel was reported to have safely reached a bomb shelter.

Clashes in Nagorno-Karabakh, a region within Azerbaijan that has been controlled by ethnic Armenian forces backed by the Armenian government since the end of a separatist war a quarter-century ago, broke out on Sunday and continued unchecked, killing dozens and leaving scores wounded. Armenian and Azerbaijani forces have been blaming each other for continuing attacks.

The two ex-Soviet nations have been locked for decades in a conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh, where a separatist war was fought in the early 1990s, ending in 1994, three years after the breakup of the Soviet Union. The 4,400-square-kilometer (1,700-square-mile) enclave in the Caucasus Mountains, roughly the size of the U.S. state of Delaware, lies 50 kilometers (30 miles) from the Armenian border.

Soldiers backed by Armenia occupy the region as well as some Azerbaijani territory outside of it. The president of Azerbaijan said Armenia’s withdrawal from Nagorno-Karabakh was the sole condition to end the fighting. Armenian officials claim Turkey has become involved in the conflict, allegedly sending fighters from Syria to the region and deploying Turkish F-16 fighter jets to assist Azerbaijnai forces.

Turkey has publicly supported Azerbaijan in the conflict and said it would provide assistance if requested, but denies sending in foreign mercenaries or arms. Continued fighting in the turbulent region prompted calls for a cease-fire from around the globe and raised concerns of a broader conflict potentially involving other regional powers.

French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday has expressed concern about Turkey allegedly sending Syrian mercenaries to support Azerbaijan. Macron’s office said in a statement Thursday that he and Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed the issue in a phone call Wednesday night, and both share concern about the sending of Syrian mercenaries by Turkey to Nagorno-Karabakh.” Macron’s office did not provide further information about the mercenaries.

The Russian Foreign Ministry on Wednesday expressed concerns over reports about “militants from illegal armed groups, in particular from Syria, Libya” being sent to the conflict zone in Nagorno-Karabakh. The ministry didn’t provide further details, but in a statement urged the “leadership of the states concerned to take effective measures to prevent the use of foreign terrorists and mercenaries in the conflict”.

Macron said he and Putin called for restraint and agreed upon the need for a joint effort toward a cease-fire, as part of international mediation efforts for Nagorno-Karabakh led by Russia, France and the U.S. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Thursday refused to comment on Turkey’s alleged involvement in the conflict, but said that “any statements about military support for one of the (opposing) sides” can provoke further escalation of tensions in the region.

“We believe that any participation of third countries in this confrontation can also have extremely negative consequences,” Peskov told reporters.

IJNet: Journalist of the month- independent multimedia reporter Ahmer Khan, 28 years old

At 28 years old, independent multimedia journalist Ahmer Khan has already been nominated for an Emmy for his work alongside a team of reporters on the film “India Burning.” The film, which is part of a series produced by VICE News and Showtime, spotlights the rise of Hindu nationalism in the country. 

Khan was born and raised in Kashmir, a disputed territory between India and Pakistan. He has been reporting since 2013, when he was still in high school. Since then, Khan has worked on projects for various publications including The New York Times, The Guardian, Radio France Internationale, Time, Buzzfeed and the Los Angeles Times covering conflicts, human rights and natural disasters.

“From natural disasters and humanitarian crises, to human rights, I have done it all. But I'm sure there’s still a long road ahead because I'm only 28,” reflected Khan. 

In 2019, Khan won the Agence France Presse Kate Webb Prize honoring journalists working in difficult conditions in Asia. He also won the 2018 Lorenzo Natali Media Prize after discovering the contest on IJNet. 

Also through IJNet, Khan took part in the Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma at Columbia University’s annual four-day crisis zone reporting course. During the program, 16 freelance journalists received training on risk assessment, digital security and emergency first aid to prepare them for reporting in hostile environments. 

We spoke to Khan about his career as a young freelance journalist and his experiences reporting throughout Asia. 

IJNet: How did you begin working as a journalist?

Khan: I was 18-years-old in 2010 and, being from Kashmir, I saw public protests begin happening for the first time. Before this I had only heard about the militancy or public unrest in the 90s, in the early days of my life because I was born ‘92. I started my journey when I was in high school, and in college I did freelance work. [It] started with Al-Jazeera in 2014, and then there was no turning back. In my first year of college I went to Nepal to cover the 2015 earthquake that killed more than 10,000 people over there for VICE News. 

I think the reason I went into journalism was because I saw a lot of trouble in my region in Kashmir, which prompted me to do some sort of reporting to report the truth from our region. I have always worked with international media, which is not as biased as national media in India, and I wanted to be a part of truthful and accurate journalism.

Has growing up in Kashmir affected your work reporting on conflicts?

Having a conflict at home, in your backyard, you tend to learn the trade tricks and what to be aware of. I’ve carried that with me into all my reporting. I've traveled across South Asia to report on other countries, for example, the Rohingya crisis, the crisis in Sri Lanka or Nepal and in mainland India. 

I also need to work on a lot of other stories which are unfolding in front of our eyes because South Asia is rapidly changing in every country right now.

Have any particular stories uniquely impacted you or your work?

I think the crisis which unfolded last August in Kashmir really impacted Kashmiri journalists in the sense that a lot of things have changed for journalists in Kashmir. For example, there's a Kashmiri journalist who was rounded up by police and then assaulted and slapped twice in the police station in the main city of Kashmir.

Because our work had become so restricted, I was traveling in 2019 between Kashmir and Delhi to get information and just to use internet connection because we had no internet at that time for several months. The government set up a small media center in Kashmir for the journalists to use, but there were hundreds of journalists and only four computers — state surveilled computers — allowed for us to use. I decided not to use them and I went to Delhi at least 16 times in the first two weeks. I used to come in the morning and go back in the evening, but we had to wrap up everything by four o'clock in the evening and then take a five o'clock flight because the airport security is a big hassle. It takes hours for us to get through the security check in Kashmir. That was really hard, but my work was awarded a couple of times earlier this year, including by AFP, which really brought me happiness. 

What advice would you offer young independent journalists?

I've always said one thing: “If you're really good, or if the story is really good, it will be sold out no matter who you are or where you are.” 

Editors are always out looking for good stories. Obviously, budget cuts have happened recently, but that's everywhere, not in one part of the world. I think young journalists around the world need to understand that they don't need to think so much about their limitations and instead should think more about their work. Obviously there's a lot of competition out there, but if you believe in yourself, if you believe in your story and if the story is original and you touch the human part of it — because every story has a human part to whether it’s culture, sports, economics, human rights or conflict — I'm really confident that you'll be able to sell your story. 

There's a lot of cutthroat competition out there, there is no denying that, but if you do good stories, I think you’ll go far. courtesy: IJNet

Sexual harassment at workplace: Former journalist of India Today Group, Rukmini Sen explained on social media

➤Rukmini Sen

Year 2012-2013. For one and a half years  India Today group and I exchanged numerous mails about formation of a proper sexual harassment committee so that I could present my case against Mr Supriya Prasad. 

Rukmini Sen, Second from left. Photo FB

Aroon Purie/Kalie Purie/ India Today group didn't take any action  in my sexual harassment case for a year.  They delayed the process of justice. India Today Group/Aroon Purie/ Kalie Purie haven't  done anything since then ie for last six years. It took India Today Group one whole year to form  a sexual harassment committee of sorts. However, this new SHC  didn't have the mandatory external member in it (who was supposed to be either well known in the field of law or women's movement).

I insisted that I must be called in front of a proper sexual harassment committee and that my work place owed it to me. I also refused to present my case in front of a half baked SHC. After a year and a half of my pursuing the case with the legal and HR team of India Today and my repeated refusal to present my case in front of a committee that didn't have the mandatory external member the fake committee sent me a mail that they had decided that Supriya Prasad (male Boss) was innocent because among some other vague reasons apparently I knew him from before...whatever that meant.

I read the survivor  account of PHANTOM FILMS case. I have followed closely the Tarun Tejpal case also. I have learnt a lot  from these survivor stories. I have understood yet again how my professional and personal life suffered because of that one complain and my public protest (without which India Today would not have taken any cognizance of the matter). Its been hard to accept that I have suffered in anyway. I have always believed and rightly so that I have been super lucky with support

One of my mentors  was generous enough to offer me a job when I requested him for one in 2013.  I have never been without work because of my thousand  other friends for last four years.

I have also not been without work because I shamelessly ask for work. I ask for work like someone craving for an internship would . I have never been ashamed of labour. I am a worker and I need work. And yet I must confess that I have lost out monetarily. I have lost out on seniority at work. I am seen as a trouble maker by some because of that one complain and may be because of my larger feminist politics and my acute discomfort with sexism. However, it's been twenty three years of being a professional now. I have re-strategized my work life because partly I have had to and partly because I felt there were better ways of living my life. I have equipped myself with new skills.

My morning mantra is simple - I was 21 when I left Lucknow for work. If I could survive then I will thrive now. And no fucking ex Boss can stop me from that. I am aware of my privileges. A middle class upbringing. A Professor mother. A rock solid and doting father. A feminist younger brother. A bunch of cousins and friends who are  fiercely committed to my well being .

In spite of all that the loneliness of being sidelined from the work that I loved for 18 long years is something I still find challenging to deal with. There are days when I wonder whether I should have just made a polite exit. It hurts me like hell when I get to know how some of my favourite  mentors and friends engage with my harasser...take him out for friendly dinners. I should be angry. Very angry. I should be disappointed.  I, however,  feel utterly confused and hesitantly sad.  Is this my internalised misogyny? Is this my lack of self worth I wonder!! Why is sexual harassment not processed  as structural violence by some of the smartest people in media? 

I would have taken Supriya Prasad to court but I picked up my battle carefully. My father had suffered a brain hamorrage in 2012. He had suffered multiple strokes before that. From 2013-2016 (till he lived) he had to go to hospital every month for blood transfusion as he suffered from internal bleeding. I chose my father's health over my self respect. Life is not a social construct. 

I am aware that because of me India Today group has a sexual harassment committee today. I also know that my complaint is still a complaint.

I am absolutely sure that it makes Supriya Prasad anxious when he wants to lay his hand on any woman, kiss her (which he did with an India Today professional earlier. He was asked to resign that time) or generally humiliate a female colleague with sexist and misogynist comments. Every complaint acts as a deterrent. I have no doubt that mine must have done its bit.

Lastly, if tomorrow any woman is harassed by Supriya Prasad again and she wants me to testify with my case I promise to be the first in the line. In fact I have never walked away from the line. The system failed me.

I will be happy to also discuss how Mr Aroon Purie and Kalie Purie are complicit in playing with the well being of their women professionals. There is no point holding India Today Conclave year after year, discussing violence against women but not identifying sexual harassment at work place as systemic violence.  

I will also not say I was touched, kissed or fondled by Supriya Prasad. Because I wasn't. I was subjected to verbal sexism of worst order. That is part of rape culture. Sexist jokes, sexist insults , sexist outbursts, sexist sidelining at professional space are unacceptable and serious harassment. It has harmed my well being and harms the well being of thousands like me.

I wrote about this extensively on Facebook in 2012. I am writing about it again. And yes as I have said earlier I did file a complain with the Sexual Harassment Committee of India Today. The ball is in their court.

Corona crisis and increasing work pressure are putting journalist's lives in danger

Indore, Madhya Pradesh: In the tension of work in the 70-year-old newspaper of the state, a senior journalist was killed yesterday. Employees are being exploited in newspapers due to the corona period. 

Many employees have been chased away in the old newspaper Naidunia due to this. This has increased the work pressure on survivors. Management and editor are pressuring to work from remaining colleagues. In such a case, a senior journalist was killed.

When output head Ujjwal Shukla asked Piyush Dixit to watch two editions together, Piyush Dixit said it is not possible to get so much work done at once. There was a debate between Piyush and Ujjwal Shukla regarding this. After some time, Piyush's blood pressure increased to a dangerous level. The colleagues lay Piyush on the sofa of the office and Kapish Dubey and Sameer Deshpande started massage Piyush's hands and feet. 

Meanwhile, all the physical activities of Piyush stopped suddenly and he also put his neck aside. Meanwhile, senior companion Ramnath Mutkule suddenly made pressure on his chest with hands, due to which his breath returned. After this, Piyush was taken to hospital and admitted. Work tension and pressure has now become on the lives of journalists. 

Last days old partner of Naidunia Marketing Mh. Iqbal had suddenly died. They came to office a day ago. It is said that they were being pressured for bringing political advertisements. Friends say they were in great stress over this. However, Piyush Dixit's health is fine. Everyone praised the efforts of fellow Ramnath Mutkule. While going to hospital, Piyush started crying and told his colleagues that he has small children and wife. He was more worried about his family not his life.