Is news really as boring and misinformative as it is portrayed to be? I asked Mr. Kapoor, a shop keeper in my locality this exact question.
Q: Do you watch the news regularly?
Mr. Kapoor: yes! I make sure to be regularly informed of all that happens around me. Whether it is about our country or another.
Q: Many find the news boring and repetitive, do you?
Mr. Kapoor: sometimes I feel like they stretch some news more than it ought to be but usually news is pretty interesting.
Q: How long have you been keeping up with the news?
Mr. Kapoor: I have been reading newspapers since I was 15 but I believe it has only been around 10 years since I started watching the news on television. My family was never really that rich and television was considered a luxury at that time.
Q: Do you believe that social media is a good source of news?
Mr. Kapoor: not really, although social media is a good way of encouraging the youth to watch the news, it is hardly reliable. Since anybody is free to post on social media, fake news is becoming increasingly common and even the trusted sources only post about topics that are ‘trendy’, the Russia-Ukraine war is still going on but it it is no longer in the spotlight. The same people who went out of their way to show support to Ukraine now don’t even bother keeping up with the events. Sych is the fickle mindedness of social media
Q: Does the news broadcasted on television on the other hand lack flaws?
Mr Kapoor: Not at all! Indian news channels are far from perfect. Cases of manipulation of media and unnecessary dramatical presentation of news are a major issue in Indian news and no one denies that but at least the news channels have a reputation to uphold. Internet trolls on the other hand act anonymously and have no moral repercussions.
Mr. Kapoor presented many amazing points today and I for one am going to be pondering upon his words for a long time
-Written by Meir Singh Pandher