Rajdeep Sardesai is the latest entrant in the Barkha Dutt-Arnab Goswami controversy.
In a generic (and seemingly balanced) blog post titled “Why I Will Not Speak on The Arnab-Barkha War”, Sardesai claimed that he wanted to stay out of the ongoing social media showdown – but he has finally decided to give in.
The altercation between the two leading journalists started when Arnab on his popular Newshour debate reprimanded the media for siding with Pakistan – calling them “anti-Indians”.
Having been bitten in the past, I didn’t want to join the viper’s den which platforms like Twitter have been reduced to: 24x7 rage machines where every attempt is made to throw darts at public figures, often under the guise of anonymity.Rajdeep Sardesai’s Blog Post
‘Hateful Vitriol’
Sardesai claimed to be inspired by US First Lady Michelle Obama’s speech at the Democratic National Convention, particularly the part where she talks about not stooping to the level of bullies. While recognising that her speech was made in the American political context, Sardesai wrote that it might well have been set in India, where public figures (read: Arnab) spew hateful vitriol.
Seemingly, Sardesai wishes for Barkha to be the bigger person – and not indulge in name-calling when faced with demagogue bully Arnab.
But when Barkha has been on the receiving end of social media vitriol on a daily basis, with a primetime anchor now adding fuel to the “anti-national” fire, isn’t promoting pacifism – without lending any substantial support – the coward’s way out?
Perhaps Not as ‘Neutral’ As He Hopes?
Sardesai then launches into a social commentary on the current times under the Bharatiya Janata Party, and opines that hate when aligned with power, gives rise to highly polarised discourses. He regrets this binary of being either a ‘desh bhakt’ or a ‘pseudo-liberal’; a nationalist or an anti-national.
Here is where his ‘neutral’ stance shifts towards Barkha Dutt. He openly expresses his disdain for the TRP-motivated theatrics in the newsroom, sensational tabloid journalism, ultimately claiming a moral high ground.
Journalism is actually often about being a ‘monkey balancer’, of diligently seeking the truth rather than mindlessly scouring for TRPs, of making sense rather than seeking sensation, of informing the viewer rather than titillating him. [...] I wish to be a journalist who looks for nuance instead of noise, complexity instead of chaos, samvad (dialogue) instead of rhetoric.Rajdeep Sardesai in his blog post
Where Barkha and Arnab Stand
Sardesai talks of the importance of respecting the State while retaining the right to question it – something Barkha has been arguing for – while Arnab’s sense of hyper-nationalism leaves no space for criticism of the sacrosanct State.
In this war, Barkha is arguing for nuance, creative licence, and a larger liberty to express dissent and opinion – while Arnab, targeting the somewhat Leftist proclivities of journalists, thinks that criticism of the State instantly makes one either a Pakistan sympathiser or ‘anti-national’.
Sardesai, through his messages of peace, calm and dialogue, is picking a side – and it isn’t Goswami’s.
But Where Does Mr Sardesai Really Stand?
Rajdeep has successfully convinced people that he is a neutral voice in this fiasco, and they won’t scratch beneath that surface.
But given that people are literally being charged by police and physically attacked over perceived ‘anti-nationalism’, it is surprising that he hasn’t come out in vocal support of Barkha Dutt – even though his stance puts him squarely on her side.
Nor does he dismiss her haters who accuse her of being a ‘Pakistani’. He has tried to obfuscate his true position with arguments about neutrality, and claims to have done so to avoid ‘public criticism.’
Meanwhile, Barkha Dutt has been viciously targeted on social media, even more so because she is a woman who doesn’t parrot every thought of the upper-caste, right-wing Hindu male. Vocal support for her could have gone a long way in silencing the trolls, and his ‘neutrality’ could be viewed as complicity in the unfair attacks she has been subjected to.
Rajdeep Sardesai’s stance, therefore, has ultimately failed to create the balance he seeks.
Source: RajdeepSardesai.net
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