India’s radio and TV electronic media have been urged to respect gender rights after a social media backlash against poor reporting of women’s dress standards. NJ Thakuria reports for AsiaRadioToday.

Journalists in the state of Assam recently got a taste of the power of alternate media when a newly launched news channel bowed down to massive outrage and condemnation in social media against a report it had telecast a few weeks ago.

Finally, the editor of the satellite news channel Pratidin Time had to beg unconditional apology for the mistake.

The issue started when a news story on the channel allegedly insulted young ladies who wore shorts and skirts to face the hot and humid summer season of far-eastern India.

The girls were shown without blurring their faces and definitely without their consent in their routine activities on the streets.

The news story was accompanied by sensual Bollywood movie songs and the reporter as well as the narrator – both male – indicted that in the name of fashion, many Guwahati girls now-a-days prefer to bare their bodies.

Shockingly, the television report, titled ‘Scantily-clad girls, a summer-time nuisance!’ compared those fashion-clad young ladies with some ‘dressed’ monkeys.

Slowly but steadily a debate started on facebbok about the news report. A group of angry facebook users launched a campaign against the news channel and they had urged the Union government to take necessary actions against it.

Bipasa Kashyap, a gender rights activist said that the women of Guwahati are in danger as there have been several incidents involving girls being dragged out of bars and then attacked.

“The reason they gave for their actions was they were loose women…these self claimed journalists, supported by their concerned editors do not even spare little girls of taking shots that are unimaginably indecent,” added Kashyap.

The debate and anger against the news channels soon overcome the alternate media space to pouring in public spaces. A number of protest demonstrations were organized by the internet savvy youths of Guwahati against the unethical journalism practice adopted by various news channels. An official complaint was also lodged in a Guwahati based police station by the demonstrators.

North East Network (NEN), a Guwahati based woman-centric organization,  came out with a statement condemning the news channel for telecasting the news item which, according to it, tends to promote moral policing in the name of local culture.

“We oppose any kind of news/views which degrades women’s status in the society and also demean their mobility, visibility and sexuality. The way this news item portrays women’s bodies amounts to voyeurism and stalking (354c and 354d) and is punishable under the Indian Penal Code,” said Anurita P Hazarika of NEN.

She asserted that the journalists do not have the authority to disgrace women by commenting on their dress code, clothing choices, appearances, lifestyle, private choices & rights.

Moral policing is against women’s empowerment and equality between men and women in the society, she added. “Any responsible news channel is expected to mould public opinion on lessons of gender equality, social justice and peace, and not further disintegrate the society by promoting moral policing in the name of culture,” concluded the NEN statement.

Facing the heat of protests, the editor of Pratidin Time posted an apology on facebook.  

The channel editor Nitumoni Saikia initially claimed that it was an unnecessary controversy created by a section of people in the social media over a piece of news telecast two months back.
He also argued that the said news report was prepared on the basis of widespread discussions relating to such indecent dress codes adopted by some girls in the city.

However, the Pratidin Time editor affirmed that the news channel had no intention to hurt anyone’s sentiment. “If the broadcast of the news item has hurt someone, PratidinTime apologizes to everyone concerned,” he stated.

Taking responsibility of the news item, the channel editor added that the particular news item was withdrawn from its website and the concerned reporter was already warned against repeating such mistakes in future.

Lately, the Electronic Media Forum Assam (EMFA) has urged all the news channels to follow the relevant guidelines while presenting news or other items.

The EMFA in association with Guwahati Press Club also launched a series of orientation programmes inclusive of gender-rights training for the benefit of local television scribes in enhancing their capacity and wisdom.

Here are some comments posted by users on the YouTube video of the story which went viral.