Alok Mehta, Editor, Outlook Hindi
Quality has become a causality and the very foundation of journalism is getting weakened.
Quality has become a causality and the very foundation of journalism is getting weakened.
Mehta has enriched Hindi literature and journalism with his creative works in the form of over half a dozen books like 'Afghanistan; Badlte Chehre' and 'Rao Ke Baad Kaun'. He has received a number of awards like 'National Harmony Award for Journalism' and 'Excellence in Journalism Award.'
As editor of newly launched Hindi Weekly Outlook, Mehta has proved his mettle, with the magazine topping over one lakh circulation within a few weeks of its launch. Mehta has always believed that a high quality content sans sensationalism is a major driver for any publication. But in today's era of branding, 24-hour TV news and cut-throat competition among news papers, Mehta is worried about the erosion of journalistic ethics and decline in journalistic standards.
His concern is clearly reflected in the new Self Code of Conduct for journalists prepared by the Editors Guild of India of which he is the General Secretary.
In this candid interview with exchange4media's Vinod Behl, Mehta talks about the changing face of journalism and the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.
Q. On contract system in media… "Contract or no contract, it does not really make any difference to good journalists. There are publications where even after the introduction of contract system, the quality did not improve. On the other hand, publications like Outlook, which have permanent staff, are able to deliver good quality content.
Q. On price war among newspapers… "To me, it is only a short run game, which does not work in the long run. I believe in healthy competition. Hindi press has a role to educate society. It is however sad that today this important role has been diluted. In a bid to push up circulation, quality has become a causality. This is not good for the society. "
Q. On the challenge of being Hindi Outlook Editor... After leaving the editorship of Hindi daily Dainik Bhaskar with a whopping circulation of 18 lakhs, obviously, the editorship of a new Hindi weekly was a big challenge. When we came out with the concept of weekly news cum family magazine, people held that magazines (particularly a goody-goody magazine) won't work in the era of 24 hour news channels. But I have been of the firm belief in the last 32 years of my journalistic experience with dailies and weeklies that Hindi readers do not want trash. Instead, they want to read quality material. And the readers who have appreciated our quality and innovative contents have vindicated my belief. And the fact that Hindi Outlook has crossed circulation of one lakh within a couple of months of its launch, is indicative of its growing popularity.
Q. On the USP and content strategy of Hindi Outlook... "The content, the design and packaging is our USP. We have a liberal democratic approach with no leanings towards any political ideology. In line with Outlook Editor-in-Chief Vinod Mehta's vision of a Hindi magazine with high journalistic standards, our sole target is not to push circulation. Instead, our strength is our quality. In the past, several Hindi weeklies closed down because they were imposing their ideas on the readers. Keeping this in mind, we went for an extensive readership survey before the launch of the magazine. And we have designed our content strategy on the basis of the survey findings. The professional approach of our Publisher and Head of Marketing team Mr.Mahesh Peri also helped us to bring out best product.TV has changed the habits of readers who now want crisp stories. As such we are offering crisp quality reading material. Even our indepth stories now run into 3-4 pages in line with the global trend. We have deliberately avoided sensationalism because we believe that you can sell without making your publication sensational. Newspapers like Tribune and Hindu are the fine example of this. Unlike our competitor (Hindi India Today), which is a translated version of English India Today, we've taken a conscious decision to provide original contents keeping in view the psyche of the Hindi reader. And our content strategy is already paying us rich dividends. We've not only cut into the circulation of Hindi India Today but we're also able to create new readers, thereby breaking their monopoly in a short time."
Q. On FDI in print media… "Editors Guild of India has taken a stand that in the case of FDI, proper safeguards have to be taken. There should be transparency in the management. It should be ensured that the editorial control rests with the Indians. And we need to tread cautiously while approving FDI in print media. It should not be left to bureaucrats alone. Instead, a committee comprising bureaucrats, editors, publishers and retired judges should screen FDI proposals before these are cleared."
Q. On the role of brand managers in newspapers … "The concept of brand managers has been borrowed from the West. There, the Editor is still supreme. Also, the brand managers / directors in the West have journalistic background. But in India, the brand managers are drawn from consumer products companies and as such they are not in touch with the society. The concept of brand managers has also generally diluted Editor's authority though there are still few publications where Editor's stamp is so clearly visible. Today, profits and circulation are considered as sole criterion for a successful newspaper. This is neither in the interest of journalism nor the society. Quality has become a causality and the very foundation of journalism is getting weakened. On the erosion of journalistic ethics and decline in journalistic Standards. In today's era of information explosion from multiple sources (print, electronic, internet etc.) with emphasis on faster flow of information, the good quality information often takes a back seat. With the unhealthy competition of breaking stories, particularly in the electronic media, the facts in the story become a causality. Moreover young enthusiastic TV journalists often do not do their homework properly. Even newspapers are affected by the cutthroat competition as journalists often ignore crosschecking the facts. This is lowering the credibility of the profession. And as such, there is need for journalists to do self-introspection. In such a scenario, we at Editors Guild of India feel that the flow of good quality information is the need of the hour. And for that there have to be standardized journalistic norms. Keeping in view this, Editors Guild of India has come out with a Self Code of Conduct for journalists. This is based on the Code of Conduct drawn by the Society of Editors in UK. We have sent the copies of this code to Editors. We are strictly against any code imposed on the journalists from outside. But at the same time journalists need to follow a self-code of conduct in order to do objective and fair reporting and to uphold the high ethics of journalism."
Q. On the challenge and opportunities before print media… "Of course, the 24-hour TV news channels are posing big challenge to print media today. But then all over the world, despite the onslaught of TV news, print media has survived. In fact I would say that there are lot of opportunities in print media. But to fully tap these opportunities, newspapers have to change with times. Particularly, they have to devise their content strategy keeping in view the interests of the new generation, which I think is presently cut off from the print media. Rather, we have to strike a balance between the content for the present generation and the older generation. Moreover, interactive news is the new mantra today. We've to involve readers with the newspapers. In Hindi Outlook, we have introduced a column where the readers talk about the changing face of their village. Also, the Hindi and vernacular press has successfully introduced the concept of regional news through city-specific editions which is immensely appealing to the readers. Now, the English press and TV channels are also following up this concept."
Q. On price war among newspapers… "To me, it is only a short run game, which does not work in the long run. I believe in healthy competition. Hindi press has a role to educate society. It is however sad that today this important role has been diluted. In a bid to push up circulation, quality has become a causality. This is not good for the society. "
Q. On the challenge of being Hindi Outlook Editor... After leaving the editorship of Hindi daily Dainik Bhaskar with a whopping circulation of 18 lakhs, obviously, the editorship of a new Hindi weekly was a big challenge. When we came out with the concept of weekly news cum family magazine, people held that magazines (particularly a goody-goody magazine) won't work in the era of 24 hour news channels. But I have been of the firm belief in the last 32 years of my journalistic experience with dailies and weeklies that Hindi readers do not want trash. Instead, they want to read quality material. And the readers who have appreciated our quality and innovative contents have vindicated my belief. And the fact that Hindi Outlook has crossed circulation of one lakh within a couple of months of its launch, is indicative of its growing popularity.
Q. On the USP and content strategy of Hindi Outlook... "The content, the design and packaging is our USP. We have a liberal democratic approach with no leanings towards any political ideology. In line with Outlook Editor-in-Chief Vinod Mehta's vision of a Hindi magazine with high journalistic standards, our sole target is not to push circulation. Instead, our strength is our quality. In the past, several Hindi weeklies closed down because they were imposing their ideas on the readers. Keeping this in mind, we went for an extensive readership survey before the launch of the magazine. And we have designed our content strategy on the basis of the survey findings. The professional approach of our Publisher and Head of Marketing team Mr.Mahesh Peri also helped us to bring out best product.TV has changed the habits of readers who now want crisp stories. As such we are offering crisp quality reading material. Even our indepth stories now run into 3-4 pages in line with the global trend. We have deliberately avoided sensationalism because we believe that you can sell without making your publication sensational. Newspapers like Tribune and Hindu are the fine example of this. Unlike our competitor (Hindi India Today), which is a translated version of English India Today, we've taken a conscious decision to provide original contents keeping in view the psyche of the Hindi reader. And our content strategy is already paying us rich dividends. We've not only cut into the circulation of Hindi India Today but we're also able to create new readers, thereby breaking their monopoly in a short time."
Q. On FDI in print media… "Editors Guild of India has taken a stand that in the case of FDI, proper safeguards have to be taken. There should be transparency in the management. It should be ensured that the editorial control rests with the Indians. And we need to tread cautiously while approving FDI in print media. It should not be left to bureaucrats alone. Instead, a committee comprising bureaucrats, editors, publishers and retired judges should screen FDI proposals before these are cleared."
Q. On the role of brand managers in newspapers … "The concept of brand managers has been borrowed from the West. There, the Editor is still supreme. Also, the brand managers / directors in the West have journalistic background. But in India, the brand managers are drawn from consumer products companies and as such they are not in touch with the society. The concept of brand managers has also generally diluted Editor's authority though there are still few publications where Editor's stamp is so clearly visible. Today, profits and circulation are considered as sole criterion for a successful newspaper. This is neither in the interest of journalism nor the society. Quality has become a causality and the very foundation of journalism is getting weakened. On the erosion of journalistic ethics and decline in journalistic Standards. In today's era of information explosion from multiple sources (print, electronic, internet etc.) with emphasis on faster flow of information, the good quality information often takes a back seat. With the unhealthy competition of breaking stories, particularly in the electronic media, the facts in the story become a causality. Moreover young enthusiastic TV journalists often do not do their homework properly. Even newspapers are affected by the cutthroat competition as journalists often ignore crosschecking the facts. This is lowering the credibility of the profession. And as such, there is need for journalists to do self-introspection. In such a scenario, we at Editors Guild of India feel that the flow of good quality information is the need of the hour. And for that there have to be standardized journalistic norms. Keeping in view this, Editors Guild of India has come out with a Self Code of Conduct for journalists. This is based on the Code of Conduct drawn by the Society of Editors in UK. We have sent the copies of this code to Editors. We are strictly against any code imposed on the journalists from outside. But at the same time journalists need to follow a self-code of conduct in order to do objective and fair reporting and to uphold the high ethics of journalism."
Q. On the challenge and opportunities before print media… "Of course, the 24-hour TV news channels are posing big challenge to print media today. But then all over the world, despite the onslaught of TV news, print media has survived. In fact I would say that there are lot of opportunities in print media. But to fully tap these opportunities, newspapers have to change with times. Particularly, they have to devise their content strategy keeping in view the interests of the new generation, which I think is presently cut off from the print media. Rather, we have to strike a balance between the content for the present generation and the older generation. Moreover, interactive news is the new mantra today. We've to involve readers with the newspapers. In Hindi Outlook, we have introduced a column where the readers talk about the changing face of their village. Also, the Hindi and vernacular press has successfully introduced the concept of regional news through city-specific editions which is immensely appealing to the readers. Now, the English press and TV channels are also following up this concept."
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