More Than News
Switch to any Pakistani cable news channel, and its the same
overly busy graphics, split screen, screamingly bright colours, the very rapid
ticker tape reminding us of breaking news, while our ears are bombarded with the
raised voices of the anchorpersons and the guests out shouting each other.
The world’s first 24 hour television news network, CNN , was
established in 1980. The dramatic live coverage of the 1991 Gulf War gave it a
global presence, and a political influence, creating what has come to be known
as the CNN Effect. Former UN Secretary General Boutros Boutros-Ghali
satirically called it " the sixteenth member of the Security
Council". BBC followed with its 24 hour news channel in 1997, and
television news changed forever, encouraging other countries to set up their
own 24 hour news channels.
News as drama was the brainchild of Joseph Pulitzer in the late 19th C
, who presented newspaper articles as stories with plots, conflict, and vivid
details.
Public Broadcasting, was envisioned as a platform for
establishing national identity through shared culture and stories. Television
had mixed programming that included sports, music, drama, cinema, comedy,
travel, nature and history, for both children and adults, with news on the hour,
the most important being the 9 o’ clock
news. Television brought the world into the home and created a space for
relaxation and shared family viewing.
We grew up on Quraishpur challenging Obaidullah Baig and
Iftikhar Arif on the quiz show, Kasauti;
Sohail Rana’s Hum hi Hum, a music show for children; Gar Tu Bura Na Maanay
interviews, the riveting Zia Mohyeddin show;
Sultana Siddiqui’s music programmes; the travel show, Sailani ke Saath; comedy shows Alf Noon, Sach Gup, and
50/50; the dance programme from Dhaka, Niritti Tale Tale; Qawalli by
Sabri Brothers and of course, the gripping drama serial, Khuda ki Basti. Modest documentaries revealed the secrets of
snake charmers, and the making of 17 string puppets. The news was read in a calm voice, even
during the 1971 war.
Today, television in Pakistan has specialized channels for
each genre, with news channels dominating. Most
young people stream films on laptops or smart phones, and family viewing has become atomized.
24 hour news channels that move from breaking news to
breaking news, fill the gaps with
summaries, analyses, repetition of images, and talk shows aimed to rouse passions. The aural and visual barrage , instead of
creating clarity, leaves the viewers confused, stressed and doubtful. Of
course, for media houses, this format is more economical than commissioning
investigative journalism, or producing informative documentaries.
In an internet dominated world, where people can get news
updates online, how can the role of public broadcasting be adapted? Many media houses have a growing online presence,
changing from “push” to “pull” media. The
first is a small group who decide what content is to be offered and then “push” it at passive consumers, whereas the web is a
“pull” medium requiring a user to actively select content from a server.
Elizabeth Murdock describes TV as a Sit back medium and the web as a sit up
medium.
Yet television has its own distinct qualities from the web.
It is a shared experience, creating social bonding between friends or within
the family in a real rather than a virtual space, something families
re-discovered during Covid 19 lockdowns.
The managed diversity of good programming can have a positive impact both as an educational tool and to
connect a society culturally. Perhaps it is time to bring back mixed
programming channels.
In November this year, Netflix France announced a
traditional linear TV channel, Netflix Direct, to offer a “lean back”
experience of gathering together to
watch prescheduled content. As Francois
Josh director of the magazine Télévision says “the internet disperses the audience, but
television unites it”.
Durriya Kazi
28 December, 2020
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