MEDIA STUDIES

PROJECT
 Acknowledgements

We would like to thank Professor Sudha Ravishankar for giving us this project to help
us know more about the media. We would also like to thank ma’am for giving us new
group members to work with. We would like to thank each other for co-operating and
working together as a team.
PORTRAYAL OF THE VIOLENCE
IN ORISSA BY THE
TELEVISION

Covered By :
Pranay Parab
Roll No. 33
S.Y.B.M.M.
Bhavan’s College(Andheri West)
 INTRODUCTION

The Television or the TV is often referred to in popular culture as the ‘Idiot Box’ as it
supposedly has the power to turn human beings into couch potatoes and also
sometimes rather unintelligent people into celebrities. The way in which it covers
news events is a story in itself. For now, let’s just focus on how it portrayed the
violence in Orissa. Let us take the example of three TV news channels. These are
NDTV, NewsX and BBC.
 NDTV

Kandhmal: Panic-stricken villagers hide in forests

August 31, 2008, (Kandhamal)

This bulletin showed the fear in the eyes of the people. Both Hindus and
Christians were hiding in forests during the nights for fear of their lives.

Orissa violence spreads, curfew clamped in Jeypore

August 31, 2008, (Jeypore, Orissa)

This bulletin showed that the situation in Orissa was grim and that violence
had spread from Kandhmal to Koraput. Curfew had been clamped in Jeypore after
abusive posters were put up on a college wall against Christians and Christianity
leading to clashes.

Dalit-tribal rivalry behind Kandhmal riots?

September 01, 2008, (Kandhmal)

This particular news bulletin tried to determine the perpetrators of the attack
on Swamiji. They speculated whether it could have been caused because of the rivalry
between the dalits and the tribals.

Uneasy calm prevails in Kandhmal

September 01, 2008, (Kandhmal)

A string of bulletins showed Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik (who spent
two days in Kandhmal reviewing the latest situation) claiming that the violence in the
riot-hit areas had been largely contained due to heavy deployment of police and
security forces in the troubled areas.

SC directs Orissa govt to submit report on

Kandhamal
September 03, 2008, (Bhubaneswar)
All day the NDTV bulletins showed that the Supreme Court had directed the Orissa
government to place by Thursday its report relating to steps taken to protect lives of
people belonging to the Christian community in riot-hit Kandhamal district. The apex
court also asked the state government to put on affidavit whether any permission was
granted to VHP leader Praveen Togadia for his proposed Yatra carrying the ash of
slain leader Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati.
 NEWSX!
VHP leader,four others shot dead in Orissa.
August 24, 2008, (Bhubaneswar)

The initial bulletins on NewsX portrayed the facts of the crime, as said by the
police. At least five people, including a top leader of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad
(VHP) were shot dead in an ashram in Orissa's Kandhamal district by an armed group
during Janmashtami festival celebrations on Saturday.
About 30 armed men struck at the ashram in Jalespata under Tumudibandh
block, 127 km from Kandhamal's district headquarter town of Phulbani at around 9.15
pm (IST) and sprayed bullets, leaving VHP leader Laxmanananda Saraswati and four
others dead.
The dead in the attack in the district also included VHP's Laxmananda
Saraswati, Arupananda, Chinmayananda and Mata Bhaktimayee and an unidentified
person.

Kandhamal: Toll rises to 14, curfew relaxed

30 August, 2008, Kandhamal

A lot of news reports all day highlighted the condition of the people in
Kandhamal. The death toll had risen up to 14.

Orissa: Maoists claim responsibility, warn of more

attacks
31 August, 2008, Kandhamal

According to reports, Maoists had claimed responsibility for the killing of

Swamiji. It was unclear whether they had actually done so. It appeared as if they were
just using the opportunity to spread fear among the people.

Situation tense in riot-hit Kandhamal

2 September, 2008, Kandhamal

According to fresh reports, violence had resurfaced in some areas of

Kandhamal. The tension was high in the region and hence curfew was redeployed.
 BBC

India clashes denounced by Pope

27 August, 2008, Vatican City

The following is an excerpt from a news bulletin on BBC :

The Pope has condemned deadly violence between Hindus and Christians in
India's eastern Orissa state, which has claimed at least 11 lives. During his weekly
Vatican address, Pope Benedict XVI said he was "profoundly saddened" and called
for communities to try to restore "peaceful coexistence".
The killing of a Hindu leader on Saturday sparked the violence.
Christians have suffered retaliatory attacks, despite police saying Maoist rebels were
to blame for the killing.
"I firmly condemn any attack on human life," Pope Benedict told a crowd of
pilgrims on Wednesday. "I express spiritual closeness and solidarity to the brothers
and sisters in faith who are being so harshly tested."
He labelled the death of Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati as "deplorable". He
was shot along with four others in an attack in the Kandhamal district of Orissa.

Catholic schools in India protest

29 August, 2008, New Delhi

A string of bulletins showed the peaceful protest by catholic schools in India. The
protest was to oppose the violence in Orissa.

India Christians shelter in camps

01 September, 2008, Bhubaneswar

A lot of shows portrayed the pitiful condition of Indian Christians in Orissa, who were
driven out of their own homes for fear of losing their lives. More than 10,000
Christians were living in refugee camps in Orissa after anti-Christian violence in the
area.
 PROGRAMMES
Headlines Today
31.08.08, 8:30pm
Ram Madhav (Senior Executive Member, RSS) vs. Father Babu Joseph (CBCI
secretary)

NDTV India
Muqabla
30.08.08, 3:00pm
Ram Madhav (Senior Executive Member, RSS) vs. Father Dominic
Emmanuel(Manager, Delhi Catholic Center)

NewsX
Fine Print
Prof. Mahapatra (JNU) and Babu Joseph & Jay Panda(BJD MP Orissa).
2200hrs 31.08.08

Basically these programmes served the purpose of removing the blame from the
Hindus. The media had extensively blamed the Hindus for the violence.
 Conclusion
The media in general blamed the Hindus for the violence. The violence was
condemned internationally and in most places, due to the media portrayal of
Christians as being innocent, they were sympathised with. The portrayal of the Orissa
riots on TV was more or less sensationalised. It has become a trend in electronic
media now. Instead of portraying what can and should be done in the area, the media
focused more on what had not been done. It portrayed the whole event as a horror
story rather than reporting it without the unnecessary dramatization. Many a time this
leads to further violence in the area, instead of helping spread awareness about the
event.
What has been done has been done. We, as media students, must notice all of what is
happening right now and must pledge to make the portrayal of events by the media
much better than what it is now. We all, as Indians, can see the lighter side of any
situation. Sarcasm is our forte. We can smile through even the worst of storms. So,
when we make fun of the media, we must remember that soon we will be a part of it.
We must remember what we made fun of and try and make that thing better. We
might like to say that the media is just the money and a bunch of lies. But, we must
change that if we feel so. After all, we are the future of India. How can we treat our
motherland so badly???
Finally, we all must remember a very old and famous quote.

“ ”
Where there is a will, there is a way.
Name – Janmejay Singh
RollNo. – 13
Bhavan’s College SYBMM

Violence in Kandhmal district of Orissa as covered by Print

Media (Newspapers)

The print media has played the most important role in communicating the
incidents of violence that broke out in Kandhmal district of Orissa. In Kandhmal, a
VHP leader Swami Laxmananda Saraswati and four of his disciples were brutally
murdered. The Maoists of Orissa claimed that they had done it, but in any case the
incident triggered Hindu-Christian clashes in Kandhmal and many violent events
ensued.

One observation made about the reports of media is that they have focused on
the consequences following the death of Swami Laxmananda Saraswati and not on his
death itself. Some theorists claim that this was pre-planned by VHP, RSS and the
other Hindu organisations while others say that the underlying cause is the battle
between Hindus and Christian converts over reservations in educational institutions
and government jobs.

The event has been covered by most major newspapers all over the country,
such as Times of India, Hindustan Times, The Hindu, Indian Express, DNA, Mumbai
Mirror and many others.

Most of the newspapers have projected the news from a pro-Christian point of
view, while some have portrayed it as a clash between the two communities. And so
far as the point of views from the representatives of the two parties is concerned, the
Christians blame the Hindus for what has happened and portray Christians as the
victims, the Hindu parties claim that the fights were at an equal level and neither party
is solely to blame.
 TOI (Times of India) has portrayed the news with more affinity towards the
Christians, and claim the violence as the work of some Hindu fundamentalist groups
(presumably VHP and RSS).

An extract from an article in TOI –

“ Orissa has been on the boil since Saturday when Swami Laxmanananda
Saraswati, a member of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), and four others were
killed at his Jalespata ashram in Kandhmal district.
His killing triggered violence in the state against the Christian community by
some Hindu fundamental groups.”

The Hindu has focused on the event as being the fault of VHP and the Sangh Parivar
(RSS). And Indian Express focuses more on the claim of the Maoists and on the
Orissa CM Naveen Patnaik’s take on the matter.

One major newspaper which has attempted to look at the events from a different light
is Hindustan Times. An extract from HT’s article ‘Inside Kandhamal, Orissa’s
communal cauldron’ is -
“Wed, 03 Sep 2008
Why is Kandhamal Ground Zero in Orissa's communal maelstrom, burning for the
second time in eight months?
Though the latest spark was the murder of saffron leader Swami Laxmanananda
Saraswati, the underlying cause is the battle between Hindus and Christian converts
over reservations in educational institutions and government jobs.”

The good side is that there have been many peaceful protests and HT and TOI
especially have focused on these. And the best thing is that both the local and national
media have portrayed the events responsibly, and have not been the cause for
triggering more violence.
 PORTRAYAL OF ORISSA VIOLENCE IN THE RADIO

BY :
AMIT GAWANDE
ROLL NO. 08
SYBMM
BHAVAN’S COLLEGE

Riots grip India's Orissa region

BBC Radio

Four people have been killed in armed clashes that broke out between Hindus and
Christians in the Indian state of Orissa at the weekend.
Now a total of at least eight persons have been killed in the spiralling communal
violence sparked by the killing of an eminent Hindu leader.
Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati was killed on Saturday night.
Seven of the eight deaths have taken place in Kandhamal district, the epicentre of the
communal upheaval.
The incident took place at Barakhama village in the afternoon as rival groups attacked
each other with guns and bombs. Those killed in the clash included a woman.
Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said: "Four bodies were found at the scene of
the clash at Barakhama. But the identity of the deceased is yet to be established."
Making a statement on the incident in the State Assembly, Mr Patnaik said a small
contingent of police personnel present there had done "its best but could not prevent
the violence".
Reinforcements have now been rushed in and the situation brought under control, he
said.
The chief minister announced compensation of 200,000 Rupees ($5,000) for the next-
of-kin of those killed in the violence.
Hindu woman burnt
Two people were burnt to death in Tiangia village in the district after rioters set fire to
their houses last night.
One person had been burnt to death at Rupagaon village on Sunday night.
Arson and burning of Christian religious places continued on Tuesday in Kandhamal
despite a curfew in all major towns and prohibitory orders in force throughout the
district.
Even a Flag March by paramilitary forces did not deter the rioters, who went on a
rampage setting fire to churches, vehicles and government facilities.
Meanwhile, it has been revealed that the woman who was burnt to death in an
orphanage in Bargarh district yesterday was a Hindu.
"We have verified the antecedents of the woman and found that she was a Hindu,"
Sambalpur DIG YB Khurania said.
Initial reports had suggested that she was

Woman killed in Orissa orphanage

Voice Of America

Swami Saraswati - killed on Saturday

Police in the Indian state of Orissa say suspected Hindu extremists have set fire to an
orphanage run by Christian missionaries, burning a woman to death.
The mob reportedly ordered people out of building before setting it alight.
But the woman - a cook at the orphanage - was thrown into the burning building when
she tried to stop them from attacking the children.
Local Hindus went on the rampage after the killing on Saturday of one of their
leaders.
His supporters suspect Christians were responsible, but the police believe he was
killed by Maoist rebels.
The religious leader, Swami Laxamanananda Saraswati, was at the centre of
controversy late last year.
Hindus accused Christians of attacking him and police were called in to restore order
in the ensuing violence.
Hindu extremists have targeted Christians in Orissa before. Nine years ago an
Australian missionary and his two sons were burnt alive by a mob that set their car on
fire.

Thousands homeless after Hindu-Christian violence in India

Voice Of America
2008-08-29
At least 3,000 people, most of them Christians, are living in government-run relief
camps after days of Christian-versus-Hindu violence in eastern India, government
officials said.

The government said that many people were also living in the jungle without any
shelter and security because of the tensions, which erupted in violence after a Hindu
leader was killed Saturday. At least 10 people, most of them Christians, have been
killed since.

Christian community leaders say that at least 1,000 Christian homes have been set on
fire since Monday, rendering more than 5,000 people homeless.

Many of those living in the jungle were without food or water, said the Rev. Dibakar
Parichha, a priest at the Roman Catholic church in Phulbani, a town in Orissa State.
Father Parichha said that about 90 places of worship, including small churches and
prayer halls, had been burned down. Local officials said the figure was about 20.

The violence has occurred in Kandhamal, a district in Orissa State that has a history of
communal and ethnic clashes. The latest conflict started Saturday night, when
unidentified armed men stormed a Hindu school in Kandhamal and killed the Hindu
leader Laxmanananda Saraswati and four of his followers.
 The police suspected that Maoist rebels were responsible. But Hindus blamed
Christians. In the retaliatory violence, 500 houses were burned. All nine towns in the
district are under a curfew, and the police have license to shoot. At least two people
have been killed in violent reprisals in other districts of Orissa, including a woman
who died when an orphanage was burned down.

"We are supposed to take drastic action against whosoever indulges in violence" said
R. P. Koche, the police chief in Kandhamal District. The local police force has been
reinforced by 2,500 paramilitary troops, he said. The district magistrate, Dr. Krishna
Kumar, said the situation was tense but under control, and that more then 200 people
had been arrested.

On Wednesday, during his weekly address at the Vatican, Pope Benedict XVI said, "I
firmly condemn any attack on human life," and said that he was "profoundly
saddened" by the violence in Orissa. He called the killing of Saraswati "deplorable."

To protest the violence against Christians in Orissa, more than 40,000 Christian
educational institutions across India will be closed on Friday in compliance with a call
by the Catholic Bishops' Conference of India and other Christian denominations.

Five more prayer halls damaged, Curfew on in Jeypore

All India Radio

Jeypore/Bhubaneswar: EVEN as the situation returned to near normal in Kandhamal,

tension spread to more areas in Koraput district on Sunday

There was no relaxation in curfew in Jeypore town which witnessed clashes on

Saturday five more prayer houses were attacked in Koraput, Borrigumma, Kundra,
Kotpad and Kundra blocks of the district. Jey¬pore town and nearby areas wit¬nessed
a series of arsons and road blockades. Measures initiated by the district committee for
maintaining harmo¬ny between the communities failed as the peace committee
 meeting was boycotted by the B JP, VHP and their sister organisations. Chief
Minister Naveen Patnaik told media persons that the situation is under control.

Demonstrators clashed with police several times in Jeypore town where paramilitary
and State Armed Police have been staging flag march since Saturday evening. Supply
of essen¬tial commodities, including milk, was affected in Jeypore where curfew has
been imposed since Saturday Official sources said two companies of paramilitary
forces and 12 platoon of Orissa State Armed Police (OSAP) have been deployed in
trou¬bled areas. DIG Sanjeev Panda and District Collector R.K. Sahu are camping to
monitor the law and or¬der situation.