News Value!

 While researching for and writing the Ph.D. thesis, I used to freelance as a reporter. I freelanced with major publications such as The New Indian Express (and my articles used to be syndicated in all the southern and eastern editions of the newspaper), the City special pull out of The Hindu, and The Newstime owned by the Eanadu group.

Though a freelancer, I was almost as regular as at least one article per day. At times, my articles got the entire page, the byline and even the very front page. Great fun it was whichever page one was asked to associate with, though mostly it used to be the Features Desk. Apparently, most of my features used to earmarked for the newspaper special reference library, and the hosts used to be quite confident of a just and good write-up if I were to cover the event.

I remembered all these details because Features Desk then was not mere paid journalism. In fact, it was a page wherein social, economic, ideological issues could be opened up, debated. If you did a sincere, genuine job of it, not only the Resident Editor but even the Cultural Dept Minister noted it, and the newspaper/Desk Editor got appreciated.

In a way, at times, I feel happy that I could not continue (though very soon I WILL try to get back (in) to the groove) with my regular freelancing in newspapers in Pune (as I could not possibly leave my frail old Aai either all alone or with the Mavashi for a long tine) as I would not be able to compromise as per the demands of the paid value business which is morphed news,  and not merely photoshopped visuals.

Hope  (and  I AM sure of it, too) that there is some news value(d) even in the post truth era of the social media with its wapp university full of thorough experts 'forward' in most all subjects!

Pratima@ Better to face reality as it is rather than imagine it as it ought to be!