So I'm in my room. Completely tweaking my new old Macbook and I think to myself. I really did enjoy this Blogging business. It didn't really do anything to me in terms of responses or feedback {Note to self: Two submissions will never really make a blog} but it just made me feel so emotionally substantial. By no means is this a referendum on who I am deep inside or anything but I definitely felt renewed when I 'vented' through my blog.
I intend to restart my blog. Beginning tomorrow. I don't know how many people will read it. Furthermore, I cannot dare to imagine that too many will be influenced by it but I do hope that I can bring about even a little change or spark a constructive debate.
I hope this fervor of mine remains for a while now because I really do intend to write and not stop writing.
Your comments will only encourage me. Take up a cause. Encourage on!
Friday, May 14, 2010
Friday, August 22, 2008
Stop the Presses!
Well, seeing the direction my first post took, I thought I'd write about something else to stray away from becoming a completely political blog. Well, here goes nothing!
Being the inquisitive soul I am, I wake up every morning to a news update from Reuters. Well, sometimes it makes me think. A majority of the population of the world reads the news on a daily basis which leads me to the question 'How much does the media REALLY control? The worlds major news networks {CNN, BBC, Fox, CNBC, Reuters} are all controlled my major corporates/become one themselves {Time Warner, BBC, Newscorp, Reuters}.
Well, to get to my primary point, I'm going to have to take this to a more regional issue. In 1983, India won the ICC Cricket World Cup. The then Indian media really never broadcast too much to do with Indian cricket as compared to Indian hockey, which was 'oh, so glamorized'. With the epic win, Indian Cricket was taken to an entire new level, with hours of coverage and pages of assessment, which saw a sort of hibernation for hockey coverage. For those of you who aren't aware of the sport front on India, we are home to a cricket CRAZY population and cricket CRAZIER media. Since 1983, we've seen a slow decline of hockey and its coverage while a very steady growth in cricket and its coverage. Do you'll also see this co-relation between media coverage and actual growth?
Give me your opinion. Does media lead us on? Or are they just plain ole giving us what we want?
Take, for example, the fantastic media coverage on the upcoming American Presidential Elections. When BBC covers the American elections, we see a pro - Obama outlook but when Fox does, we see a pro - McCain. Now, is it just that the news people at the BBC just don't see that McCain may be better or Fox just don't see that Obama is? If it's just a bunch of innocent mistakes, can I know WHO to trust?
But wait a second, maybe today's media isn't all good? Maybe, just MAYBE we're being led on? Oh no, that can't be. they have an obligation to report the truth don't they?
Let's roll over to the Middle East now. When people think of Iran, a majority of people from OUSIDE the Middle East think of religious fanatics, sort of like what Saddam Hussain and Iraqis were a few years back. I want to know what influences that opinion. It can't be the media, their out there to braodcast the entire truth and nothing else. Or can it?
Well, I'm not convinced with this whole media thing. I need to know from you'll. What do we do about this information shortage and opinion influx? Which network is the good one? How do we know when we're being duped?
I think media can start wars between schools of thought, destroy the morale of a nation and well, control us all. So what is to be done? How are we, as the 'generation X' supposed to make informed decisions about an international issue? ARE we allowed to?
Reading back I think: Screw the United Nations, Rupert Murdoch holds the key to world peace.
Something to think about....How do we make informed decisions? Do we? Is media making the world a better place to live? Or just a better place to broadcast?
P.S. : Please comment! Otherwise, it defeats this blogs purpose.
Being the inquisitive soul I am, I wake up every morning to a news update from Reuters. Well, sometimes it makes me think. A majority of the population of the world reads the news on a daily basis which leads me to the question 'How much does the media REALLY control? The worlds major news networks {CNN, BBC, Fox, CNBC, Reuters} are all controlled my major corporates/become one themselves {Time Warner, BBC, Newscorp, Reuters}.
Well, to get to my primary point, I'm going to have to take this to a more regional issue. In 1983, India won the ICC Cricket World Cup. The then Indian media really never broadcast too much to do with Indian cricket as compared to Indian hockey, which was 'oh, so glamorized'. With the epic win, Indian Cricket was taken to an entire new level, with hours of coverage and pages of assessment, which saw a sort of hibernation for hockey coverage. For those of you who aren't aware of the sport front on India, we are home to a cricket CRAZY population and cricket CRAZIER media. Since 1983, we've seen a slow decline of hockey and its coverage while a very steady growth in cricket and its coverage. Do you'll also see this co-relation between media coverage and actual growth?
Give me your opinion. Does media lead us on? Or are they just plain ole giving us what we want?
Take, for example, the fantastic media coverage on the upcoming American Presidential Elections. When BBC covers the American elections, we see a pro - Obama outlook but when Fox does, we see a pro - McCain. Now, is it just that the news people at the BBC just don't see that McCain may be better or Fox just don't see that Obama is? If it's just a bunch of innocent mistakes, can I know WHO to trust?
But wait a second, maybe today's media isn't all good? Maybe, just MAYBE we're being led on? Oh no, that can't be. they have an obligation to report the truth don't they?
Let's roll over to the Middle East now. When people think of Iran, a majority of people from OUSIDE the Middle East think of religious fanatics, sort of like what Saddam Hussain and Iraqis were a few years back. I want to know what influences that opinion. It can't be the media, their out there to braodcast the entire truth and nothing else. Or can it?
Well, I'm not convinced with this whole media thing. I need to know from you'll. What do we do about this information shortage and opinion influx? Which network is the good one? How do we know when we're being duped?
I think media can start wars between schools of thought, destroy the morale of a nation and well, control us all. So what is to be done? How are we, as the 'generation X' supposed to make informed decisions about an international issue? ARE we allowed to?
Reading back I think: Screw the United Nations, Rupert Murdoch holds the key to world peace.
Something to think about....How do we make informed decisions? Do we? Is media making the world a better place to live? Or just a better place to broadcast?
P.S. : Please comment! Otherwise, it defeats this blogs purpose.
Friday, August 15, 2008
Happy Independence Day..!!
Hmm.. I've wanted to start my own blog for quite a while now. Well, here goes nothing!
Happy Indian Independence Day everybody!
Being an Indian abroad, I've never really been able to witness the Independence Day parade or any other event dedicated to her independence which makes me ask myself what independence day really means to me.
Sometimes I think of India and those that gave it its independence. The generation before last. Whose passion and determination gave us our independence today. Because of whom, we can travel around the nation, no questions asked. Because of whom, everyday is just so much better.
And then there's our generation. The one just craving to be let out and do something for India and her glory. The one that is the majority of India's population.
But wait, what about the one in the middle. When I think of them, I wonder. Wonder what the hell they've done. Now we could all blame the British for looting our country. But outside that loot, they also gave our country SO much that it STILL lives on. They established the rail, road networks, post and what not.
When we look back at that time and compare, how much of that has really changed today? We see India being ruled by a bunch of 80 year olds with majority of its population still under wraps. Why isn't the youth allowed to do anything about this? What do we need to do to get noticed? To actually DO SOMETHING. After the fiasco in the Parliament where there were MP's waving bundles of cash around, HOW can we sit back and do NOTHING.
But then again, i'm wondering, how do these politicians manage to get re-elected time and time again? How are we not able to do anything about this? Aren't we part of a democracy? HOw democratic are we after all? Because 'traditionally', MP's are elected to reflect the opinion of the constituency they represent. How many of us were represented when the bundles of cash were waved around? Is it just dirty politics?:S
You know sometimes, the ENTIRE system seems just SO corrupt. How can we even begin to compare ourselves to other nations in the world when around 70% of our population doesn't even KNOW they have the choice to choose. I have a friend who was writing an article about corruption in Indian politics. When we got down to talking about it, I think the corruption in Indian Politics is WAY overrated.
The root issue seems to be EDUCATION. Did you know India is actually no. 1 in the countries with the most universities? How is this possible with Bihar having a less than FORTY percent literacy rate, how does this statistic match up?
I think we need to stop garnering hopes to host the olympics, stop prophecying to be the next superpower and just work for a better India. Not because we don't have what it takes to be the next superpower but because, until we dont manage to lift EVERY Indian to an acceptable level {One that we, sitting comfi in front of our screens reading this, would accept}, our achievement won't be worth it. We, as a nation, have the largest potential for a GIGANTIC skilled labourforce.
So lets go out there and do something to live up to our heritage. Lets quit this habit of talking about how rich our history used to be and go out and make history so that we don't become the generation before us is to us.
Something to think about.....What do we do about EDUCATION in Independent India, so that we can make Independent Indians?
Happy Indian Independence Day everybody!
Being an Indian abroad, I've never really been able to witness the Independence Day parade or any other event dedicated to her independence which makes me ask myself what independence day really means to me.
Sometimes I think of India and those that gave it its independence. The generation before last. Whose passion and determination gave us our independence today. Because of whom, we can travel around the nation, no questions asked. Because of whom, everyday is just so much better.
And then there's our generation. The one just craving to be let out and do something for India and her glory. The one that is the majority of India's population.
But wait, what about the one in the middle. When I think of them, I wonder. Wonder what the hell they've done. Now we could all blame the British for looting our country. But outside that loot, they also gave our country SO much that it STILL lives on. They established the rail, road networks, post and what not.
When we look back at that time and compare, how much of that has really changed today? We see India being ruled by a bunch of 80 year olds with majority of its population still under wraps. Why isn't the youth allowed to do anything about this? What do we need to do to get noticed? To actually DO SOMETHING. After the fiasco in the Parliament where there were MP's waving bundles of cash around, HOW can we sit back and do NOTHING.
But then again, i'm wondering, how do these politicians manage to get re-elected time and time again? How are we not able to do anything about this? Aren't we part of a democracy? HOw democratic are we after all? Because 'traditionally', MP's are elected to reflect the opinion of the constituency they represent. How many of us were represented when the bundles of cash were waved around? Is it just dirty politics?:S
You know sometimes, the ENTIRE system seems just SO corrupt. How can we even begin to compare ourselves to other nations in the world when around 70% of our population doesn't even KNOW they have the choice to choose. I have a friend who was writing an article about corruption in Indian politics. When we got down to talking about it, I think the corruption in Indian Politics is WAY overrated.
The root issue seems to be EDUCATION. Did you know India is actually no. 1 in the countries with the most universities? How is this possible with Bihar having a less than FORTY percent literacy rate, how does this statistic match up?
I think we need to stop garnering hopes to host the olympics, stop prophecying to be the next superpower and just work for a better India. Not because we don't have what it takes to be the next superpower but because, until we dont manage to lift EVERY Indian to an acceptable level {One that we, sitting comfi in front of our screens reading this, would accept}, our achievement won't be worth it. We, as a nation, have the largest potential for a GIGANTIC skilled labourforce.
So lets go out there and do something to live up to our heritage. Lets quit this habit of talking about how rich our history used to be and go out and make history so that we don't become the generation before us is to us.
Something to think about.....What do we do about EDUCATION in Independent India, so that we can make Independent Indians?
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