Opinion Face of the Enemy

That kick-started NDTV’s big post-Osama show — unfortunately,a remarkably weak affair. For one,someone at NDTV decided it would be great to release WikiLeaks’ stash of cables from Pakistan on the same day. So the lead-off wasn’t somebody talking about the big story; it was Julian Assange,last seen pontificating on Indian politics,discussing the Pakistan government’s past “mixed messages”. Is there anything that that platinum-haired superhero would not be asked his opinion on by news TV? Or is exaggerated deference the price of getting the cables? The show continued with Vikram Chandra standing in front of a big touch-screen which was supposed to bring up all sorts of relevant quotes. Except,as Chandra touched Pervez Musharraf’s face,no grandiloquent quote came up. It ended with Chandra muttering “if I can just get this to work” as he jabbed various prominent Pakistanis in the face,like some jingoistic video game.

At least,however,no real person was called on to be the Face of the Enemy,and be ritually bellowed at. For such subtle refinements,we turn,as we must,to Times Now,which,in its own estimation of itself,has already replaced the Lok Sabha and general elections,and is well on its way to replacing the ministry of external affairs. Times Now,we were told,would “nail Pakistan’s 10 lies”,and in order to witness said nailing,various Pakistanis were invited on to express abject anguish at their own uselessness and duplicity,or to be subjects of a Two Minute Hate. (Presumably the Pakistanis coming on knew this already,so one wonders why they chose to take part,unless it be in the hope of taking the job of Salman Bashir,the foreign secretary,since he is clearly not doing it too well.)

For example,on one News Hour,Arnab Goswami demanded of various Pakistani ex-generals and ex-diplomats why their successors “relied on bluster” and were reacting with indignation to General V.K. Singh’s statement that the Indian military could conduct surgical strikes if necessary. “My sources are telling me,” he assured us,“that no-one has named Pakistan” as the target for any strikes in the widely-reported statement. So is it perhaps a “guilty conscience” that is causing Pakistan’s establishment to think he was talking about Pakistan,instead of,say,Zambia,in the news this week for harbouring a dreaded terrorist? (Don’t get excited,Times Now. Zambia wasn’t.) He did an entire segment wondering aloud — a-very-loud — whyever Pakistan would think it was a statement about them particularly. It doesn’t get more exciting than this,folks,especially with a riveting exchange in which M.K. Bhadrakumar,a former diplomat in Pakistan,had to explain to some defence analyst that worrying about a nuclear exchange didn’t mean that you were holding a brief for the Pakistanis or were somehow less Indian.

When Times Now really screwed up its representation game was the episode of the News Hour which asked “Should those indirectly praising Osama be charged with terrorism?” Who are these mysterious people? Well,all the ones picked happen to be Muslim,but heavens no,they don’t represent all Indian Muslims. We have guests with beards on,though,and they had better answer a few questions,and if they aren’t quick enough with their condemnation of these other Muslims — or if they try and analyse rather than ritually excoriate those others — well then we’ll know what to think,won’t we. Now that was a particularly vile half-hour.