I have two primary observations, both surprising, though in different ways. First, Times Now hosted a discussion that was uniformly interesting and substantive and one that sometimes provoked thought. Disclaimer: I am not saying talk TV on other channels is always interesting and substantive. Such discussions are a minority on all channels. But, usually, they tend to be more of a minority on Times Now.

Thursday’s chat on Times Now, where two liberals squared off against two religious conservatives and in which the anchor did a good coordination job, was the best exemplar that evening of why some religious conservatives just don’t get it (of which more later). News TV doesn’t get it either — being sensible and paying some attention to content isn’t that difficult, in part because no one expects much really. But there you have the same Times Now insisting that it was only its “relentless campaign” and nothing else that forced an apology out of the misbehaving Congress MP who hopefully has had his first and last 15 minutes of fame.

Self-praise that savagely stretches credulity isn’t at all rare in news TV. I remember, because it’s hard to forget, that after 26/11 CNN-IBN recycled a story strangely christened ‘Water Rats’, and showcased that humdrum reportage on lax coastal security as journalism of supreme and sublime relevance. Why? Because Kasab and Co. had slipped in via the sea.

What slipped into public space as gay rights were debated — my second observation — was remarkable. The gentleman on Times Now who identified himself as a church representative said children from broken or one-parent homes are likely to become homosexuals but that counseling can cure them. Wow! The gentleman from Delhi Minorities’ Commission who was also on the panel said while gays should be not be criminally prosecuted they certainly cannot be accepted. A lady who was with the National Women’s Commission during NDA rule said on Headlines Today that she apprehended ‘the youth’ getting wrong signals.

Be a social/religious conservative by all means. But don’t cross lines, at least in public debates. In the next round of the same debate — there will be more rounds, for sure — news TV needs to give a little harder time to those who assume that saying any old thing about sexual minorities is a fair game.

Gay or straight, socially conservative or liberal, you may have been puzzled by some aspects of news TV’s pre-budget momentum-building. A lady on one of NDTV’s pre-budget shows said Pranab Mukherjee must bring down prices of air conditioners and essential commodities. On CNN-IBN, the interviewees-on-the-street were handed a Pranab mask on stick — hold it in front of your face while demanding the budget meets your urgent demands. CNBC is waiting for what it calls the Big B.

What if it’s a small b, or a small b as stock markets see it? What would CNBC or most other channels do? News TV crushed by the lack of in-your-face policy drama in a budget can be a fascinating sight. The anger! The pain! Monday, Big B or small b, should be fun.

PS: One of the most remarkable TV interviews I have come across: CNN-IBN quizzing M.S. Liberhan on his Ayodhya report. The report is sealed, of course. CNN-IBN to Liberhan: has Advani not been directly held responsible. Liberhan: No comment. CNN-IBN: Has Murli Manohar Joshi been held responsible. Liberhan: No comment. And so it went. Why should you expect the head of an inquiry commission who has submitted a sealed report to the government to reveal his findings on evening news?

saubhik.chakrabarti@expressindia.com