This was the stand of Palagummi Sainath, a journalist from India, in the onset of the 2007 Ramon Magsaysay Awards Lecture Series on his theme "How Can Journalism Touch a Nation’s Conscience?"
Sainath, who won this year's category for "Journalism, Literature, and Creative Communication Arts" on Asia's equivalent of the Nobel Prize, was recognized for his passionate commitment as a journalist to restore the rural poor to India's national consciousness, moving the nation to action.
He cited famous writers who made conscientious journalism possible in times of war and quest for freedom. He said he was moved by words of American novelist and journalist Samuel Langhorne Clemens, otherwise known as Mark Twain when asked about giving Filipinos freedom: "Yes, it's a great idea to give the Filipinos freedom, but I think it's an even better idea to let them give it to themselves by themselves."
Twain, for Sainath, was a journalist who touched the conscience of countless of readers. He spoke of him as an interactive journalist—that who wrote about atrocities, women's rights and issues across the cultural divide.
Known for being a passionate and articulate speaker, Sainath took an opportunity to give a clear distinction between journalism and stenography. He said the latter was by far the largest stream of journalism but was exclusive only to the powerful.
"Corporate approach to journalism can reach millions of people but can never touch the conscience of nation." Sainath added that it was merely to attract new business, investment and professionals but does not promote rich spiritual landscape and an enviable quality of life.
His sincerity, honesty and dedication, and commitment to highlight the sufferings of the rural masses that are sadly left behind by India's "progress" made him one of the Asia's leading development journalists. Through his work on the livelihoods of India's rural poor, he has changed the nature of the development debate in his own country and across the world. He was aiming for holistic development and cultural enrichment.
Sainath, often referred to as a rebel with a cause, said it was very alarming to see newspapers today bearing more showbiz stories than the more important ones. However, he said there were factors that affect media’s priorities like editors and the philosophy of the medium. Assuming what the readers want merely implies that they were idiots, he said.
The period when the incident of farmer suicides in Indian urban cities was at its height was, for Sainath, a clear example of how media today sets priorities for profit and fame. While relatives of more than 100 farmers who have taken their lives in the drought-ridden southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh were mourning, 512 accredited journalists were vying for prime spot in a fashion show and cameramen were fighting with their tripods over space.
He said it was apparently showing that news values were not weighed critically.
Citation for the award he has bagged said, "Sainath's authoritative reporting led Indian authorities to address certain discrete abuses and to enhance relief efforts." It added: "Sainath discovered that the acute misery of India's poorest districts was not caused by drought, as the government said. It was rooted in India’s enduring structural inequalities — in poverty, illiteracy, and caste discrimination — and exacerbated by recent economic reforms favoring foreign investment and privatization."
Sainath looked at journalism today as baked with crimes and showbiz, and was not really giving the public what they really want and need to know. With all the hard news and tragedies reported everyday, Sainath claimed it was the small people beyond that big circle that journalists had to talk about — what and how these events affect their lives.
While it is true that reporters should provide people with the freshest information from groundbreaking events, he said they should not neglect their responsibility for social communication — that which makes journalism larger than a business.
"Newspaper is a business. Channels may be a business. But newspaper is not all there is to journalism," Sainath voiced, "Journalism is more than a newspaper. It is a calling." He said journalists should act as bridges in creating social connection and communication.
According to him, only a few dared to report on things that cross the parameters of relating events per se — those that really matter to communities and affect lives. Press was born out of revolt and fight for liberty, but little is the number of those who carry on its nature.
Sainath left a thought for his fellow journalists to ponder as he recalled the story of Ancient Roman Emperor Nero's open air party for the "Who's Who of Rome." As dusk fell, lights were called for, and Nero's staff came up with a novel solution: the party was illuminated by prisoners and poor being burnt on stakes all around the arena.
"And who were Nero's guests? They were the finest minds in the Roman Empire, but no one uttered a word in protest." he said he had always wondered about their attitudes.
Sainath provided an insight into why things were the way they were, leaving the audience with inspiration for things to do. His facts spoke for themselves.
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