Sir,
The press in the U.S. has long Prided itself in its power to shape the Nation, and as the watch dog of, public interest. Is this the fact, or is the U.S. media the lap dog of Corporate and government interests?
“Sikhs Murder Seven’ ’reads the headlines of the World News Report. This has become an all to familiar sight in today’s media.
Professor Noam Chomsky in his book, “Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of Mass Media,” says: “The Media Serves (the purpose of privileged 8roups), in many ways: Through the selection of topics, distribution of concerns, framing of issues, filtering of information, emphasis and tone, and by keeping debate within the bounds of acceptable premises.”
There is no question in my mind as to the total lack of ethnics and morals displayed by the government of India. They have used tactics ranging from inciting riots against the Sikhs such as took place after the assassination of the despot Indira Gandhi during which thousands of innocent Sikhs were murdered, to the formation of death squads who masquerade as Sikhs to arouse hatred for Sikhs. These are only some of the barbaric practices of the Rajiv Government committed for the purposes of staying in power.
The question I wish to pose today is that of ethics in the media. When Rep. Wally Herger introduced a bill condemning the violation of human rights in India, the press labeled it as a pro Khalistan bill. The State Department also condemned the bill because it would “adversely affect” economic trade relations between the U.S. and India. This is a very important point, economic interests of the US.
In fact, it is all important to the US. Government and the corporate interests that control it, as well as the media. The proposed bill was a threat to U.S. trade relations with India. Let us examine how these two governments are attempting to handle the situation. First we see that India is making a few showy moves like freeing some of the Jodhpur political prisoners, as well as innocent pilgrims arrested after the attack on the Golden Temple. The press is making quite a stir about this, but does anyone start to consider that rather than being a generous move, it is only part of the outrage against human rights that these people have been imprisoned without charge for so long! Then to pour salt in the wound India rearrests almost half of them? Now, after this most “generous” move on the part of India, our press begins to bombard us with tales of “Sikhs” murdering innocent people, and renewed violence in Punjab. They are trying to show the world how right they were to keep the Sikhs in jail. I called the editor of the newspaper and asked him what the source of his reports was. He replied that whatever the Indian government tells them, that is what they print. When it comes to the dissidents of a communist country like Poland, would they accept the government version? The answer is of course no! In the case of a trading partner like India however, whatever India says is the truth, despite the fact that there are dissidents who would challenge the government version.
Where is the so called independence of the media? Where is the quest for truth, or is it that the press is the servant of the powers that rule that is the government and corporate interests.
The U.S. has interests to protect dealing with India, so stories reaching the American public are slanted, downplayed or not acknowledged at all.
Very few American newspapers covered the Herger bill at all, yet we plagued by reports of Sikh violence in Punjab.
Media in the USS. serves as a propaganda tool of the government.
Professor Chomsky, the intellectual dissident teaching at M.LT. points out that major media like the New York Times set the news agenda for the rest of the country’s media, including the very influential television media. Many of these agenda setters are large corporations that are in tum owned by large conglomerates such as General Electric. He says: “What you would expect to come out of it, on no further assumptions, is an interpretation of the world that reflects the interests and needs of the seller, the buyer, and the product.
We can conclude that the U.S government has no moral concerns in India, only economic and political concerns. India has become a valuable trade partner to the U.S. Politically the U’S. is handling India with kid gloves given its concern over India’s Soviet slant. India takes full advantage of the U.S. position. Although individual senators or congressmen may take the time to hear the truth about the violation of human rights in India, the truth will not reach the general public, given the control that economic factors have on the media and the State Department.
Satnam Kaur Khalsa Mount Horeb, WI
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