The ‘M’ Factor

Malayalam journalism owes a lot to Christianity as it was the Catholic Church that launched the first vernacular newspaper in this part of the country in 1887. Nasrani Deepika, the daily owned by the Church, started publication in 1887 and over a period of time its name was changed to Deepika. This newspaper holds the distinction of being the oldest Malayalam daily in circulation and retains its position as a widely respected publication voicing concerns of the Catholic Church over socio-political issues prevailing in the State.

Deepika rubs shoulders with the leading dailies like Malayala Manorama, (also a Christian newspaper catering to the interest of the Orthodox Jacobite faction), Mathrubhumi, (masquerading as a secular publication despite its servility to the CPI-M , the Church and of course the Islamic politics), Kerala Kaumudi, (the daily of the Eezhavas, for the Eezhavas and by the Eezhavas) and purely Islamic publications like Chandrika, Madhyamam and Suprabhathamam.

The mainstream journalism in Malayalam is not that old. It is an offshoot of the freedom struggle and those who left academic institutions and started working as local reporters covering the agitations against British rule. None of them had academic qualifications except the ability to write faultless Malayalam. Moreover, journalism was not a well paying profession. The lives of the majority of pioneer Malayalam journalists were stories full of hardship, sufferings and poverty.

Manipulating News of Massacre of Hindus

The Communists or the leaders of the Congress Socialist Party (as they were known those days because the Communist Party was yet to take shape in Kerala) were the first to understand the scope of journalism and newspapers in pushing their ideology. Many ‘comrades’ joined the field and started writing columns praising the likes of Jawaharlal Nehru and other Left of the Centre politicians of the freedom struggle. Since the Communists were taught in their study classes that the end justifies the means, they began manipulating news and incidents to suit their convenience. That was how the ethnic pogrom of Hindus in Malabar in 1921 was portrayed as a mass agitation against British rule.

Another example is the coir workers’ uprising in Punnapra and Vayalar in 1946 which too were portrayed as a freedom struggle against the colonial rulers. The sad thing is that even the so-called Malayali intelligentsia failed to understand the evil designs of these communists who projected themselves as journalists.

EMS Namboodiripad, the first elected Communist Chief Minister of Kerala, projected by the CPI (M) as intellectual and ideologist, had completed his Pre-Degree course from St Thomas College in Thrissur. But the comrades have no qualms in claiming that Namboodirippadu was an educationist, economist, literary figure and historian par excellence. In Kerala, it is a cardinal sin to question the capabilities of Namboodiripad. There was only one educationist in the State who stood up to Namboodirippadu; Professor A Sreedhara Menon, an internationally reputed historian who learnt history through the science of learning the subject. While Prof Menon was writing the history of Kerala, the Marxists approached him and asked him to get the approval of Namdoodirippadu before printing the same as books. Prof Menon asked the comrades to get lost as he can never consider Namboodiripad as a historian worthy enough to assess the quality of his work!

Coming back to the modern times, the monopoly of the Marxists continues in the world of Malayalam journalism. Nearly 95 per cent of the journalists whom we watch in Malayalam TV channels were recruited from the SFI (the students wing of the CPI-M) while there are Islamic and Christian fanatics masquerading as journalists and columnists. (Sadik Kappaen, the jailed PFI leader is portrayed as a journalist though he does not have any journalistic experience). The Catholic Church has a Media Commission which has instituted awards for Christian journalists and literary figures for their “comprehensive” contributions to the world of journalism.

Taking a cue from the Media Commission, the Islamic outfits too have started giving away prizes to “friendly journalists” for their “meritorious services”. Fazal Gafoor, president of Muslim Education Service, a private group that owns schools, colleges and hospitals across South India was heard describing Arnab Goswamy as a “dirty character’, while others like Rajdeep Sardesai and Barkha Dutt as “gems”.

Every year a group of Malayali journalists are taken to the USA by a Christian-funded NGO and are honoured with awards of excellence! The excellent work done by them is the anti-Narendra Modi and anti-Hindutva articles authored by them incorporating blatant lies, lies and half-truths! A nonagenarian journalist by name TJS George, whose only obsession seems to be launching hate propaganda against PM Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, was recently honoured with a cash award of Rs five lakh and citation by the Kerala Government.

Pushing Pen to Get Financial Reward

This is not journalism but propaganda and they are not journalists but paid propagandists. Many journalists get paid from various NGOs and NRI Forums for pushing their pens to suit the convenience of their Masters. Journalism in Malayalam has taken to new depths of dishonesty when it was reported by Viju V Nair, a senior journalist, that most of the New Gen reporters (those who entered the field post-1991) are beneficiaries of schemes launched by the UDF and LDF Governments that rule the State alternatively. They get apartments built by the Kerala State Housing Board, a public sector undertaking, free of cost.

Venu Balakrishnan, a news reader with Mathrubhumi TV channel. told viewers that the Pathankot terrorist attack on the IAF station was masterminded by the Indian Government. Media One, owned by Jama-at-e Islami, is known for peddling anti-India and anti-Hindu reports on a round the clock basis. All these channels are headed by known Marxists or the trumpeters of Islamic terrorists. It is easy to make out the political leanings of the reporters/anchors/ editors just by reading their copies and watching them anchoring the news. It is not the professional capabilities that count to be appointed as journalists but the political leanings of the applicants. There isn’t much difference between the self-styled journalists in Lutyens Delhi and the ones based in Thiruvananthapuram. Both function as wheeler-dealers.

Downplaying Murders of RSS/BJP Leaders

What has happened over the last few decades is that news has become a raw material with which the stooges of political parties and extremist organisations manufacture reports and features. Fact and truth take a backseat while the political and vested interests of the journalists carry the day. The debates and discussions in Malayalam news channels prove this beyond any doubt. Those who anchor channels become the Congress and the CPI (M) representatives to corner spokesmen of the BJP. One of the CPI (M) MLAs, who was present in a channel discussion, walked out of the programme protesting against the participation of an independent commentator in the panel as the former could not answer the questions/issues raised by the latter. The CPI (M) and Mullas shout at the peak of their noise to silence the participants who do not subscribe to their political ideology. This is the ground reality in Kerala. Murders of RSS/BJP leaders are relegated to inside pages of the newspaper while those belonging to the Muslim community and Islamic outfits are provided with quality time without any interruption.