Daily Times

Every detail was scrutinised and no stone was left unturned. The media had a field day on Friday with the royal wedding of the present era, some 30 years after Prince Charles and Diana walked those same monumental steps. It was a beautiful event, straight out of a fairytale and it is hoped that newlyweds Prince William and his bride Kate Middleton enjoy a much happier ever after than the late Princess Diana. However, amidst all the activity, pomp and show, one is a little perplexed why the media – all over the world – gave the nuptials more coverage than all other events the world over combined. The media frenzy was so high pitched that issues that have the potential to make or break history seem to have paled in comparison. Terror attacks, financial recession, global strife, all were shoved aside while we were made privy to every twitch of the groom’s eyebrow, the much trumpeted wedding dress, the who’s who on the guest list and so on. While one can hardly lend much real importance to these matters, it seems that the intense coverage was generated to give people the world over a chance to escape for just a few hours on Friday the drudgery of everyday life and its problems. Pakistan seems to be particularly hung over from colonial times and our news channels banished almost all mention of the many crises here, from power outages to suicide bombings, and made merry with live coverage borrowed from international news channels.

However, the whole show has brought yet another perspective back into the limelight: in a world and time when the buzzword is ‘democracy’, just how relevant is the monarchy in the 21st century? Although the British relate to their monarchy as a symbol of continuity and tradition from a time when they literally ruled the world, the rest of the globe has moved on. Almost every country is striving to better their democratic process, while some are trying to usher out their monarchies and introduce it. Why then all the hoopla about a prince getting married? Escapist reasons aside, the media is a tool for public awareness and accountability, including news broadcasting networks. Throwing away so many hours of precious airtime for frivolity could almost be considered something the media ought to be held accountable for. It is time the media re-examined its own role. *