If developed responsibly, the phenomenal liberalisation that media outlets in Pakistan had gained under Musharraf regime could have well established it as an essential watchdog; initiating reasonable discourse and accentuating accountability for the societal well-being. In a blatant ignorance to all journalistic ethics, however, this unprecedented freedom has not achieved much other than setting the stage for a cannibalistic cockfight. Here, most of the players seem determined to thrive at the expense of others, making use of sensationalist rhetoric to highlight the slightest of shortcomings and even plain conjecture to create stories out of thin air.
The recent legal victory of Mir Shakil ur Rehman, a media mogul and owner of the Jang newspaper group and Geo television, against ARY, another Pakistani television station, is quite significant for finally signalling an end to the bare-knuckle style of fighting within the media. While ARY was told earlier this month at a hearing in the UK to pay £185,000 for libelling Rahman, the latest ruling has now asked the channel to broadcast the summary of this judgement on as many as three occasions to further signify its defeat. Amid times when wild attacks continue to narrate the unfortunate struggle of media rivalries as they race to gain the top spot, such a significant legal encounter is expected to spell out the standards of journalistic integrity for the future. Rehman, however, was not alone in bracing fancy allegations of committing treason, working against the country’s interests and even indulging in blasphemy on repeated occasions. The same channel is also being sued by Mian Muhammad Mansha, a prolific banking tycoon, over slanderous content that had accused him of fraud.
Another victim of ARY’s malicious campaign, Ziauddin Yousafzai–father of the youngest-ever Nobel Prize laureate, Malala Yousafzai–has similarly launched a legal case in the UK against one of its programmes where guests indulged in a tirade against his alleged betrayal of “Pakistan, its ideology (and) its very existence.”It is, hence, hoped that these civil complainants, who have yet to receive justice from their country’s dysfunctional legal system would now be helped in their pursuit to wash clean their tarnished reputation by the British courts. Nonetheless, the very fact that the failures of both our legal and judicial codes have intensified to such a horrific extent, which compels our own countrymen to resort to foreign regulators to resolve their complaints should sound alarm bells for all concerned authorities.
Having achieved so much for the good of their country, all three victims of the recent defamation episodes do not deserve such slander. Both Mr Rehman and Mr Mansha are included amongst the most illustrious entrepreneurs of Pakistan. With decades of their success to their respective credit, their widespread setups have significantly helped absorb a large number of the country’s workforce in addition to contributing to its limited economic activity. By his active support of his daughter’s human rights advocacy, Mr Yousafzai, has broken at least some of the negative notions upheld by the global community, particularly with regard to its regressive culture and mistreatment of its women.
It is high time that all representatives of not just media bodies but also lawmaking institutions sit together to let go of all prior hostility and carve out an effective legal code that can thoroughly govern what actually goes on screen. Too much of bad journalism has already tainted our integrity both here at home and abroad, and, thus should not be allowed to go unchecked anymore. Our editorial quality can only be improved if we encourage ethical journalism in the lieu of the soap-opera style exposition that continues to saturate the news coverage.
The writer is an Assistant Editor at Daily Times. She tweets @dureakram and can be reached at [email protected]