Daily Times

Absar Alam, the head of Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) is back in the news with his latest statement in which he blamed media for murdering the social media celebrity, Qandeel Baloch. I know that Mr Alam’s point of view is also shared by many in this country and, of course, everyone is entitled to have a point of view. But I would like to disagree with them simply because it is a murder in the name of “honour,” committed by none other than the brother of the deceased. Some people are of the view that media reported the case in a highly inappropriate manner only to increase its ratings, but then again media shows us what we want to see or simply what we demand.

Qandeel was an Internet celebrity who had more than 700,000 followers on Facebook. This number is huge keeping in view the conservative background of a country like Pakistan. Since many sources of entertainment on the Internet have been blocked in Pakistan, Qandeel became a sensational icon for many Pakistani men and women. She provided them with tantalising entertainment that had been taken away from them by state authorities.

There are more than 100 TV channels in Pakistan, 107 to be exact. Mr Alam has already admitted that PEMRA does not have the capacity to monitor all these TV channels. During the hearing of a case in the Supreme Court of Pakistan, Mr Alam informed the honourable court that PEMRA could currently monitor only 50 channels, which requires services of 182 people. However, PEMRA is severely understaffed with only 29 staff members. In order to monitor all 107 channels, PEMRA would require services of more than 380 staff members.

It is difficult for me to comprehend that with a severe shortage of staff how Mr Alam could be so sure and criticise the media for murdering Qandeel. Of course, he does not sit in his office all day monitoring all TV channels.

Well! Most of us who are aware of the process of ratings in media know for sure that the ratings system is not representative of aspirations of all viewers. For instance, a company named Medialogic provides ratings to various consumers including broadcasters and advertisers. The rating metres of this company are only installed in a few cities, which do not translate into demand of all viewers from across the country. Therefore, it would not be wrong if I say that the ratings system used by media is faulty from the very beginning.

Arguably, if we consider the ratings system as accurate and representative of the demand of viewers, what the media showed was what the public wished to view. If viewers were interested in news related to Qandeel, TV channels only complied with their demand.

I think that Mr Absar should have criticised those channels that aired private information of Qandeel, which I personally feel led to her death. By revealing her real name and other information, media, or rather, some channels made her vulnerable. This is exactly the argument used by his brother that Qandeel demeaned the name of the Baloch clan, particularly his family. Therefore, instead of blanket criticism, Mr Absar should have selectively criticised the channels that aired her private information.

I guess it is about time that we accepted that viewers of the content that Qandeel created and shared on her Facebook page exist in Pakistan, and that they are definitely in a huge number. That is the reason why TV channels complied with their demand, and aired content related to Qandeel.

Additionally, it is very important to understand that it is a murder, and thus a legal issue. It is, therefore, irresponsible of Mr Absar to blame the media for this murder because that would take the attention away from the main accused, and dilute the case. Since Qandeel’s brother has accepted his involvement in the murder, and the case is in the court, it is better to avoid any unnecessary speculation.

According to the latest media reports, the police team investigating the case has also summoned the mufti (religious scholar) who was part of the last scandal involving Qandeel. Although the said person has denied any involvement with Qandeel earlier or anything to do with the murder, the investigating team is increasing the scope of the case to include everyone linked with Qandeel. Therefore, I would like to assert that any unnecessary speculation about the case should be avoided so that the attention is not diverted towards media or anyone who is not connected to the murder.

I personally feel sad on Qandeel’s demise, especially when her murder was committed in the name of honour. Media should not have aired her private information, which I feel led to her death. However, all of us should refrain from unnecessary commentary and blame games until the case is solved, and justice is served.

The writer is a development consultant. She tweets at @GulminaBilal and can be reached at coordinator@individualland.com