MEDIA NORTH EAST WEST SOUTH

North East West South (News) is like binoculars to us, by which we can see the world and assess the situation. In current times it is very essential to keep ourselves updated, it is an important ingredient in making decisions and a crucial element in building a narrative. Media is responsible to transmit the news and has numerous arms to do so.

Almost 80% of households in the world owns TV set with thousands of news channels. Media has deepened its roots in every corner of the living world and is just a click away. Besides print media, social media and the internet are also pre-eminent.

Before newspapers, in the early 16^th century, pamphlets emerged as a source of news in Europe, inspired by religious controversies. Soon pamphlets became a major tool to spread the words. Another notable venue of news was coffee shops, people used to gather in coffee clubs to heard and discuss current situations. In Muslim communities, mosque remained headquarter of news and meetings, it was like a parliament to them, where they announced and made strategies. 

The newspaper became common in the 17^th century and since then it is one of the authentic sources. 21^st century came with a revolution in the media industry, as everything started to digitalized, electronic media took birth as a might. Nowadays it is very easy to access the news anywhere and anytime. As news is a freshly received and noteworthy information about recent times, past news is only junk or memory. According to Edward Abbey:

“Nothing could be older than the daily news, nothing deader than yesterday’s newspaper.”

Anything we don’t know about is news. when such news does not come with credibility, rumors take place. Media has a responsibility to deliver credible news, but when this authority is misused to attain personal advantage or delusional undertakings, problems arise. Every government owns a national television channel and the Private media industry is also regulated by such governments. Governments manipulate media tools in building favorable situations for them and hostile mentality for foes.

“If you tell a big enough lie and tell it frequently enough, it will be believed.”                                                                                                                       -Adolf Hitler

In 21st-century fifth generation warfare tactics introduced and reinforced by powerful nations to control the people. A nation that cannot be invaded with power, now is miserable before this strapping lash. A bullet could not enter in every house but media can, it is a trap, and people are falling for it unknowingly. Governments are tying media to its chair like a puppet and make it bark against her rivals. Media is no more just an industry but a cartel and a mafia.

Misleading, defamation, projecting wrong information, and miscarriage are now very common and trendy in the media industry. But, when any journalist comes forward to speak against it and conspiracies generated by the government, he/she is bashed and banned to do so.

In talking of media, it would be unfair to not incorporate social media and its outcomes. Social media is becoming an entertainment source, it is used by every other person in daily routine. Everything comes with pros and cons; social media platform is filled with fake news with no proper source. Exaggerating usage of smart devices and social media could be very hazardous in alarming situations. Regulations should be introduced for its users to control misleading information.

In the end it is an individual and collective responsibility not to create panic and baseless information through media platforms. Debunk such elements which are doing devils work. Do not believe in every news, because every news is not just news.

                                                                                                          (ABDULLAH HAMEEDI)