I don't think Nepali media has 'supported' the Maoists. If to give a voice to a renegade group is providing them with support, there would exist no free media--nowhere in the world. It's unfair to blame the press for what has happened: to put forward all the voices, often dissenting ones, and not necessarily beneficial for the State, is the job of the journalists. I am surprised that anyone should think that the media has been supporting the Maoist cause.
And Nepali Tiger ji, there can be little doubt about adverse effects Feb.1 move has had on journalism. The big media houses have had to cut their staff: most of the reporters outside the valley have lost their job. The advertising revenues have plummeted, by as much as 50 percent in many media houses.
I don't get what you exactly mean by ' USED BY THE OUTSIDERS.' But if you mean that foreign players have been using Nepali media to serve their own cause--yes, to some extent.
There clearly are partisan papers. An English daily is clearly run by Indian hands. A television channel was banned recently owing to its Indian roots. What was striking about both these media outlets was their overt support for all Indian Interests. The paper flouted Pakistan on every little opportunity it got. And not once, not explicitly anyhow, has it ever criticized the Indian diplomatic moves. In fact, when the television channel chose to retaliate against the claim of it's being run by Indians, the same paper publishes the clarification of the channel that ?it is dedicated to serving Nepalis and is a 100 percent Nepali channel.?
So tiger ji, more than the foreigners attempting to spread their propagandas through various Nepali news media, India has for the same purpose used the media financed by it. We like to acknowledge it or not, that is the truth.
As far as other neutral media outlets are concerned, I do not think they deserve to be blamed for doing their job 'as it should be done.' What else were they supposed to do? --pay lip service to the king, or any other party, completely ignoring the most important faction in the conflict. The very notion seems illogical, no matter looked at from what angle. I for one think that, if anything, not enough was done to bring the voices of the Maoists forward. We were speculating all the time what they were upto.
And it should not be forgotten that when necessary, the media has stood up against the Maoists as well. The Feb. 1 move has suppressed their dissenting voices when it is high time that we know the insides of the Maoist activities. The people who are satisfied with the recent clampdown on media should not forget that the news they will get now is what the palace wants them to hear, not necessarily the truth. Now, will you people be satisfied with all the fabricated truths that will emerge from the government?
