How often do we see academics, ‘analysts’, and experts of all sorts filling the newspapers and TV channels with shocking reports about this or that? It seems to be almost daily occurrence. Recently, businessman Munir Attaullah heard some claims and rather than simply accept them without question, he investigated the claims of Maria Sultan in […]
In The Nation this week, senior journalist and project consultant/editor at Institute of Strategic Studies Islamabad (ISSI) Ghani Jafar approaches a worthwhile subject – media used for propaganda in Pakistan. But instead of a serious investigation of the issue, readers are spoon fed tired conspiracy theories and hate speech. Allegedly an examination of American influence […]
Tazeen Javed describes the way Media Maulvis are mixing religion with news reporting. Pakistan is a strange country; the people who garner maximum news coverage are often shady. If January was the month of Mumtaz Qadri, then February and March definitely belonged to Raymond Davis and the man who hogged all the headlines across the […]
In his column for The News, Ansar Abbasi continues his pattern of misrepresenting facts and using journalism as a cover for political and extremist propaganda. His latest piece, ‘Battle-lines in war on terror get sharper Zardari, Nawaz take clear positions’, is a bald face attempt to show PML-N as an Islamist political party while bashing […]
The Nation on Saturday published an article which claims that US President Barack Obama has ordered a media blackout about a damaged nuclear power plant. Actually, a simply search of Google News immediately revealed hundreds of articles about the incident including pieces in The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal and USA Today. The […]
Recent reports of possible cuts to American aid have been in the headlines this week after a committee in the American Congress proposed some budget changes that affect US aid policy. As these proposed changes directly affect aid to Pakistan, this is a legitimate news story. But if we examine the way media groups are […]
Director of ‘Kyonkay Saas Bhi Kabhi Baho Thi’ is very frustrated this week since his hit has been overtaken by an even bigger pukka drama. This week, Smriti Zubin Irani has been replaced by Shireen Mazari in the imaginations of aunties across the nation following her fateful encounter with an American at an Islamabad restaurant. […]
Daily Jang today posted an article with the headline “Uruguay kay sadder ka kul asasa 1987 model ki aik car, bank account hai na sadarati mehal mei qayam karty hain”, on its front page. On further reading this small piece (please note that only the headline and first two lines are visible on the front […]
By now the images have become burned into the public mind. A young un-armed man is gunned down in the street. This is not the first incident of its kind, but it is perhaps history making because for once there is evidence enough to demand accountability. But as the gruesome scene is re-played over and […]
An article in Daily Jang provide an interesting look at how Jang Group characterises jihadis in Urdu publications. The articles describe the jihadi leader Ilyas Kashmiri who is believed to have been killed recently in a drone strike. You will please recall that a sympathetic piece was published in Daily Jang following the death of Osama bin […]