Reporting News;Media should avoid loaded language:Coughlin

Bhopal: Mainstream journalists play a major role in the protection and maintenance of communal harmony in a multicultural society. Media should avoid the culturally loaded language, opines Kathryn M Coughlin (pictured in thumb), President, Global Research Group, a US-based think-tank on the Islamic World.

Generally, media don’t give proper coverage for peaceful news. Instead it gives more coverage to the news related with violence and communal disharmony”, Kathryn said while delivering a lecture on “Mutual Sharing in Multicultural Democracy” on Friday in the city. The lecture was organized by Department of Journalism, Makhanlal Chaturvedi National University of Journalism & Communication, Bhopal.

Citing the examples of Danish Cartoon controversy and Macedonian election coverage in the media, Coughlin said that media didn’t followed ethical values while reporting these happenings.

“The election coverage of Macedonia by media was just like a civil war reporting and amazingly peace march of Baghdad on prophet cartoon controversy was not news worthy for The New York Times or The Washington Post”, she mentioned.

Meanwhile, emphasizing the religious dissonance in the contemporary society, the US citizen mentioned that “politicians are also responsible for communal division of the society at some extent”.

“They merely talk about communal division because it is hard for them to talk on bigger issues like development, health and education”, she added.

Warning the people regarding the role played by media, Coughlin further said that media can even misguide people on some wider issues.

The American Center Mumbai cultural affairs specialist Tasneem Kalsekar was also present on the occasion.

Earlier, Pushpendra Pal Singh, Head, Department of Journalism, Makhanlal Chaturvedi National University of Journalism & Communication, Bhopal welcomed the guests. A large number of students were present in the function and they were asking some relevant questions to Coughlin.

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