A Visit to Radio Nepal

As a part of our field study, our class was taken on a tour to Radio Nepal which is located inside the Singha Durbar. Since it was my first visit to a radio station, I was excited beyond words and filled with new found energy. But the long wait outside the premises drained all my energy. Finally, after about an hour we were granted the permission to enter. It was not an easy task to locate Radio Nepal inside the spacious Singha Durbar. After wandering here and there for quite some time, at last we somehow reached our destination.

Radio Nepal was established on 1st April 1951. Initially, the transmission covered duration of 4 hours and 30 minutes through a 250 Watt SW transmitter. Over the years, Radio Nepal has strengthened its institutional capacity considerably and diversified itself in terms of programme format, technical efficiency and coverage. Radio Nepal airs programmes on Short Wave, Medium Wave and FM frequencies. FM Kathmandu, the first FM-Channel covering Kathmandu valley and adjoining areas was started in 1995 from its premises at Singh Durbar, Kathmandu. The short Wave transmission of Radio Nepal is estimated to reach listeners throughout the kingdom. Medium Wave transmission covers 70% to 80% of the population.

The Broadcasting Headquarters at Singha Durbar in Kathmandu has two broadcasting houses consisting of one drama studio, two music studios, one reporting studio, three continuity studios, one news studio and seven programme production studios. We visited the music studio first which was equipped with a 24 track recording facility. The most interesting feature of this studio was a Vibrophone, a unique musical instrument found only in Radio Nepal. This studio as told to us is open for hiring purposes for anyone desirous of recording music digitally. The attractive part: Studio charges here are relatively reasonable compared to other private studios. Foreign broadcasting Stations also make use of Radio Nepal’s Studio facilities and transmitters for live and other broadcasts on a rental basis which clears any doubt about inefficiency of its facilities.

Our next stop was one of the programme production studios. It felt great to see the working mechanism of a radio station in practical. After the production studio, we were taken to the recording studio. All of us were so enthralled by the fancy gadgets and couldn’t help but give it a shot. Putting on the head sets and recording our voice we did feel like a pros. But, while some failed miserably others proved that their knack for the work. We also got to see a Radio Jockey busy at work interacting with his callers. Meera Rana, the veteran Nepali singer added some glamour to our trip. Currently, she looks after the tape department of the station. The music library at Radio Nepal can boast of a collection of about 40,000 songs.

In the age where everything is headed towards technology, Radio Nepal is also making some modest effort to cope with the technological advancement. It uses the latest development in computer and digital radio. Also, it has initiated the task of digitizing old songs and mastering on digital format due to its large storage capacity, high fidelity and low cost. The old songs of yester years are getting a new life in the form of CDs.

The complex also has one open air live theatre facility for functions and musical performances. Like other transmitting stations, the Head quarters also has a 100 KVA stand by diesel generator to cope with occasional power failure.

All in all , the visit to Radio Nepal was informative, enthralling and fun at the same time.

Situation of Development Journalism in Nepal

The term “development journalism” is used to refer to two different types of journalism. The first is a new school of journalism which began to appear in the 1960s. The idea behind this type of development journalism is similar to investigative reporting, but it focuses on conditions in developing nations and ways to improve them. It attempts to document the conditions within a country so that the larger world can understand them. Journalists are encouraged to travel to remote areas, interact with the citizens of the country, and report back. This type of development journalism also looks at proposed government projects to improve conditions in the country, and analyzes whether or not they will be effective.

The second type of development journalism involves heavy influence from the government of the nation involved. While this type of development journalism can be a powerful tool for local education and empowerment, it can also be a means of suppressing information and restricting journalists. This type of journalism can walk a thin line. On the one hand, government participation in mass media can help get important information spread throughout the nation. Governments can help to educate their citizens and enlist cooperation on major development projects. However, a government can also use the idea of “development” to restrict freedom of speech, for journalists. Journalists are told not to report on certain issues because it will impact the “development” of the nation in question, and therefore citizens are not actually being given access to the whole picture.

Development these days is understood only in the terms of construction and infrastructure. There are 2 perspectives through which we can understand development. One is through Infrastructure Agenda which means economic development. It refers to advancement in physical structures such as roads, schools, health, and education sector. The second perspective is Individual Independence which means human development. It is related to human rights.

As a tool for social development, development journalism can be very valuable especially for a developing country like Nepal. It is important to communicate in development in order to understand the problem and also to draw the solution. However, the case of Nepal is far from perfect. The state of communication sector is still humble which prevents social advancement. Media plays an important role in accelerating the pace of development process.But, mainstream media do not give coverage to developmental issue. Media is dominated by politics and hence, developmental news fails to stand out. Glamour factor is still absent in the reporting of developmental issues. Although such issues are covered by few newspapers and magazines, the quality of reporting is weak which fails to attract readers' interest.

Media in Nepal are killing the essence of development journalism. Rather than critically analyzing the issues, they merely report on what is happening. Instead of studying the issue, they just present it as it is. For e.g. Most of the newspapers will write about what the Prime Minister said in a speech rather than why did he/she say it or whether the things said is accurate or not. Merely, reporting issues related to poverty, corruption, hunger and illiteracy is not only depressing but a repetition. Journalists committed to development should look at the situation beyond just reporting it. Lack of professionalism can be the cause for ineffective reporting. People still view journalism as a hobby rather than profession. In Nepal, there are no standard requirements to become a journalist and neither there is availability of specialization courses in the discipline of journalism. Among the universities in Nepal, only Purbanchal University offers a Master’s Degree in Journalism. Global issues are present in abundance but what is lacking is the critical analysis of such issues.

Moreover, developmental issues are not of concern to the investors because they do not care about the service motive of journalism. To earn money is what matters to them and therefore, they cover only those issues which sell. This is the reason why we never see a news story based on developmental issue on the first page of a newspaper. Media in Nepal is not yet developed as an industry. Legally and technically it is an industry but the distribution system is still weak. Pre-planning is not done resulting in unmanaged media. Also, most of the investors do not have much idea about media management and therefore they focus only on the commercial aspect of it. Furthermore, there are no restrictions in investment proportion. However, it is seen that the journalistic and editorial approach towards development journalism is improving. In Nepal's context the performance of state owned media is comparatively better than other media in coverage of developmental issues.

Development reporting in Nepal has become more of donor based. The reporters are willing to go anywhere to cover any issue when the donor wants. For e.g. If UNICEF is organizing a programme in Dang and they want media coverage, they will take with them few media personnel and pay for their trip. Reporters will cover the event but there will be no follow up because the donor’s interest doesn’t lie in the follow up story. Donors have limited interest. They use the media till the interest is served.

At present, there has been a meager improvement in the field of development journalism. Developmental issues are reported but their presentation style needs to be changed. Neutral advocacy is still absent in reporting issues due to lack of study. Many of the journalists are not professionally committed due to the lack of professional security. Hence, it becomes the role of government to create an environment in which the people from the media and citizen sector can do their work freely without the fear of repercussion. Lastly, development journalism needs to adopt an action-oriented approach which will help bring about a change in the society.

13th Nepal Educational and Book Fair: A Letdown

The 13th Education and Book Fair held at Bhrikuti Mandap Exhibition Hall in Kathmandu didn’t see as much glamour, visitors and media coverage compared to its previous year. Last year, the event had kicked off with a bang, with Dev Anand, the evergreen Indian actor inaugurating the event and later signing his autobiography “Romancing with Life”. The presence of this Bollywood sensation had drawn both media and public in bulk. But this year nothing of the sort happened. Although the event was inaugurated by poet Durga Lal Shrestha and noted Nepali writers Karna Shakya and Jagdish Ghimire spoke at the ceremony, it was not enough to create the buzz which last year’s fair had created. The opening ceremony itself was a fiasco; generating little media coverage.

To add further to its disappointment, the event collided with the examinations of students who are one of the prospective visitors of the fair. Also, with politics taking the centre stage at the moment, the fair couldn’t generate as much interest and attention from people. Worse, the global economy meltdown and inflation didn’t help either. Last year, the fair saw a mammoth of people visiting the event. The number had been confirmed to be over 300,000 but this year it downed by half.

Anjan Shrestha, Educational Book House says that “the business has gone down to 1/4th.” He believes it is the lack of promotion that resulted in the event receiving a lukewarm response. “The fair as a whole hasn’t been able to cater to the ever growing needs of the readers. All the book stalls are offering the same thing and there is no diversity of content.” he adds further. Shrestha’s views are also supported by Kavita of Penguin Books. She says this year’s fair didn’t get much media coverage and also blames the political situation of the country for putting prospective buyers at bay.

Last year, attractive discount offers had pulled the buyers. Palpasa Café was placed at Rs.100 ; naturally people thronged to the stall to buy it making it the bestseller. But this year such offers also failed to gather sizeable audience. Also, most publishers and sellers didn’t have a wide range of books. Penguin books’ stall wore a deserted look and had put up only those books which were already bestsellers. Some complained of their grievances because their order had not reached in time owing to the Terai strike.

The exhibitors wore a disappointed look and held the organizers responsible for not putting much effort into the fair. All in all this year’s book fair was a disappointment for many including me.

Life as it is now

Life, people say is a mysterious journey filled with happiness and sorrow. I guess everyone will agree with me on this one.After all, all of us have been through our share of joy and misery.Earlier, I had lots of complaints about my life. My body, my grades, my relationships all distressed me easily. But now I have learned to accept life as it comes. I have learnt not to be bothered by small, tiny things which are main cause for one's sorrow. I have learnt to work on my weaknesses and flaunt my strength. We see many people give up on life so easily with occurrence of certain mishaps. I don't want to be one of those person neither I want to be someone who just complains and doesn't work on it. we have one life after all and it depends on one's self to shape it.People envy others who have good life thinking I wish I had that person's fortune . But rather than wishing what we should be doing is creating such life for our self. Good life doesn't come easily neither does happiness. One should always work for it. I am applying this theory to my day-day life and believe me, the result is great. I am more satisfied with myself then ever before and above all I am happy. I guess that's what counts at the end of the day....

Be skeptical

It is not uncommon for us to hear that we are living in a world of competition. Survival of the fittest, first cum first serve are phrases explaining this very theory. As kids parents often tell us to be careful and not to interact with strangers outside because they believe it’s a jungle out there. It sure is according to my experience of the world. As we grow up we gradually figure out the workings of the world and I tell you it’s all a bitter sweet experience. Bitter if you fail to work accordingly and sweet when you get your steps right.

A philosopher- Rene Descartes had once said “one should always be skeptical about everything in the world except for one’s own existence”. If I had read his philosophy few years back I would be thinking Descartes was a screw up but today I totally agree with him. People may say being doubtful makes you negative but isn’t it better to be a little negative rather than to be fooled by others at the expense of your own success.

A friend of mine was recently duped by his friends to not give exams while they themselves went forward and gave the examination. Call my friend stupid or his friends evil; that doesn’t matter. This is just an example of many such instances happening in the world especially in workplace and educational institutions. The contemporary-industrialized world of today has created such a high level of competition among people (especially youth) that they inevitably feel insecure unless they pull someone four steps behind.

It has also made people selfish, ruthless and narcissist. People of today live in constant fear of being over taken. I have seen people go from being best friends to giving each other ‘I can’t stand you’ looks, from sharing their feelings to sharing forced smiles. Someone once told me you cannot make friends in college and to some extent I now find truth in the statement. When in college we are constantly competing for higher grades and good remarks from teachers. In the process we fail to maintain our friendship. Sometimes the trust is broken and at times the friendship in an un-mend able way.

Living in a capitalist age people tend to become materialistic and hence due to that part of us become shallow. We are always on the get go ready to bring people down in order to take their position. Competition is good and is required in every walk of life. It is due to competition that the human civilization has been able to come this far. But, what is needed is a healthy competition and not an immoral one.

So, be careful the next time you decide to entrust someone. Don’t forget that the Gandhian philosophy of offering your left cheek to someone who just slapped your right one doesn’t work anymore in this world of ever growing competition. Be skeptical and be realistic.

P.D.A at G.O.D

One of my friends who had just returned from Canada asked me to take her around the most happening places in Kathmandu. Naturally, the first place that came to my mind was Thamel. With its colourful ambience and foreigners setting the place abuzz, this place is definitely hard to ignore by. So, I took her around and finally after stopovers at different local shops, we settled for Garden Of Dreams. Garden of Dreams is located in Thamel chowk. Originally, it belonged to the Ranas who ruled the country for 104 years. About six years ago, it was opened to public.

The moment a person steps into this garden, it is difficult not to get enthralled by its beauty. From the magnificent fountains to the colourful floras to the exquisite sculptures, this garden truly stands by its name for it indeed is a dream garden. Apart from its beauty, the thing that caught my eye was the number of lovers drooling in the garden. The place was filled with young teenage lovers to old married couples, all trying to get their share of privacy. What amazed me was not the number of such couples but their willingness to display P.D.A.

Many of the people may not be familiar with the term P.D.A which stands for Public Display of Affection but most of us have seen it either on T.V or other mass media. Basically, in a country like Nepal it is rare to see P.D.A being displayed at all (and no, we don’t count the foreigners’ snogging in open). It may be due to our culture or our respect for others, Nepalese have always been hesitant in displaying affection in public. Small things such as holding hands, sharing a kiss or just a hug is looked down by the society. But this was clearly not the case in Garden of Dreams.

In every nook and corner of the place, some sort of affection was being shared. The onlookers didn’t pass any strange gazes neither gave a second look. This was so not the society I was used to living in. A part of me felt glad that our society was becoming more open minded but a part of me also felt that we may be heading toward the road to indecency which bothered me. It is not only in garden of dreams but many secluded areas where couples often forget their virtues and put the by-stander in an awkward position. I am not against P.D.A at all. Believe me, I’d be the last person to oppose it but I strictly believe there is a thin line between cute affection and raunchy P.D.A.

Journalism1- Assigment1

Why journalism and democracy are considered interdependent? Discuss with suitable examples.

Journalism and democracy are closely related. It is only in the presence of democracy that journalism can achieve its goal of communicating news freely and objectively.Also, journalism has in many cases helped bring about democracy to countries and it has also helped in sustaining democracy.

When we look into the history of our country Nepal we find that the first newspaper in Nepal, the Gorkhapatra was established in 1901 which acted as the mouthpiece of the government. After the introduction of democracy in 1951 there was growth of newspapers including vernacular weeklies, which expressed different political views and ideologies. But this growth came to halt when King Mahendra dissolved the elected parliament and Panchayat system came into being. This system which lasted for 30 years is well known for its hindrance towards press freedom and restrictions on media in private sector. Therefore, it is considered the darkest period in the history of Nepali media. Although Nepali press started to enjoy some liberties in 1979 after the nationwide pro-democracy movement, it was only after the re-introduction of democracy in 1990 that it was guaranteed its freedom. This led to a revolution in the media scenario of Nepal which has seen a massive growth since 1990.

In the democratic equation there are three types of identities: the politicians, the public and the publication. These three p’s of the democratic process which, through their correlation with each other , make modern democracy unique compared to other political philosophies. The relationship between the politician and the public, through the media and journalism particularly is distinctive in a democracy and has a very special connection with the electoral process, which separates true democracy from imitations. We can take the example of USSR which also had elections but that certainly didn’t make them a democracy. Liberated media is fundamentally crucial in genuine democratic societies because it practices the theory of including the public in governmental affairs, and commemorates the democratic idea that reality can only be relative and truth and facts are to be deemed authentic by individuals, not administrators.

Journalism is necessary because direct democracy is obsolete. People do not really have a say in modern democracy except for their vote. Journalism serves as a mirror to socio-political reality. It informs people about what really is going on and involves them in decision-making processes. In a democracy most of the times an average person is gone unnoticed and it is through journalism that average people are able to have a say and influence on things. The only real reason there is journalism in democracy is to make people aware. Had it not been for newspapers and media we wouldn’t be aware of the events taking place in the world. We wouldn’t be informed and cautious as we are now. Due to journalism we know about elections and candidates and we vote accordingly to what we hear and see through T.V, newspapers.

The main difference between a democratic and non-democratic country is not determined by elections, but by how free their journalists are. Journalism fails to serve its purpose in the absence of freedom. The essence of journalism is lost when it faces barriers and pressure from authorities. Democracy guarantees journalists that freedom and encourages them to have and publish their own opinions. In the absence of democracy journalism becomes futile and tools of propaganda or rather the mouthpiece of the authority in power.

Journalism is an anarchist dimension where individuals choose to relay the truth, or make their own. Government don’t need free press, but free journalism needs democracy. Free journalism is simply impossible without one. A democracy would be unattainable without attempting to include the public into government affairs. Free press can be good or bad but without freedom the press will most certainly be bad. Journalism for better or worse is the best example of the freedom of individuals and the importance of free thought in a democracy.

We can take the example of china where there is no democracy and hence no free journalism. The Chinese government has the full authority over the media there. They are known for censoring those media which are inappropriate to them and endanger their prestige among the Chinese people. The Chinese television channels and newspapers always broadcast and print newspapers in the favour of their government. During the 2008 Olympic Games which was held in Beijing, China; the government didn’t broadcast any news about the protests happening world wide against it. When questioned by foreign media about it to the people there, they were unaware and didn’t have any idea about it. This is one of the few instances where the Chinese government has violated the citizens’ right to freedom and expression.

In modern, democratic societies the press is considered the fourth state. Although democracy ensures press freedom but it also makes sure that the freedom given is not unlimited. Therefore, the government drafts law and acts regarding press freedom. This is done in order to assure that the freedom given is not misused in the field of journalism.

Journalism provides a forum of public debate about different issues and articulates public opinion. It forces government to take into consideration the opinion of people. It also provides an independent channel of communication between different groups in the society. Thus. It becomes an agent of private citizens being reconstituted as a public body exercising informal supervision of the state.

The inter-relationship between Journalism and democracy is undeniable. One cannot function properly in the absence of other. Journalism makes sure that democracy is being exercised in the proper way. Journalism ensures that people become public and they have a say in politics. It is through journalism that the people gain power and journalism becomes a voice through which people speak. Likewise, journalism also advocates for the importance of democracy. It speaks against injustice, inequality and authoritarian rule. Similarly, democracy facilitates journalism. It gives them the freedom to do their work without interference from any parties.