This refers to the news story, “Truck ‘associated with Orange Line project’ claims four lives”, published in a leading daily newspaper wherein it is falsely reported and highlighted that four people lost their lives when a truck associated with the Orange Line Metro Train project collided with a rickshaw and two motorcycles on the GT Road at Daroghawala Chowk. On the contrary, according to the official of the Lahore Development Authority (LDA), the truck belonged to a private company and was associated with work on an under construction plaza at Domoriya pull.
All this sheds light on the fact that media, whose importance as an institutional pillars of society and state is unmatched by any other pillar, sometimes manipulates the facts and bends the reality that suits its interests. It is pertinent to mention here that accuracy is one of the requisites of news writing and the news should be the result of impassionate, unprejudiced, dedicated and true presentation of objective facts. Moreover, objectivity is not only factual presentation, but the most important principle of the modern journalism.
Since it is the foremost duty or function of the journalism to operate its activity by factual presentation, without mingling it with personal views and opinions therefore, media needs to understand that objectivity of the news is marred, if partiality creeps in. Besides, there is also a need to understand that facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored by us and the real honesty is telling the truth to other people. Furthermore, media must accept the fact that truth does not change according to our ability to stomach it.
Galileo rightly said that “all truths are easy to understand once they are discovered; the point is to discover them”. Therefore, need of the hour is to discover the truth and not to report and highlight personal biases and prejudices against anyone or anything. The news should be presented in unbiased, unprejudiced form and in an impassioned manner. It should be kept in mind that truth cannot be long hidden with a little cover-up because as time goes by, what is true is revealed, and what is fake fades away.
There is an objective reality out there, but sometimes we view it through the spectacles of our mis-beliefs, stigmatic attitudes and self-asserted values. Although it takes strength and courage to admit the truth but one should never be afraid of raising his/her voice for honesty and truth against injustice and lying. Therefore, it is requested to all the media groups to stop all this negative propaganda against the Orange Line Metro Train project as a sound and effective transport system is essential to pave the way for the socio-economic development of countries like Pakistan.
Syed Ali Qasim
Lahore
