Our brave TV anchors

The UN Secretary General in a message said "Freedom of expression is a fundamental human right, enshrined in article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. But around the world, there are Governments and those wielding power who find many ways to obstruct it. ... All Governments have a duty to protect those who work in the media.
This protection must include investigating and prosecuting those who commit crimes against journalists." The best thing that has happened in Pakistan is the freedom of the media. We owe our gratitude to General Pervez Musharraf for this act. By virtue of this, people are becoming more aware of the situation in Pakistan at all fronts.
The monopoly of PTV is broken because of the advent of a number of private channels. Interestingly, once I was invited for a talk show at PTV, to my great surprise I saw the producer of that programme watching a private channel in his office. People once relied on foreign news agencies for the events happening in Pakistan as they did not have any trust in state-owned radio and TV channel. Scenario is now different as our cable channels are providing a great insight into the affairs of the country.
Of late, few of our anchors are showing great courage in revealing stunning facts about government and other political parties. They show no hesitation in challenging our so-called veteran politicians. This reminds us of western anchors and reporters like Mark Tully, Christina Amanpour, Larry King, Oprah Winfrey and some others who would display their exceptional qualities as anchors, journalists and reporters. It is understandable in the background of western culture where freedom of expression and speech is part of the constitution.
It is quite surprising for a country like ours where violence, political victimization, intimidation and personal safety are big issues. One wonders how our anchors can display such courage and can easily get away from the wrath of powerful people at the helm of affairs. Anecdotal reports mention that one anchor received death threats over phone and asked to get prepared for a brutal death. The owners and executives of some private channels were even warned by government with dire consequences. Yet, we see their bold ventures going on with the same pace and vigour every day. It is, therefore, important to understand the dynamics of this situation.
Generally speaking, some classified reports indicate that such courageous persons are connected with apparently hidden forces that are either from intelligence services or from government departments and foreign agencies. They may even draw huge pay scale from these sources along with full protection. There is an intricate design whereby such anchors are used to display bold behaviour and create some sort of impression in order to camouflage a hidden agenda.
Many such anchors may work as undercover agents. In our local scenario, a number of such persons have allegedly acquired immense wealth, power and positions. There is a general talk and discussion among TV viewers who speculate some protective connection associated with these brave anchors. There is a general curiosity as to how these anchors display bold and courageous behaviour in a country where people are victimised, kidnapped, tortured and framed for something they did not do. It has also been alleged that some owners of private channels work on some agendas and hence they remain untouched by those whom they offend.
With the games of politics and network of conspiracy all over the globe, such attachments and behaviours are understandable. Historically, there are periodic absences and even total elimination of some anchors from the scene for reasons beyond comprehension. With our galaxy of bold anchors and reporters, it is our wishful thinking that they are not connected to hidden networks but are genuinely bold and says what they believe in terms of national solidarity and interest.
At least, they are instilling hope among viewers and by virtue of this the general public is gathering courage to speak up their thoughts aloud. Independence of media in Pakistan is a good omen; however, there is a price for being independent. This can be in the form of automatic obedience, enduring stress, upheavals in life, emotional torture or being a subject to social atrocities. The United Nation's message reveals that a number of journalists have been killed in the line of duty, or whose reporting has led to their imprisonment and detention. Quoting a previous report, it was said that thirty-six journalists were killed in 2003 and seventeen in 2004. Their deaths were the result of their efforts to bring the facts, to bring the first-hand accounts of important events and to offer perspectives on the trends of recent times. Some of these were deliberately targeted because of what they were reporting or because of their affiliation with a news organisation.
A number of journalists were put in jails. Last year, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) condemned the killing of 77 journalists. These were not high-profile war correspondents, killed in the heat of battle. Most of them worked for small, local publications in peacetime. They were killed for attempting to expose wrongdoings.
In Pakistan, where economic and moral corruption is reaching heights, whatever independence we see in views, expression, thoughts and actions is a commendable deed. History had dictated that upright persons emerged victoriously in the end with their fortitude and courage. Strength is generated from within in the form of a perpetual energy. This energy gives determination, tolerance and power to withstand extraneous pressures. We hope that our brave anchors would continue their pursuit with the same perpetual energy.
(The writer is a Professor of Psychiatry at Memorial University of Newfoundland, Canada.)