Media coverage on my winning the PoleStar awards

'If you want to be a journalist, you’ve got to love the profession'

Receiving the PoleStar awards in Chennai. Flanked by R Gopalakrishnan, chairman, Tata Sons (L) and Arun Jain, chairman, Polaris (R)

BANGALORE (Dec. 5)—The SoftCopy interviewed Information Week reporter Ayushman Baruah, winner of the PoleStarAward, a prize for excellence in journalism, by email. Following is the interview.

Rashmi Sinha: How does it feel on winning the PoleStar award?

Ayushman Baruah: It’s exciting to win an award of this stature. The PoleStar award was instituted in 1998 and since then it has been recognizing outstanding talent in business and IT journalism. All the earlier PoleStar award winners are doing extremely well in their lives today holding high positions in the journalism industry. I feel honored to be a part of this group.             

You are very strict about punctuality and discipline. How have you molded yourself to be so specific?        

Punctuality and discipline is usually a function of two things. One is family upbringing and the other is schooling. I believe these are characteristics you pick up early in life and it’s almost impossible to learn them post adulthood. My father who is the mentor in our family has brought us up in such a way that we learnt the value of time quite early in life. So, I think my sisters and my mother are as disciplined as I am. It’s something that comes naturally to us.    

My schooling is the other factor that contributed to this. I consider myself fortunate to have studied in St. Edmund’s school under Bro. Eric S. D’Souza. Dasu, as we fondly call him, is a genius who taught us almost all the subjects with innovative techniques that encourage creativity and lateral thinking. He is also perhaps the most disciplined person I have come across so far—if you are late for class by two minutes, he would keep you out for two long days. No one questioned. He made us understand that if you are late, you are out. It’s a fair game. Today, as I look back, I realize that the subjects he taught us were only a small part of his teaching. Most importantly, he taught us for life. He made sure even the quietest and the best student went out of the class once. He wanted the so-called good boys too to come out of their cocoons and experience the real world which might be cruel to you sometimes.                    

Why did you choose journalism as your career? Did you always want to be a journalist?

If you actually trace back to my college days, I became a journalist more by chance than by choice. I was in the Science stream in class 12 and I too appeared for the typical engineering and medical entrance exams. After all, as per Indian traditions, one is successful only if you are a doctor or an engineer. If you are the only son, you are especially left with no other option. But I wasn’t really interested in either engineering or medicine, instead I enjoyed writing and public speaking and I wanted to do something on these lines. So, I thank my parents for having the vision and the courage for allowing me to study mass communication at a time when media wasn’t a mainstream subject. I did my BA (Media Technologies) from St. Anthony’s College in Shillong which is one of the finest colleges and the first college in India to start an undergraduate programme in media. There has been no looking back since then. As I continued with my classes, I got so engrossed in the subject that I went on to do my master’s in communications from Commits, Bangalore. After that, things started to fall in place and today I am sure I made the right career choice. I always tell the younger generation that it is better be an A-grade journalist than a B-grade engineer or a doctor.            

What are the major challenges you face as a journalist? 

Generally speaking, media houses today are more revenue driven than journalism driven. They have a revenue target to meet and they chalk out an editorial calendar based on the revenue target. This according to me is ridiculous. It should be the other way round where first you chalk out a relevant editorial calendar or strategy and then build revenues around it. But it’s the opposite that’s happening in most media houses, if not all. So, this is one of the main challenges any good journalist would face as he/she is made to do something keeping only the revenue in mind. I want the business guys in media houses to realize that a good product will always sell. Focus on the product and sales will fall in place. I have said this in several forums and I am saying it again—good journalism is good business.           

Why did you specifically choose the IT and business sector?

This again is more by chance than by design. I was given to cover the IT beat and today I think I am best suited for that. My science background, as mentioned earlier, helps me here as I understand the fundamentals well. The rest can be picked up on the job. Additionally, Bangalore is the best place to cover IT and I happen to work right here—in the Silicon Valley of India.        

What do you think is the position of India in terms of business and economy?

India is in an enviable position in terms of its business and economy. Though the GDP has slowed down relatively in the past few years, the future seems to be bright. The World Bank has ranked India as the 10th-largest economy in the world with a GDP of $1.84 trillion in 2012. The U.S., at $15.6 trillion, is the largest economy. Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission recently said that by 2030, India will have the third-largest GDP in the world, the largest being China and the second being the U.S. India is also one of the fastest growing countries with an emerging young population who speaks English and understands technology. So, the scene is bright.    

Online media is getting more popular and handy than other forms of news. What do you think is its take in India?

One can write a book on online versus print and many people have said many different things. So, let me be focused and precise to simplify things in my own perspective. I think globally online media is picking up based on two main factors—reach and measurability. In online, you can measure the number of times an article has been viewed or an ad has been clicked on. So, it’s more measurable and quantifiable. In print, this is just not possible. Its reach is evidently wider because the internet has no boundaries. But in a country like India, where internet penetration is still limited, online media will take time to scale up. Having said that, the dynamics are fast changing with the coming of mobile devices. According to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, the number of internet subscribers in India stands at 164.81 million as of March 31, 2013, with seven out of eight accessing the internet from their mobile phones. But again, I personally don’t think it will be a rip and replace kind of a thing. Both print and online will coexist.

What does it take to be a good IT and business journalist?

The fundamentals of journalism are same regardless of the beat you do—be it IT, business, crime or page 3. You got to have your fundamentals right. Have the courage to say and do what is right and the rest will fall in place. A basic understanding of finance and technology will be an added advantage if you are covering IT and business.

How is IT and business journalism different in India from other countries?

I have been traveling to quite a few places around the world over the past few years. So, I have taken this opportunity to observe what you are asking me today. Technology is universal and needs to be communicated in a universal language, which is English. So, this is where English speaking countries like India has an advantage over other Asian countries like Malaysia or China. There are terms like the CIO, server, storage and networking—that you just can’t translate into your local language. In the U.S., most tech journalists are from a technology background and I could sense they have deep domain knowledge. India is still evolving as far as technology journalism is concerned.

Would you ever like to work in any other profession? 

My father, who’s retired now, was the director of the Forensic Science Laboratory, Meghalaya, which is under the police department. And, as I child, I grew up with IPS officers and used to be thrilled with their power and uniform. So, my childhood dream was to be a police officer. But, that’s an old story and now I am happy to be a journalist. Moreover, I don’t think any other profession can give you as much satisfaction as journalism can give.

You come from the Northeast and you are now based in Bangalore. Did you ever think of working as a journalist in the Northeast? 

I would be happy to work as a journalist in the Northeast because there are so many untold stories out there. The region is untapped not only in terms of its beauty but also in terms of its news worthiness. I hope, the region will provide enough opportunities for us to go back and work there. If not, maybe I would have to create those opportunities on my own. 

What are your future plans?      

When I am talking about the future here, I am speaking with a long-term perspective. I would love to start a form of media where journalism is put first. As I said earlier, I will build the editorial strategy first and then build revenues around it. Not the other way round. I am also not sure about the form of media, whether it is print, electronic, online, or something else, as the world is fast changing and so is the consumer behavior. 

What would you like to say to the young journalists of the country?         

If you want to be a journalist, you’ve got to love the profession. I have seen many journalists who are in this profession just for the sake of it. They talk the same language as the business or marketing guys. It’s sad to see many senior journalists and editors who don’t have the spine to stand up for the journalistic ethics. If you are one of them, don’t join the profession. There are plenty of other jobs out there that would pay you better. The current trend is that media houses are driven by revenues and it’s the business guys who call the shots and this will continue unless young journalists who join the profession stand up for journalism. You must be able to say no when you need to and stand up for what you think is right. Never succumb to external pressures.

(Views are personal)    

Read original interview published in The SoftCopy: http://www.thesoftcopy.in/05_12_13_rashmi_interview.html       

OTHER INTERVIEWS AND NEWS REPORTS BY VARIOUS MEDIA 

The Shillong Times

http://www.theshillongtimes.com/2013/10/07/city-youth-bags-prestigious-journalism-award/

The Meghalaya Times

http://meghalayatimes.info/index.php/front-page/22126-shillong-student-bags-national-level-journalism-award

The North East Today

http://www.tntmagazine.in/cover-story/shillong-journalist-bags-national-level-journalism-award/  

India North East 

http://www.india-north-east.com/2013/11/An-Interview-Of-Ayushman-Baruah.html

LAS VEGAS — YOU TAKE MY BREATH AWAY!

For those of you who love to dream, Las Vegas is the only place that can make dreams come true. Enter Vegas and the first thing you experience is a larger-than-life feeling. The never-ending swanky casinos, the glitzy clubs, the large artistic museums, the extravagant shopping malls, and the life-changing performances — all of these make this city in Nevada a place where dreams come alive.

I am a dreamer by nature. As a child, I used to dream of mermaids, flying horses, fountains, oceans, blue skies, and the mountains. And when I watched “O”, a spectacular water-themed show produced by Cirque du Soleil at the Bellagio, I got to live my sweet dreams of childhood (check out show details here). I can say without the slightest exaggeration that “O” was a life-changing experience for me. As I watched the performance, tears of joy and nostalgia began trickling down my cheeks. Indeed, it appeared that I had been transported to another world, even, perhaps, to heaven. This is one experience whose full potential I will not be able to describe in words, no matter how hard I try. You really need to see it to believe it.

Las Vegas is often referred to as Sin City or as a Disneyland for adults. With so many legal casinos and strip clubs all over the place, it certainly lives up to its name. In fact, you don’t have to make any kind of effort to enter a casino because every path seems to lead to one: almost all hotels, restaurants, and shopping malls have cleverly installed a casino at the entrance. You are sure to be tempted to try your hand at a game of poker or blackjack, or go one-on-one with… er… a one-armed bandit, even though there’s no guarantee that Lady Luck will bestow her favours on you. As for the strip clubs, most of them are located slightly off the Strip, the most happening stretch of land, but you might or might not want to drop in depending on your mood and taste.

Las Vegas is also known as the wedding capital of the world and I did experience what that means. Hold your horses! I didn’t get married there… not yet anyway. What happened was that when I was walking around the Strip with a female colleague of mine, there were people coming up to us to ask if we are unmarried and if we would like them to arrange a famous Vegas wedding. I can tell you, we were surprised! As one of the most popular destinations to say “I do,” Las Vegas is known for the crazy and impulsive weddings conducted there. In fact, according to Wikipedia, the Little White Wedding Chapel in Las Vegas has been the venue of about eight lakh weddings.

Of course, there’s much to see and much more to do in this neon-lit city of dreams. The spectacular musical fountains at the Bellagio, the architectural wonders at Caesar’s Palace, and everything else on the Strip — it is enough to drive you crazy. In Las Vegas, the reasons to spend money will always outnumber the dollars you have in your wallet.

I have to say, though, that because Las Vegas appears to be a make-believe world where everything is glittery and massive, and everyone is happy and in high spirits, I can’t help wondering if this is for real and if all of these can exist in this world. But, like many others, I, too, hope that what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. O Las Vegas, you are truly out of this world!  

(This travelogue has been reproduced in the Commits Chronicle No. 91)  

What can we learn from the Zee episode?

[OPINION]

Whether the sting was operated by the editors of Zee News or Naveen Jindal, congress MP and steel tycoon, the legal system will tell – maybe after years. But what can the media learn from this episode?                           

Prima facie, both Jindal and the Zee News editors appear to be at fault. As per unconfirmed media reports, Jindal offered Rs 20 crore to the Zee editors and the editors in turn demanded Rs 100 crore. From a journalistic standpoint, the editors’ demanding any amount money from any business in return for any favour is unacceptable and is against the basic ethics of the profession.                            

"Assuming" this to be true for a moment, the next question is what made the editors cross their limits? Is it because they are the proprietors of the business? Perhaps yes. Ideally, editors should not be the proprietors of the media house they are working for. If they wear the dual hat, they will be tempted to employ such tricks to meet their revenue targets. There are however, excellent examples globally, where the editor is the owner of the media house and yet it is run ethically.

Many proprietors also try to push their editors/ journalists to favour a particular company assuming it would get them that extra buck. Sorry guys, that model didn’t work yesterday and it will not work today. The best-run publications or media houses give complete editorial freedom and there is a thick line between the editorial and the business. This line cannot blur until you are blind or pretend to be so.         

So, how can the media ensure ethical journalism? Empowerment and self-regulation would perhaps solve most of the issues. Senior editors need to be empowered such that they are part of the company’s board – not responsible for bringing in revenues but responsible for ensuring good journalism. This would not allow business heads to arm twist the editors to play the sales game. The second solution lies in self regulation wherein an independent panel of retired journalists and senior editors (who have no interest/stake in any of the media houses) would have the full authority to “fire” any employee of any media house who is found indulging in unethical activities.                    

Shekhar Gupta, Editor-in-Chief of the Indian Express said in a recent debate in CNN-IBN that journalists today are more ethical and professional than ever before. I agree with him on this. I am in the industry and I know it for sure that by and large, today’s modern-day journalists are ethical, smart and more professional. It is perhaps because most of them have attended journalism schools and they survive in a competitive environment where talent shines.

On that note, let us commit ourselves to creating a system where journalism is sacrosanct. Let me take you back and remind you once again of my favourite tagline and the gospel truth that good journalism is good business!  

(The purpose of this write-up is not to judge who's right or wrong, but only to turn the gaze inwards into the profession of journalism, in general)   

Fight terror and illegal immigration, not against Indians

It’s outright lack of wisdom to attack the people of North East in Bangalore and other parts of India. It's clear now that terrorist groups from Pakistan are trying hard to instigate violence and communal tension among the Indian citizens. These anti-social groups have just taken advantage of what happened in a few districts of lower Assam to incite communal violence among the Indians. It's apalling if some of our Indian brothers have fallen prey to such timid tricks adopted by the terrorist or terror-supporting groups.

Through this blog, I would like to inform the citizens of the country that the recent violence in lower Assam which killed some 70 innocent people and rendered thousands homeless, is not a communal clash in the true sense of the word. The fact is, in the three districts covered by the BTAD area of Assam, namely Bongaigaon, Kokrajahar and Chirang, sporadic clashes took place between illegal immigrants from Bangladesh (who incidentally happens to be Muslims) and the Bodos (a small tribe of Assam). The clash took place because of the insecurity and attacks the Bodos have been facing due to the unabated influx of people from Bangladesh.

In contrast to the rumours in the country, the Assamese and other people from the North East are in no way involved in any communal clash. They are instead trying to prevent such unwanted incidents. Various Assamese organizations have gone to ground zero to help maintain peace and tranquillity in the affected areas assisting the people with cash and kind.

Therefore, it is completely foolish and irrational to attack any person from the North East or any Indian with a communal feeling that Muslims from Assam are being attacked. The clash which took place is between the illegal immigrants (Bangladeshis) and the original inhabitants of those regions (the Bodos). It is not a fight between the Muslims and the people of the North East. Let's clearly understand that this clash would have taken place with the illegal immigrants regardless of their religious identities.

Taking into account the actuality of the situation, I appeal to all sections of people to come to terms with the reality and refrain from giving a communal turn to the disturbance in the North East. It may be noted that Assam is a state in which Hindus and Muslims have been living harmoniously from time immemorial. Any instigation from any anti-national group should not be entertained in this regard and no innocent person from the region should be victimised. Let’s fight terrorism and illegal immigration, not against our own Indian brothers and sisters.

A glimpse into IT journalism

Most passionate journalists believe journalism is the best profession in the world. Some even say journalism is God’s own profession. As a Bangalore-based IT journalist, I second their opinion and bet they are right in believing so. In this article, I will attempt to justify my belief through the eyes of an IT journalist.

Journalists usually cover different beats or areas assigned to them. I have been fortunate enough for having got the chance to cover the IT or information technology beat in my career. An IT journalist’s job is like a white-collared journalism job where you get the perks of both the worlds – that of a journalist and that of a corporate. You don’t have to sweat it out, as much as, say a crime-beat journalist, but you are still a journalist, who reports, writes, and investigates. You are only spared the heat and dust of the outdoors because of the nature of the beat. After all, the IT companies are among those which have the swankiest of offices.

In fact, journalism is hardly a job. It’s a blessing for more reasons than one. As a journalist, you get paid for doing what you like. For instance, you get paid for reading the newspaper; you get paid for meeting celebrities; you get paid for talking to people; you get paid for travelling around the world; you get paid for expressing yourself, etc. The list goes on. Everyone around you does these things anyway. But as a journalist, you do them as a profession and get paid for it too. Your work of course has an agenda, a purpose and a sense of professionalism, which only makes it more worthwhile. The stress and long hours that might seem tedious for people outside the industry actually add to the adrenaline flow of most journalists.

MEETING THE WHO’S WHO

Like most journalists, I too have had the opportunity of travelling around the world attending various international conferences, mostly on technology. Last year, I attended the Oracle OpenWorld in San Francisco, California. OpenWorld is the annual event organised by software giant Oracle. The event hosts more than 45,000 registered attendees and generates over $100 million for the Bay Area economy. At the San Francisco event, I met industry top honchos such as Larry Ellison, CEO of Oracle; Michael Dell, founder and CEO of Dell; Joe Tucci, CEO of EMC and SD Shibulal, CEO of India software giant Infosys, among others. Anyone with some interest in the IT corporate world will acknowledge that the above list is the dream team anyone could imagine to meet under one umbrella.

Closer home, Bangalore, the Silicon Valley of India, is home to some of the industry’s most prominent think tanks such NR Narayana Murthy (founder & chairman emeritus of Infosys), Azim Premji (chairman of Wipro) and Ashok Soota (ex-CEO Wipro Infotech, founder of MindTree and Happiest Minds), among many more. Evidently, IT journalists in the city are never short of story ideas. The city which has the largest number of tech companies in the country gives enough opportunities for reporters to find business news worth reporting.

When American investor and world’s third richest man, Warren Buffett, came to Bangalore, I was among the lucky 500-odd people who had the opportunity to meet him. Apart from business, Buffett had philanthropy in the top of his priority list in India. He told media persons in Bangalore that “philanthropy is much more difficult than business but that does not mean you ignore it.” Buffett has pledged nearly 99% of his personal net worth of $50 billion to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. (The Foundation is one of the largest charitable institutions in the world run by Microsoft founder Bill Gates and wife Melinda Gates).

“I have never given up a meal to give away money, I have never given up a movie, and I have never given up taking my family on a vacation trip, so I have everything in the world that I could possibly want. And yet I have a lot left over, and that money will do nothing for me, but it will do a lot for other people, so I am giving up something that has no value to me and that has value to other people and to me that makes nothing but sense,” Buffett said. He added that the decision to give most of his money to charity was taken while he and his late wife Susan were still in their twenties. “But I felt it was better to be giving away billions later on than millions early on and so far it has worked out that way,” he said.

So, like Buffett who has never given up a meal to help someone in need, journalists never have to give up on the fun of life for the sake of work. For them, work is play and they love doing that. Journalism is a profession which gives you opportunities that no other profession in the world can ever give. What you make of it is left up to you. You also get noticed and recognized for your work and that satisfaction is unique. Journalists are fed with exclusive information on a 24/7 basis, sometimes more than what can be chewed. But the point is, you are constantly learning and always building new mental muscles, and that’s a blessing!

(The author is a Bangalore-based IT journalist currently working as a Principal Correspondent with InformationWeek)

Is Good Journalism Bad Business?

Is good journalism bad business? It’s a topic I have been obsessed with since college and why not? The topic is as relevant today as it was many years back. The owners of many media houses have always had tough time dealing with credible journalists. The question boils down to this. If company X is one of the prime advertisers with a magazine or newspaper, should the journalist be stopped from writing a negative story about it? Should company X get even an iota of special treatment? The answer clearly is a NO in all caps and bold. Alas, many of those in the business feel the answer should be YES.

There is no denial that revenues are important to sustain a media house or a publication. The big question here is: Will partiality towards company X bring in the required profit? The answer is No. Readers are quick to decipher what’s real news and what’s an advertisement or an advertorial or a PR gimmick. They read a publication because they trust the content and consider it sacrosanct. The moment the reader discovers that you have restrained covering company X negatively or favoured it in any form because it advertises with you, they are bound to stop reading your publication.

Some sales guys also believe that giving editorial coverage is a good way to sell an ad and bring in revenues. They can’t go more wrong than this. Companies advertise because they know it’s hard to find editorial space. The moment editorial coverage becomes easy, which fool will spend the moolah and advertise? So, in the long run, such strategies will only hit back on the face. Needless to say, advertorials and all custom publishing initiatives are perfect examples of brand dilution and will not work in the long term.

Consider this example. Dhirubhai Ambani bought the Sunday Observer from Ashwin Shah of Jaico and launched a daily paper called The Business and Political Observer to act as their mouthpiece. The Sunday Observer was successful in its Jaico avatar but it never worked as an Ambani operation. Why? It’s because our readers are more intelligent than what we assume them to be. The daily paper became an embarrassment and in no way it saved Ambani’s company from all the negative publicity. The publication actually became a liability for the Ambanis and had to be closed down.

Ravi Dhariwal, CEO of The Times of India Group said in one of the forums, “A good product will always sell…Marketing begins with a good product.” I completely agree with him and I am overtly glad to hear such words coming out of a marketing guy.

My final verdict: Good journalism is good business. Media is the domain of the public and people want fair, truthful and unbiased news and views. There is no scope for any hidden agenda here. We should create a strong editorial-driven product and build revenues around it. It cannot happen the other way round where we build an editorial strategy based on the revenue target.

How I got my passport

Unsystematic things happen with systematic people. One such funny thing happened today. Last week, I had applied for a passport re-issue. I had applied in Tatkal scheme, paying more than double the amount, only to receive it urgently within five days. I was expecting to receive this yesterday or today.

Given that I had not already received it, I got little worried because often people have trouble finding my flat. As I was walking down the road, I came across a man in khaki with a bag. Postman, I thought. He indeed was. So I got hold of that random postman and asked him if he had any letter in my name. Evidently, the answer was “no”.

However he was kind enough to give me a phone number of his colleague who he said might be having it. To my pleasant surprise, I called him and found out that he indeed has a letter bearing my name. Then, we met at a mutually convenient place and he handed over the passport to me after I showed him my ID card. He also said, “I was about to return it to the passport office if you didn’t call me up today.” Phew! How many people would catch a random postman on the road and ask if he has their letter? Then he said, “Coffee?” I understood. I gave him Rs 10, told him thank you and buzzed off.

So much for a passport! While I am really glad to have ultimately got my passport, I sometimes wish things happened systematically with systematic people.