By Md. Ali, TwoCircles.net,
Patna: For long Urdu newspapers have been criticized for their backward outlook and emotional style of writing, most often by people who do not read these newspapers. A careful analysis of English, Hindi, and Urdu newspaper of Patna edition by a journalist in Patna revealed a different picture.
When it comes to giving space to news related to children and women Urdu newspapers are more generous in the coverage given to these issues than the newspapers in Hindi and English.
This starting revelation was made by Aneesh Ankur a freelance journalist, social and theatre activist in a media workshop “Media Consultation for Strategies to strengthen Role of Media During Disasters with Particular Reference to the Issues Related to Children and Women”. The workshop was organized on September 22, 2008, at Gandhi Sangrahalay by NGOs Save the Children and Charkha, which is a development communication Network.
Roznama (Daily) Rashtriya Sahara, an Urdu daily leads all newspapers by giving 20% of its news space for coverage of the issues related to the children and women. Hindi daily Hindustan was second in their coverage of issues covered.
Another popular Urdu newspaper of Bihar Qaumi Tanzeem gives 9% of its space for women and children issues according to the analysis.
Hindi dailies like Rashtriya Sahara has 13%, Dainik Jagaran 9%, Prabhat Khabar 8%, Aaj 8%, and I-next is at the lowest with its 6% of coverage to the children related issues.
The coverage of English dailies like TOI is 9 % and that of Hindustan Times is 7%.
Mr. Ankur tallied his numbers after monitoring various news papers for a month.
Explaining the idea Mr. Ankur pointed out the news papers with the minimum coverage to the issues related to children and women are English news papers like Times of India (TOI) and Hindustan Times (HT).
The issues were categorized as news related to education, health, trafficking, child rights, child-mother relationship and flood related news stories.
Talking to TwoCircles.net he said that “it was a very surprising thing for me to discover this because Urdu news papers are usually stereotyped as backward and orthodox in its approach towards these issues.”
He further said that “in English news papers you wont find news related to children and women except in the form of bulletins and capsule news whereas Urdu news papers particularly Roznama Rashtriya Sahara brought out not only reports and news stories but also cared to publish detailed analysis.”