View from the neighbourhood: Scorched earth for media

Abbas Nasir, a former editor of Dawn, argues that the establishment has taken a page out of Vladimir Putin’s book, and “regulation” of both traditional and social media is the order of the day.

pakistan media, Abbas Nasir, dawn pakistan, Vladimir Putin, bangladesh general elections, indian express news, imran khan — Nasir also describes how the government has asked for certain accounts on Twitter to be blocked because the users are “in violation of Pakistani laws, rules and regulations”. (Source: PTI Photo/Representational)

Abbas Nasir, a former editor of Dawn, describes a new “enemy” of the Pakistan state apparatus — both the civilian government and “its backers in the security establishment” — that will certainly have a resonance across South Asia. The battleground he describes in his December 22 article in Dawn is a familiar one — ideas: “With ideas being the only weapon in their arsenal, the dissidents need a vehicle to air their views and share their ideas. It appears that the civilian government in power and its powerful backers in the security establishment are now ensuring that those who disagree are denied a platform.”

Nasir argues that the establishment has taken a page out of Vladimir Putin’s book, and “regulation” of both traditional and social media is the order of the day. Both officials and “their surrogates in think tanks” instruct the media on how to “report positively”. “Of course, such enforced ‘positivity’ leaves no room for you and I to truly believe that something may actually be against the national interest and vocally oppose it because our conscience so dictates. Your definition of national interest and mine amounts to nought,” writes Nasir. While one can argue that such a state of affairs is the media’s own fault, dependent as it is on government advertising, “the alleged interference of security services in the distribution of TV channels on cable and newspapers through hawkers have also curtailed their reach and affected the commercial advertising market”. Nasir also describes how the government has asked for certain accounts on Twitter to be blocked because the users are “in violation of Pakistani laws, rules and regulations”.

Nasir’s argument is fairly straightforward and important to heed: “At many crucial junctures in the past; grave national debacles happened because the media was muzzled and hence unable to ring the alarm. Pakistan’s long-term interest and the well-being of its people can only be best served via debating the pros and cons of all vital policies.”