The recent unsuccessful attempt
to do away with Pakistani journalist Hamid Mir in Karachi opened a can of worms
in comparison with the complexity in the relationship the Pakistani media shares
with State and non-State actors. That Pakistani media-persons have long
apprehended strong relations with both the military and the militants of the
country is no secret; neither is the fact that the Pakistani establishment often
used the media at its will to further its propaganda – and the journalists let
that happen.
The Military-Media Relationship
Pakistan is among the most dangerous countries in the world for journalists. In
the past, when the freedom and independence of the media was quiet by the might
of military dictatorship, only those media houses and journalists that had
connections with the military and the intelligence manage to survive.
Information inflow is strongly controlled in the country, and throughout the
years, especially during the US’ operations in Afghanistan and Pakistan’s own
domestic operations, the only sources of information were the military and/or
the militants. Siding with the civilian leadership was not even an option until
recently. Those who remained close to the military sources engraved out careers
for themselves using this association. They managed to get exclusive news,
interviews, and first-hand experience in areas otherwise cordoned off for
journalists. Although there was a chance for the media to reinvent itself when
the military’s grip loosened a little, it failed to do so due to the rot that
has set in within the institution of the fourth estate as a whole. Journalists
and media houses who owe their existence and/or growth in importance to the
military have become comfortable with the arrangement. The media in Pakistan was
never completely independent. hypothetically speaking, they have either been in
military embed or militia embeds. Although this is not the only cause, it is
among the biggest causes of the decay Here too, the choice of allies within the
establishment and/or the militias plays a critical role. If one is in
Lashkar-e-Taiba embeds, she/he has a shot at some level of safety, whereas if
one enjoys a Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) association, the prospects are
always vague The most unfortunate ones are, of course, the ones who work in
close coordination with the civilian government. The Hamid Mir episode
highlights the possibility of the Jang Group – the parent company of Geo TV
where Mir is a journalist – teaming up with the Prime Minister’s Office to
challenge the military’s supremacy in Pakistan. They had already started
becoming aggressive, especially given their shows with politically bold themes.
Mir’s statements about a ‘deep ISI’ and the possibility of differences between
the Army and the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) also point towards murkier
issues. even though the attack on Mir, just weeks after one on Raza Rumi,
another major journalist, garnered condemnations from all, the occurrence
brought into the open the entrenched divide in the Pakistani media. For the
first time in the country’s history a private media group openly blamed and
challenged the ISI. In retaliation, partners of the military in the media houses
openly lambasted Geo TV for blaming the ISI for the attack and many rallied in
support of the organization basically, as it has historically been, this comes
across as a alternative war for influence between the establishment and the
civilian government. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is treading carefully here.
Many believe that Mir was attacked by the ISI primarily due to their disapproval
over the subjects of his recent shows; especially since the Army is doing all it
can to improve its image. More the miscalculations the Army makes, the higher
the civilian leadership’s suitability goes.
Where Does This Lead? Today, the media in Pakistan is essentially a business.
Revenue and survival are greater motivations than truth and objectivity of
content. balanced reportage does exist, but such institutions and journalists
are few in number and are being weed out – either by the military or the
militants, or by both. What is more destructive is the divide among the media
houses. The corporatization of Pakistani media, where more often than not there
is little or no regard for journalistic ethics, has brought about a situation
where media houses and journalists move quickly for business and application. In
this disorder they have turned against each other, using unfortunate incidents
like attacks on journalists to further their agenda. Gone are the days when
people like Mir Murtaza Bhutto might run politically charged magazines like his
Venceremos, however small in scale, editions of which derided the Shah of Iran
who was then an ally of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. In fact, some of the most charged
protests against press censorship and/or military control of the media took
place as far back as former dictator Zia-ul-Haq’s regime. This does not augur
well for a country where the military wields the beat. internal trouble will
only make it easier for the establishment to gain and declare more control on
the flow of information – defeating the purpose of the survival of the press in
the primary place.