Sleaze finds its way into news channels

The next time you tune into a regional channel in the hope of catching up on the latest news, you might be in for a nasty surprise. Post 10 pm, local channels turn into sleaze hubs with explicit scenes and songs from B-grade movies being played in the guise of “filmy entertainment” shows. In spite of a court ruling against Maa TV’s sleazy shows a year ago, channels like NTV, Maha TV and Studio N, continue to air shows with suggestive titles like Mirchi Masala and Hot and Spicy to titillate viewers and increase TRPs, with no regulatory body to oversee their content.
The movies from which these sequences are taken have been given an ‘A’ certificate by the censor board, yet these shows don’t carry a disclaimer before it is aired. Parents in the city lament that these shows with vulgar content are aired even during the day. Sandhya Palaparthy, a parent, says, “We ask our kids to watch TV channels to improve their general knowledge. But the programmes on these regional channels are awful. A young girl who anchors the show uses sleazy language and the whole programme is in bad taste. There is no disclaimer to warn people that it is for adults either.”
With no regulatory body to come down upon them, the channels defend their content. In fact, some like Pavan Kumar, programme head of Mirchi Masala on NTV makes ridiculous claims such as “kids don’t watch TV at that time.” “This show is part of our movie segment. We are sure kids are not awake at 11.30 pm. The programme is meant for adults only,” he says.
But viewers beg to differ. Saraswati M., an employee with HDFC and a mother of a 12-year-old exclaims, “Which child is asleep at 11.30? My son may not get entry into a theatre to watch such ‘A’ certified movies, but since he has a TV in his bedroom, he can watch all the adult content he wants in spite of being a minor. There must be censorship even on TV.”
Other channel heads insist that their shows are meant for “entertainment” and are not sleazy. I. Venkat Rao, the CEO of Mahaa TV, that airs another show called Mirchi Masala, clarifies, “We air this entertainment programme with top 10 songs as part of our news segment. We are not airing anything to increase TRPs.”
The crux of the problem is that any attempt to regulate the media may be seen as anti-democratic, says Prof. K. Nageshwar, member of the legislative council and former head of the journalism department, OU. “But there is a need to draw a line. News channels are supposed to be informative and should be fit for family viewing. Such programmes can have a negative social impact. TV media houses should have regulations and there should also be a consumer movement among the audience. Regulation is a must,” he adds.
Meanwhile, the state government authorities claim they are helpless. Geetha Reddy, minister for information and public relations, says, “Programmes that offend the sensibilities of people should not be telecast. These shows are a consequence of the lack of a regulatory body for broadcast media. Since it comes under the purview of the central government, there is little the state government can do about it.”