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Path: utzoo!linus!decvax!vasudev
From: vasudev@decvax.UUCP (Vasudev Bhandarkar)
Newsgroups: net.politics
Subject: Gandhi Assassination - Media Distortion of facts
Message-ID: <97@decvax.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 31-Oct-84 20:53:55 EST
Article-I.D.: decvax.97
Posted: Wed Oct 31 20:53:55 1984
Date-Received: Fri, 2-Nov-84 04:18:32 EST
Organization: DEC UNIX Engineering Group
Lines: 37


Once again the News media have distorted news, tried 
to sensationalize it and presented it with an "angle".

Case in point: 	The ABC News coverage of the assassination of Indira
Gandhi.  On the one hand they said that two of her Sikh bodyguards 
shot at her. On the other hand they had pictures of rejoicing Sikhs.  
They went on to say that millions of Sikhs in the world were 
rejoicing over the assassination while millions of Hindus 
in India were mourning the death.

BBC on the other hand reports that one Sikh rushed at 
her with an automatic gun killing two of her bodyguards, 
injuring another and later killing himself with the same gun.  
The fact is that a small minority of Sikhs in New York and 
London were rejoicing the event while everyone else was 
mourning the assassination.

The bias presented by the news media seems to imply that the Hindus
seem to be waging an ongoing battle with the Sikhs and  that 
Sikhs have terrorist tendencies.  The fact is that there is 
always a small minority of fanatics in every community that
tarnishes the reputation of the community as a whole.  A minority
of Sikhs used the Golden temple as an arms stronghold.  Incidentally,
it was a Sikh military officer that planned the army takeover of
the Golden Temple.

We feel that presenting news with an angle, making it "juicier",
and applying a bias to it, not only mis-informs the public but
also foments further violence and ill-feeling between the parties
on either side of the bias.  Really, the news media should be
more responsible about what they are presenting and how they 
present it.


Ram Rao					Vasudev Bhandarkar
decvax!ram				decvax!vasudev