Why Pak News Today is Quite Similar to What it Was Decades Ago?
If you read newspapers of the late 80s or early 60s randomly, you would see that some news developments are common. Ultimately you would realize that Pak news today is quite similar to what it was decades ago. Some news updates regularly feature in both electronic and print media. Since the inception of Pakistan, economic issues, corruption, and inflation have been the part and parcel of news in Pakistan.
Sadly, these are the
chronic issues of Pakistan. Throughout the history of Pakistan economy of the
country has been in the doldrums. Economic issues have been in the headlines
since the very first day of the establishment of Pakistan. In the early years,
insufficient water supply from India and the refugee crisis compounded the
economic woes of Pakistan. Later on, a plethora of other issues including the
balance of payments crisis caused economic stagnation in the country. The word
‘economy’ is perhaps the most repeated in newspapers in Pakistan.
Incompetence and
corruption of government officials have been another important headline for
media outlets and journalists. Every government has faced corruption
allegations from opposition parties and the media. Corruption has been a
regular part of the news for decades. In recent years Sharif family and the
Panama scandal have got much coverage in the headlines news due to corruption
allegations. Different institutions have been established to check on
corruption in the country but unfortunately, they have not been able to bring
any considerable progress. Thus, unbridled corruption in the country provides a
lot of content to journalists to feature in news.
The third most common
news development in media is the uncontrolled inflation in the country.
Skyrocketing inflation in the country often draws public ire. The life of the
masses man becomes miserable due to the soaring prices of food commodities.
Over the course of history, several governments have been subject to criticism
for their inability to stem the burgeoning inflation in the country. Price of
petrol and food items including flour, rice, pulses, sugar, meat, and
vegetables affect the life of the common man. Unfortunately, often many of
these food items are not available in the market at affordable prices.
Therefore inflation is as commonplace in Pak news today as it was decades ago.
Following are the two
major motivations for journalists to keep focusing on the above-mentioned
issues in news stories.
Severity of the issues
All the three
above-mentioned issues strongly impact the life of the masses. Inflation
affects the well-being of the common man. It makes life miserable. People
become critical of government policies due to inflation. Thus, journalists tend
to grab the attention of the masses by putting more stress on inflation.
Moreover, economic
issues have widespread impacts on different aspects of life in the country. It
impacts the national image of the country among the comity of the nations.
Whenever Pakistan signs a loan agreement with IMF it not only impacts the
well-being of the masses but also damages the national image of the country.
Similarly, corruption
has a negative impact on the lives of the masses. When the tax money is
embezzled, the government cannot provide better services to the masses at
different levels. Thus, these issues get considerable coverage in news
headlines as they have widespread impacts on the masses.
Propaganda against government
Additionally, often
media outlets deliberately spotlight these issues to defame the incumbent
government. All the above-mentioned issues including corruption, economic
issues, and inflation massively hurt the reputation of the government. Some
media outlets exaggerate these issues to push the government into hot waters.
However, all the media outlets have not been involved in spreading propaganda
against the government. There are some news channels including Samaa News and
24 News HD that have earned a great reputation due to impartial and accurate reporting.
In a nutshell, rampant
corruption, economic stagnation, and unbridled inflation have been the three
major issues of Pakistan for decades. As these issues have been grabbing
headlines since day one Pak news today is quite similar to that of the previous
century. Every government has drawn public ire due to its inability to control
the aforementioned issues. One hopes in the coming years, Pakistan is able to
overcome these challenges and emerge as a stable and developed polity on the
globe of the world.
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