Hyderabad: For elections 2009, if you think it is a media war in Andhra Pradesh, you wouldn't be off the mark. Almost every political party has jumped into the electoral field, with a newspaper or a television channel in tow.
For 42 years, Zahid Ali Khan has been editing Hyderabad's oldest and most widely-read Urdu newspaper, <i>Siasat</i>. Khan is now the Telugu Desam candidate from Hyderabad Lok Sabha constituency, taking on sitting MP Asaduddin Owaisi of the MIM.
Owaisi has his family-owned Urdu newspaper <i>Ethemad</i> backing him, making this contest in Hyderabad's Old city area, a battle of two newspapers.
"Let them make their publicity. We are also doing our publicity. The other two Urdu newspapers, <i>Munsif<i> and <i>Rehnuma-e-Deccan</i> are also supporting us," said Zahid.
The biggies of Andhra politics, Y S Rajasekhara Reddy and Chandrababu Naidu, openly accuse each other of being backed by big, rival media houses in the state. Little neutral ground on television either - like Rajasekhara Reddy's son manages <i>Sakshi TV</i> and Chiranjeevi has a stake in <i>Maa TV</i>.
"To capture the whole reality, one needs to read not one or two newspapers, see not one or two channels, but three or four, to be able to get the correct picture. Instead of being mirrors of reality, media has become funnels for biased reporting. It is very unfortunate," said Mazher Hussain, member, Election Watch.
Observers point out that while the camera, the mike and the pen are playing a critical role in exposing electoral malpractices, it is in the interest of the credibility of the fourth estate that it does not become perceived as someone else's mouthpiece.