| Five years ago when introduced India to the | | | | up featuring Bollywood starlets and the |
| concept of a sting operation, we were all | | | | girl-next-door.I guess the decades of prudish |
| jubilant.It showed us that finally | | | | media coverage lead to this voyeristic streak |
| transperancy was on its way.A very | | | | in all of us.In all fairness,we cannot blame |
| unfortunate Bangaru Laxman was caught with | | | | the media agencies alone for this turn of |
| his hand in the cookie jar.And something that | | | | events, as they just supply the public's |
| we had always known was proved yet | | | | demand. Our nation stands at this critical |
| again,namely,politicians are corrupt.But soon | | | | juncture in History with increasing global |
| these optimistic musings were killed when | | | | clout and also increasing global aspirations |
| most of those implicated by the sting | | | | of its citizens.But as the values subscribed |
| operation continued their careers in active | | | | to by the mass media change, the public |
| politics.Tehelka, just as its name implied, | | | | perceptions are confusingly muddled.This is |
| had started the age of sensationalism | | | | definitely not the face of the Brave New |
| although accountability still seemed | | | | World.Page 3 culture is well and good, but I |
| elusive.Media gurus and spinmasters realised | | | | hope we come to realise that there is a fine |
| that the Indian psyche loved this concept of | | | | line between Celebrity worship and outright |
| a sneak peek.This lead to many scandals which | | | | voyeurism.The only thing the Tehelka sting |
| were bordering on obscenity and definitely in | | | | operation gave birth to was poor standards in |
| the realm of bad taste.From sting operations | | | | journalism and of course provided a means for |
| on B-grade Bollywood character artistes to | | | | Tarun Tejpal to gain enough prominence to let |
| unknown television artists, we saw it | | | | loose his enormously poor contribution to |
| all.News channels covered these faux pas of | | | | literature, Alchemy of Desire.The authour is |
| the relatively rich and famous as though it | | | | a final year student in a prominent |
| was credible news.Obscene MMS's regularly pop | | | | engineering institution. |