Reporters Without Orders

This week, host Basant Kumar is joined by independent journalists Tanzil Asif, Neetu Singh and Sagar Patel, who talk about working in mainstream media, why they quit it and decided to go independent. Legacy media, Tanzil says, only focuses on feeding their agenda rather than serving public interest, making a journalist morally corrupt. Neetu explains that mainstream media restricted her freedom to report because it lacked the guts to hold the government accountable. Some reporters, however, are just fooling people by pretending to be independent journalists, remarks Sagar. They talk of their challenges in opting to work in independent media after exiting mainstream media. Despite lack of resources, hurdles in reporting and problems in their establishing and running their organisations, they say their decision to quit legacy media was most satisfactory.Tune in.Timecodes00:00:00 - Introduction00:02:02 - Reasons for exiting mainstream media00:12:28 - Challenges for independent media00:23:24 - Hurdles for being independent journalist00:56:48 - RecommendationsRecommendationsNeetuPahalgam Attack में मारे गए Shubham Dwivedi की पत्नी Aishanya Dwivedi ने हमले के बारे में क्या बतायाSagar કણબી પટેલોના નાક વાઢવાની હચમચાવી દે તેવી કહાણી| Journalist Naresh Shah | Patidar Samaj History VideoShatranjTanzilCommon PeopleBAKKHO Documentary | A Pasmanda Muslim Story | बक्खो | पसमांदा मुस्लिम की कहानी | Bihar Caste CensusBasantWhat Killed Mukesh Chandrakar - The Reporters' CollectiveProduced and edited by Saif Ali Ekram, recorded by Anil Kumar.Complaining about the media is easy. Why not do something to make it better? Click here to subscribe to Newslaundry and join the tribe that pays to keep news free.

This week, host Sumedha Mittal is joined by The News Minute’s Anjana Meenakshi and Newslaundry’s Shivnarayan Rajpurohit.Anjana talks about her report on Isha home schools being run by Jaggi Vasudev, where alleged cases of molestation and sexual assault unfolded. She explains how these misconducts led to traumatic experiences for some, but there is a lack of a grievance redressing mechanism within the organisation. She finds the functional body of the school to be an absurd way of spiritual business.Shivnarayan reported on the legal fight between electronic companies and the government in the Delhi High Court over the new e-waste policy. Some electronic companies like Havells, Voltas, Dainkin, Hitachi, Bluestar, LG, and Samsung challenged the Indian government’s 2024 amendment to e-waste management rules, where the government fixed the minimum and maximum price caps for recycling their waste to meet their recycling targets. Companies argue that the government’s decision is arbitrary. Tune in.Timecodes00:00:00 - Introduction00:01:23 - Isha home schools00:16:38 - E-waste case00:30:11 - RecommendationsRecommendationsAnjanaA Tale of Two CitiesSupreme Whispers: Supreme Court JudgesShivnarayan‘Thought they were Army, but they opened fire’: Survivors recount Pahalgam horrorSumedhaA storm brews at Isha Foundation: Sexual assault allegations and counterchargesChurch and StateProduced and edited by Saif Ali Ekram, recorded by Anil Kumar.

This week, host Basant Kumar is joined by independent journalist Vishnu Narayan.Vishnu breaks down how political parties are gearing up for a high-voltage election in Bihar. He analyses how political players are trying to finetune their strategies to get different caste groups on their side. He also talks about former civil servants jumping into the political arena and how that can affect the fortunes of the parties in the fray.He sheds light on how the incumbent chief minister’s age will affect his party’s prospects. “Like him or not, you can’t ignore him,” Vishnu says about CM Nitish Kumar. Tune in.Timecodes00:00:00 - Introduction00:01:52 - Political slugfest in Bihar00:44:37 - RecommendationsRecommendationsVishnu Kitna Raj, Kitna KajJP to BJPBasantद जननायक Karpoori Thakur: वॉयस ऑफ वॉयसलेस किताब के लेखक Santosh Singh से बातचीतProduced and edited by Saif Ali Ekram, recorded by Anil Kumar.

This week, host Anmol Pritam is joined by Newslaundry’s Shivanarayan Rajpurohit, independent journalists Ashfaque EJ and Saurabh Kumar.  Shivnarayan talks about his report that uncovers how an Adani subsidiary gained access to its controversial power plant site in Uttar Pradesh’s Mirzapur through a forest department road – without obtaining the required forest clearance that would precede such arrangements. “Experts say that the project and road leading up to it will cause a lot of damage to the surrounding flora and fauna,” he says.Saurabh and Ashfaque’s documentary follows five of the 18 anti-CAA activists accused of orchestrating violence during the 2020 Delhi riots.“Through our documentary, we wanted to show that the Delhi police, to cover up its inefficiency in containing the violence during the 2020 Delhi unrest, booked these activists,” says Saurabh. He adds that the FIRs against the activists is not based on “concrete proof” and has “several loopholes”.Tune in. 

This week, host Pratyush Deep is joined by Newslaundry’s Priyanka Ishwari and The Quint’s Tanishka Sodhi.They talk about their story on Outlook’s transformation from a news magazine that once reported hard-hitting stories and exposed some of India’s biggest scandals to a magazine that focuses more on features, poetry now. Priyanka says several former Outlook journalists haven’t read the magazine in ages “because they don’t think it makes any noise anymore”. Noting that Outlook hadn’t been doing great work after Vinod Mehta’s editorship ended in 2015, Tanishka says under its current editor, Chinki Sinha, the magazine has taken even a “more unpleasant turn”.She also talks about her interview with comedian Daniel Fernandes in the wake of the Kunal Kamra controversy. She notes that even though the comedy landscape is booming, space for political comedy is shrinking because “people are scared”.Tune in.Timecodes00:00:00 – Introduction00:01:24 – Outlook’s vanishing edge00:23:15 – State of political comedy 00:33:28 – RecommendationsRecommendationsTanishkaMany adults take BCG vaccine in city not knowing they’re part of govt studyScripted Videos by Content Creators Fuel Communal Discord and False NarrativesPriyankaUttarakhand first settlers: Full episode-1 | Series सभ्यताPratyushOutlook’s vanishing edge: How a bold magazine lost its biteProduced and edited by Saif Ali Ekram, recorded by Anil Kumar.

This week, host Shivnarayan Rajpurohit is joined by Newslaundry’s Sumedha Mittal and independent journalist Anand Mangnale.Sumedha and Anand break down their investigation on Kiran Bedi’s use of public resources for surveilling her daughter. They say the decorated IPS officer not only “misused her powers in doing so”, but also covered up her alleged misdeeds by presenting herself as a “helpless, concerned mother”.Kiran Bedi left “no room for differentiation between helping somebody and breaking the law for them,” they add.Tune in.Timecodes00:00:00 - Introduction00:01:39 - Kiran Bedi Tapes00:25:35 - RecommendationsRecommendationsAnandDoppelganger: A Trip Into the Mirror WorldSumedhaAfter NL-TNM story, Kiran Bedi makes ‘concerned mother’ claims, silent on Swiss diplomat’s rapeShivnarayanThe RSS: A Menace to IndiaProduced and edited by Saif Ali Ekram, recorded by Anil Kumar.

This week, host Sumedha Mittal is joined by Newslaundry’s Prateek Goyal and Drishti Choudhary.Prateek explains the Nagpur violence that resulted in the damage of several vehicles and shops, the injury of 33 police officers, and a division among the communities. He says the violence was “just a sample of radical mindsets” and that extremists fueled by “ego” mobilised the mob.Drishti talks about the phenomenon of AI anchors in Indian newsrooms, and why this model “is not working”. She also explains how these anchors are ‘stereotyped’. Tune in.Timecodes00:00:00 - Introduction00:00:38 - Nagpur violence00:11:52 - AI anchors in the newsroom00:22:44 - RecommendationsRecommendationsDrishtiThe Palace of Illusions: A NovelPrateekChhavaSumedhaThe costs of Reliance’s wildlife ambitionsProduced and edited by Saif Ali Ekram, recorded by Anil Kumar.

This week, host Basant Kumar is joined by Newslaundry’s Prateek Goyal and Avdhesh Kumar.Prateek talks about two big stories he reported on last week. The first is allegations of rape against prominent industrialist Shyam Sunder Bhartia. He explains why there was a delay in the police registering an FIR, and how a court had to get involved. The second, part of the Hindu Rashtra Project, details how Hindutva groups in Madhya Pradesh target interfaith couples – even if they’re protected by the court. Avdhesh talks about his follow-up story from Sambhal, where communal violence broke out last year. While the police have made several arrests, he says this doesn’t quite add up. Tune in.Timecodes00:00:00 - Introduction00:02:28 - Rape case against Shyam Sunder Bhartia00:12:09 - Police ‘action’ in Sambhal00:26:04 - ‘Love jihad’ in Madhya Pradesh00:33:26 - RecommendationsRecommendationsPrateekMaster SaabAvdheshWalk The Talk with Mayawati (Aired: May 2005)Aap Ki Adalat | Mayawati In Aap Ki Adalat | Golden Moments Of Aap Ki Adalat | Rajat SharmaBasantIn Madhya Pradesh, ‘love jihad’ crusaders overrule high court orders to target interfaith couplesCrime BeatProduced and edited by Saif Ali Ekram, recorded by Anil Kumar.