Pandora Box of Television in Pakistan

Usually television is called the idiot’s box. However in Pakistan this idiot’s box has, within a few years, also got the status of a Pandora Box. In Greek mythology the notorious box was opened out of curiosity; however in Pakistan the fatal lid of the box has been opened with complete planning and all the ‘monsters’ emerging from it are tame and domesticated.

It is the claim of General Musharruf that he has given freedom to the media and that the abundance of TV channels is its testimony. However the question is as to how can dozens of TV channels run profitably in a country, where the total volume of the advertising industry is not more that six to seven billion rupees? Does it mean that foreign money has secretly crept into the industry and the so-called ‘media boom’ in the country has in fact become an advance of America, Europe and India? At present it is difficult to answer these questions with certainty.

However what is obvious is that on these channels there is an evident onslaught of foreign content. The horrible thing in it is that even their local content is a second rate copy of the foreign programs, which are being imitated even in styles of presentation and names. This is the height of mental and moral bankruptcy.

The result of this is that in our society these channels are playing the role of Porus’ elephants. Now these elephants have entered each and every house. One of the media gurus of the twentieth century, Marshall McLuhan had once called automobiles an extension of human limbs. However Gerry Mander, in his classic book called, “Four Arguments for the Elimination of Television’ criticized the comment of McLuhan and said that the automobile had not given extension to human limbs, it had rather replaced it. The same is the case with the abundance of television channels in Islamic Republic of Pakistan. These channels have also not extended the freedom of expression; they have rather created its replacement; i.e., the illusion of freedom. For otherwise the public opinion has become still more controlled. People will understand this reality; however it will take time.

Here on the pretext of entertainment, these channels have crossed all limits of freedom. This is the picture of a deluge. As in flood people are surrounded by water from all sides; yet they thirst for a glass of clean water; so in the same way people are yearning for true entertainment in the flood of entertainment.

In our national history it will always be remembered that when America and its local agents made up their minds to dismantle a Quranic law, they used TV as a weapon and dissolved centuries’ old understanding in one month. By the way, in the medium of television anti-understanding element is in-built. Gerry Mander quotes the following words of John Birt in this connection;

“There is a bias in television journalism. It is not against particular party of point of view. It is a bias against understanding”.

In response to this situation there is a reaction in our society; however only at personal level. At the collective level either there is no reaction; or that reaction is not active. But what are its reasons? Unfortunately in our society, 11 September and the events following it, were seen only in military and political perspectives. Most of the people forgot that it is the history of the west that after using military power, it advances on the religious and cultural fronts and that the same will happen this time. Therefore it was not mere coincidence that when America was inventing aggression against Iraq, there was already a new syllabus for the Iraqi schools in the satchel of its soldiers. In Afghanistan that process was started a bit late as the objective conditions there were somewhat different. Then the flux of event is so fast that one needs a trained eye to see things in their proper context.

When on the night of 9/11 President Musharruf surrendered the whole country to America; people thought that it was an strategy to avoid the US monster. This faulty understanding also acted as a veil between the various changes taking place within the country and their popular understanding. However the coming events proved it conclusively that the act of surrendering was not limited to the circles of military and foreign affairs and now every mentionable and noticeable thing of our personal and collective lives has come under its influence.

Another great psychological problem of our collective life is that for a lot of our people their world is not their own. It is America’s world, generals’ world or at the most, a world belonging to them both. In this world their job is to try to adjust with whatever is taking place. For these people this adaptability is synonymous both to intelligence, political insight and wisdom. Although nobody proclaims; however from these patterns of thought and behavior, it appears as if there is no God and the world is working on the principles and orders of a few worldly powers. This way of thinking is continually making vices and distortions acceptable to us. Without doubt blind resistance is a folly and only an idiot can support it. However it is not only resistance that can be blind; the behavior of escaping from challenges and shutting one’s eye to them can also be blind. And at present this is the prevalent behavior that we are witnessing.

With regard to television, it is also an important issue that we are till still ‘habitual’ of showing our reaction only to the national TV. However now what matters is not the PTV but the so-called new independent channels. This is a whole new experience and we are still to ‘learn’ the process of changing it into a challenge. However the pace of change is so fast that by the time we will be able to learn it, the fabric of social values will already be disrupted.

In this connection the problem with our religious classes is that they keep on making a clamor over obscenity and vulgarity and that their reaction is fitted into a ready-made compartment of neglect. That is, ‘the religious elements always sing the same tune’. However it is true that now the problem is not merely that of obscenity or vulgarity. All the media of mass communications including television are now being used for the reconstruction of the society, which is thousand time more dangerous than vulgarity.

Then it is also important that now vulgarity and obscenity are being shown as the part of the normal experience of life and this concept is also a part of social transformation. Therefore the real problem is society’s transformation.

Gluttony is no new thing in our society; however the significance that is being given in our TV Channels to cooking programs is in it self creating a new concept of life and man. This is a conspiracy to systemize gluttony and is something much more dangerous than vulgarity as the majority of the people are thinking it harmless.

All over the world there are associations of viewers, who keep an eye on the media content, object to the disagreeable programs and protest against them. But in our country people seldom protest even after eating poison; then the poison of television is after all an ‘entertaining poison’; so who should care to identify it and make protest against its effects!

In 70’s, it had been said in the context of western societies, that the television was playing the role of an electronic parent. However the situation now is that TV is not only playing the role of the parents; it is also the teacher and the school of children. Once it was said that the TV makes children grow up too soon. Now we are witnessing how it is changing elderly into children. Mir had once said;

‘Maj’ gan to khool shayher to sailab lay gia’

Translation: Please open your eyes! the flood has wiped away the city.

But now it seems that the flood has not only wiped away the city, it has also taken with it the eyes beholding it.