A couple of days back, Cobrapost released part 2 of Operation 136,a sting operation exposing the state of Indian MSM. The name "operation 136" alluded to India's ranking on the World Press Freedom Index.

This Cobrapost expose centered around reporter Push Sharma, who posed as a Hindutva figure (Acharya Atal) to influence the media houses to run campaign against the opposition leaders including during Karnataka assembly elections. Offering them anything between Rs. 6 crore and Rs. 50 crore if they agreed to provide a platform to his media campaign, Sharma made his agenda explicit to them.

1. In the initial phase, the first three months, promote Hindutva through customized religious programmes to create a congenial atmosphere.
2. Then, the campaign will be geared up to mobilize the electorate on communal lines by promoting speeches of Hindutva hardliners, the likes of Vinay Katiyar, Uma Bharti, Mohan Bhagwat and others.
3. As elections approach, the campaign will target opposition leaders, namely, Rahul Gandhi, Mayawati and Akhilesh Yadav, caricaturing them using less than dignified language like Pappu, Bua and Babua, respectively, for them, in order to show them in poor light before the electorate.
4. They will have to run this campaign on all platforms available with them – print, electronic, radio or digital including, e-news portals, web sites and social media such as Facebook and Twitter.

Shockingly, Cobrapost claimed, almost all media houses showed their eagerness to undertake such a diabolical media campaign(except Bartaman Patrika and Dainik Sambad).

The media houses that readily sold out were** DNA of Zee New group, Rajat Sharma’s India TV, ScoopWhoop website, Hindi Khabar, Rediff.com, SAB group, Amar Ujala, UNI, 9X Tashan, Samachar Plus, HNN 24X7, Punjab Kesri and Swatantra Bharat.**

This sting operation once again clearly depicts how Indian MSM has become a prostitute to the highest bidder. It clearly isnt in the business of reporting news to the public, but delivering the public to the advertiser via opinion moulding. When the forth pillar, the supposedly most unbiased pillar, of Indian democracy is in such shambles, you can very well imagine the disappearing moral compass of the other 3 pillars- Legislative, Executive and Judiciary.

Video Links to Sting Operation :

Paytm

Times Group