Chetanya Kunte vs NDTV - Rights and responsibilities

This post is a clarification to my comments made in the earlier post by Mr.Zzz...

I did not read Kunte's story. So I cannot comment on whether it was defamatory or not. But if it is considered as defamatory then NDTV has every right to sue him. And Chentanya has every right to defend his views. But unfortunately this issue did not see light in a court of law.

The english speaking community is a key market for NDTV. Bloggers certainly form a chunk of it. When a blog gains popularity and reach 'n' no. of people and referred all around that certainly affects the business prospects of a English Channel, which is NDTV in this case. So if Kunte's post was considered defamatory by NDTV then they certainly have the right to sue. Image is everything in brand and brand means a lot in media.

Opinions like "Media's coverage of the Mumbai terror compromised rescue efforts and that may have resulted in some deaths" is different from saying "Media reporting was the reason for 3 deaths". First is an opinion and the later is an accusation. When an accusation cannot be backed up with facts on the ground then it is defamatory as it could be considered as an attempt to malign or discredit some one.

We as bloggers have the right to air our views but should be responsible in doing that. Our views reach many quarters and within a day can spread around the world depending on the topic and the view. Blogging is becoming more and more an alternate media and is getting powerful. Just think about this whole incident and how much of support for Kunte and the negative implication for NDTV in all this. So don't say it is just mere lung power and we can type like the way we talk in a corner tea shop. Stakes are high; so should be our responsibility.

I am not condemning NDTV because they have the right to sue what they consider as defamation. But by now they must have realised that they have unleased the genie (a bad one for them) from the bottle. This is the price they are paying for not being magnanimous.

It would have been better if a court of law ruled on this. Unfortunately this issue did not see the light at a court of law but instead got sorted out outside of it and Kunte apologised. It is not known whether Mr.Kunte apologised on his own or made to issue one. But surely this has hurt NDTV the most than Kunte's original post. Most of the blogging community are now aware of this story and are geed up against NDTV.

We Indians rarely appreciate our responsibilities though we use our lung power to the fullest for rights. Let's be responsible in the way we use our rights, be it NDTV or we bloggers.

I don't want to participate in the comments section as I have nothing more to say on this and this is my view. If extreme emotions make anyone label me as something then I can understand their need to give vent.