A comparative analysis of print and electronic media in Pakistan

Submitted to:Ms. Nighat RizviCourse Instructor

Technical Report Writing Institute of Business Management

Submitted by:Your Name Student ID #

Name of Institute

October 10, 2008

LETTER OF AUTHORIZATION

October 7, 2009

Dear Readers

As a student of MBA – Executive, our course instructor of Technical Report Writing Ms. Nighat Rizvi authorized me to conduct a research on the topic, “A Comparative Analysis of Print and electronic Media of Pakistan”. I was required to conduct the research on the selected topic, in accordance with the acquired learning throughout the semester.

This report is to be conducted to explore the print and electronic media sectors of Pakistan, the factors adversely affecting it with analysis and to find out a suitable remedy to solve the problem.

The report is required to be submitted on 30th October 2009.

Sincerely

Rahat Kazmi MBA (Executive)

LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL

October 7, 2009

Ms. Nighat Rizvi

Technical Report Writing Facilitator

Institute of Business Management

Karachi

Subject: A Comparative Analysis of Print and Electronic Media of Pakistan

Dear Ms. Nighat Rizvi:

Here is the final research report on the topic, “A Comparative Analysis of Print and Electronic Media of Pakistan” which you had authorized me to conduct at the beginning of this semester. The report is now ready for your perusal.

This report is a brief portrayal of the media sectors of Pakistan. I have analyzed the factors which are creating a dent to both the media sectors and creating a negative image in front of the public. The only limitation that I faced during my research was the deadline which I had to meet keeping in view the mass of data I gathered.

The making of this report has been a wonderful learning experience for me and I thank you for giving me this opportunity to avail it. I have worked diligently with my toiling endeavors to provide you a real and complete picture of the situation faced by Pakistan. If you have any queries, please call me on my no. 0333-3333333. I would be glad to respond to your queries.

Sincerely,

Rahat KazmiMBA Executive Institute of Business Management, Karachi.

LETTER OF ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

October 12, 2009

Ms. Nighat Rizvi

Technical Report Writing Facilitator

Institute of Business Management

Karachi

Dear Reader:

It has been a great honor for me to prepare a report on “A Comparative Analysis of Print and Electronic Media of Pakistan”, which was assigned to me by my course facilitator of Technical Report Writing, Ms. Nighat Rizvi, without her guidance and support the compilation of the report would not have been possible.

I also want to express my token of thanks to Mr. Hassan Hashmi, IoBm, for providing me the relevant and current information regarding the media sectors of Pakistan which has benefited me a lot in compiling my report and making it worthwhile.

Thanking you,

Sincerely,

Rahat KazmiMBA Executive Institute of Business Management, Karachi.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

As authorized to me by Ms. Nighat Rizvi, on September 28, 2009, this report reveals the impact on the print and electronic media due to different factors such as reporting under threat, viewer ship of media, sensationalism, blasphemy etc which are the root causes of deterrence of a positive image of Pakistan’s media sector.

While viewing the report you will see that Pakistan’s media sector has low level of awareness of media ethics due to which the reporting’s published or broadcasted are filled with gruesome data, which gives rise to negative feelings regarding Pakistan’s media sector.

As you come across the first section of the report you will observe that I have mentioned the challenges faced by Pakistan’s media sector. In the second part the media ethics is explained with reference to code of conduct and lastly I have added my concluding remarks, the SWOT analysis I have conducted and the recommendations I have offered which will sum up my report and display to you a complete picture of what the prospects of Pakistan’s Media Sector is all about. In the appendix I have also attached chronological events of attack on journalists and news reporters from the year May 2007 till May 2008 which will apprise you of the fact that news reporting is not an easy job and involves a high level of risk of life in it.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Title Fly……………………………………………………………………………….. I

Title Page……………………………………………………………………………… II

Letter of Authorization………………………………………………………………… III

Letter of Transmittal…………………………………………………………………... IV

Table of Contents……………………………………………………………………… V

Executive Summary……………………………………………………………………. VI

1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 Origin of the report……………………………………………………….. 1

1.2 Prevalent Problems……………………………………………………….. 1

1.3 Purpose Statement…………………….………………………………….. 1

1.4 Scope…………………………………………….……………………….. 2

1.5 Limitations………………………………………………………………... 2

1.6 Historical Background……………………………………………………. 2

1.7 Methodology of Research………………………………………………… 4

1.8 Report Preview………………………………………………………..….. 4

2. THE CHALLNGES FACED

2.1 Sensationalism…………………………………………………………… 5

2.2 Pornography, blasphemy and corrupted videos…………………………. 7

2.3 Viewer ship of Media……………………………………………………. 8

2.4 Reporting done under threats……………………………………………. 9

2.5 Violence and their impact on people……………………………………. 13

3. PROMOTING MEDIA ETHICS

3.1 Print Media…….………………………………………………………… 14

3.2 Electronic Media……………………………..…………………………. 14

4. SWOT ANALYSIS………………………………………………………… 15

5. CONCLUSION…………………………………………………………….. 16

6. RECOMMENDATIONS………………………………………………….. 17

7. WORKS CITED

8. APPENDIX:

APPENDIX A: Chronicles of Shame: Chronology of Violations

against Media between May 3, 2007 and May 3, 2008 –

(MURDER AND MAYHEM, THE WORST PAKISTANI YEAR

OF FREEDOM)…………………………………………………………… a

APPENDIX B: Media Violations Reports……………………………….. b

APPENDIX C: Promoting Media Ethics………………………………… c

INTRODUCTION

1.1. ORIGIN OF THE REPORT:

As a student of the fourth semester of the MBA program at the Institute of Business Management, I, ___________ was authorized by Ms. Nighat Rizvi, our facilitator of the course “Technical Report Writing”, to submit this report on Nov 29, 2009.

1.2. PREVALENT PROBLEMS The dynamic growth in electronic media is causing bulk of violence in children’s network programs and also adult’s appetite for violence is mounting on television shows and movies which is giving rise to inbuilt aggression and psychologically affecting human’s peaceful nature. In electronic media the online content is also posing serious threats to the minds of youngsters. The major problem is sensationalism found in both sectors which is making the reporting from factual to opinionated and misrepresented. Also unwanted data present online such as pornography and corrupted videos is corrupting the society. There are reported cases of blasphemy which is demeaning the respect of religion. The print media has reported high level of inaccuracies, sensationalism (i.e. hounding paparazzi after big shots and celebrities poorly cover important issues rather they make up stories to add spice to their coverage) on the other hand in electronic media the viewer ship of media and quality of programs. Since these major problems seem to be havoc for the public who receives the information from varied sources in an inappropriate manner. How will this be fixed and properly conveyed out to the public? How the media will curb this grave issue and take proper cognizance to mitigate this overwhelming stock of complaints?

1.3. PURPOSE STATEMENT:

Since I am the researcher on this topic, my focus will be to allocate my attention on the following issues i.e. Sensationalism (gossip stories, scandals, kidnappings, car crashes, murders etc), Pornography, blasphemy and unwanted corrupted videos, violence shown on electronic media, reporting under threat of violence etc. The purpose of my report is to make the public abreast of the problem faced currently, realize its nitty-gritty and its consequences. Finally a suitable solution will be provided to you to analyze it so that you can figure out the importance of media and its profound impact on the masses and what steps our government should take to mitigate the problem.

1.4. SCOPE:

I am focusing only on the print and electronic media sector of Pakistan and the issues piled up which needs immediate cognizance. My report highlights the issues affecting both sectors adversely and its drastic impact on the public. I am not discussing the positive aspect of these sectors since there are tons of benefits addressed almost everywhere whereas finding out the flaws was indeed a challenge for me which made the task more precarious and subject to uncertainty.

1.5. LIMITATIONS:

I faced a lot of problems in compiling data as data was scattered and mostly contained facts and figures present in news articles. Due to sole reliance on secondary resources for gathering data, I had to go through mountains of published articles and reports present online to find the minor elements and root causes of deterioration in print and electronic media. The nature of the topic is such that it does not require any primary research because in doing the analysis both media parties would never discuss the flaws on their sector. That’s why I researched thoroughly to highlight the differences between both the sectors.

1.6. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

1.6.1 PRINT MEDIA

1.6.1.1 History:

Print media are published in 11 languages, but most are published in Urdu and Sindhi, and English-language publications are numerous, The press generally publishes free from censorship and has played an active role in national elections, but journalists often exercise self-censorship as a result of arrests and intimidation by government and societal actors. Most print media are privately owned, but the government controls the National Press Trust, a major newspaper publisher, and the Associated Press of Pakistan, one of the two major news agencies. The constitution guarantees the rights of free speech and press but also allows for government restrictions in cases of offenses against Islam, public morality,

national security, and other circumstances. In fact, the government can fine and imprison those who broadcast material that is deemed inconsistent with “national and social values”.

Three main groups dominate Pakistan: The Jang Group, the Herald Group, and the Nawae-Waqt Group. Jang Publications is the largest media group and holds a virtual monopoly of Urdu readership in Sindh, Rawalpindi-Islamabad federal territory, and major shares in Lahore and Quetta. Jang also publishes the larges circulating weekly magazine in Urdu, Akhbare-Jehan, and two evening papers, the Daily News and Awam. The News, the first Pakistani newspaper to use computers in all steps of production, is also a publication of the Jang Group.

Pakistan Herald Publication Ltd., publishes Dawn, which has had a dominant hold over Karachi readership. The Herald Group also publishes the Star (an English evening paper) and The Hearld influential English monthly). The group also began a monthly that focuses on the Internet, entitled Spider. Publications under the Hearld Group target the upper class and the better-educated segment of Pakistani society and consequently practice a liberal editorial policy.

1.6.1.2 Regulatory Authority:

The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting monitors the press. It also controls and manages the country’s primary wire service, the Associated Press of Pakistan (APA). APP is both the Government’s own news agency and the official carrier of international wire service stories to the local media. Foreign books must pass government censors before being reprinted. Books and magazines may be imported freely, but are likewise subject to censorship for objectionable sexual or religious content.

1.6.2 ELECTRONIC MEDIA

1.6.2.1 History:

Pakistan’s electronic media covers since its inception the radio. Internet and broadcasting via television. There are numerous radio channels, e.g. FM89, FM100, FM105, and different TV Channels e.g. PTV, AAJ TV, GEO, HUM TV, ATN, KTN etc.

1.6.2.2 Regulatory Authority:

In March 2002, the regulatory authority for electronic media was founded as Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA). The authority has been authorized to issue licenses for broadcast and CTV stations. The categories of potential licenses include

international scale stations; national scale stations; provincial scale stations; local area or community; specific and specialized subject stations; and cable television network stations.

1.7. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Due to the unavailability of sufficient data, this report is primarily based on material gathered via secondary resources which include newspapers, survey reports present online and predominantly websites.

1.7.1. Primary Research:

No primary research was conducted as secondary information was self-sufficient.

1.7.2. Secondary Research:

The process of secondary research was initiated by going through the information available on the internet. For this purpose search engines like Google, Yahoo, Wikipedia, Askjeeves, AltaVista, Encarta, and many more were used to collect a considerable number of relevant websites with data enough to make the report contain consistent and accurate information regarding my topic. A list of all the websites have been placed in the Works Cited section of my report.

To make my research stand out with precise information with all the facts and figures clearly explaining all factors, I sweat my brow to search and add some published reports.

1.8. REPORT PREVIEW:

My report is basically analyzing both the sectors i.e. print and electronic media. There are three main sections of my report body. In the first section I have mentioned the factors which have made print and electronic media a talking shop. I have stated the factors in context to the problems present in both media and the effect on the country due to its presence. In the second section I have mentioned how media ethics is promoted and why is it important to follow it. Lastly I have added the solution and recommendations which will tell what these media should do to the curb the issues and how to safeguard their interest and at the same time provide best possible information to the public. I have also added an appendix in the end section of the report to aid the report context with the statistical data.