U-turn in Depiction Madheshi in Tito Satya, Comedy Serial of Nepal Television

By Harsha Man Maharjan

I was happy to watch July 24 2008 episode of Tito Satya(Better Sweet). It is a popular tv comedy serial in Nepal. Long ads during this program, proves this.

I used to blame these kinds of comedy teleserials for portraying stereotypical images of disables, women, non-Nepali speaking people. Usually it laugh at Newari, Hindhi accents.
Is it a big think when a BBC newscaster pronounces Sher Bahadur Deuba in different way as we do? It is obvious to do mistakes when a person lacks certain sounds in her/his native language. But Tito Satya always derides Newars for non announcing Nepali words properly.

However this trend got u-turn on July 24. It presents a Madheshi as citizen of Nepal, who has equal rights as other Nepali. It links power of Madheshi with the first President and Vice-president of Madheshi community. In the episode a Madheshi threatens to inform President and Vice-president about the discrimination.

Nepali Style of Breaking News in Television Channels

By Harsha Man Maharjan

What is a breaking news ? Usually it is to disclose important incident by any media institutions. That means generally breaking news is about politics like death of Man Mohan Adhikari. But in present context its definition is not static.

We no more limit breaking news with only politics. Even human interest news of so-called soft issues is also breaking news. Yet many people still believe that breaking news must contain correct facts.

Here I am referring to breaking news of Sagarmatha TV and Image Channel on 19 July 2008 about the result of election for the President of Nepal in Constituent Assembly. The Assembly had not officially announced the result. Yet till 7 pm, Image was breaking news as ‘Flash News’that Nepali congress candidate Ram Baran Yadav got 294 and Maoist nominee Ramraja Prasad Singh, 282. At the same time, news channel Sagarmatha TV was breaking news that Yadav got 294 and Singh 284. Both of these channels were wrong.

Later it was found that Yadav got 283 and Singh, 270. Breaking these kind of wrong information only dilute credibility of these tv channels.