mediaharsha

Harsha Man Maharjan 1. Campion College 2. College of Journalism and Mass Communication 3. Kantipur City College 4. Kathmandu University 5. Nepal Forum of Environmental Journalists (NEFEJ) 6. Nepal Press Institute (NPI) 7. Purbanchal University 8. Shepherd College of Media Technology 9. Worldview International Foundation / Nepal (WIF) These are the programs of Journalism Education in Nepal listed in the census of World Journalism Education Council. What a joke: there is no mention of Ratna Rajya Laxmi Campus. We know RR Campus is the first to start Journalism education in Nepal in 1976. I can’t believe that WJEC miss it. The website of WJEC says these are the criteria they enlisted the programs: 1. Published lists and academic articles about journalism education in different regions of the world; 2. Lists of programs provided by the regional association partners drawing on their member lists, conference registrations, and regional studies of journalism education; and 3. Published articl...

Watching quotes in journalism is uninteresting job for me. I think this requires patience. And P.Kharel is doing this for Media Adhyan journal 5, a journal published by Martin Chautari. He presented his findings in an interaction program organized by Martin Chautari on 22 October 2009. Kharel found that there is inconsistency in using “” and ‘’. Many of them lack style book. If some have they are not following. What striked a lot during the program is the information there should be direct only if what sources say are important. And anonymous sources should be exception not rule.

By Harsha Man Maharjan We talk big. We have big problems in Nepali media. We know there is cartel among media owners. These owners want to evade trade union in their organizations. What are the remedies? We can’t change these maladies in a day . But small things we can do. This is what I came to know from the program organized by Martin Chautari and Alliance of Social Dialogue (ASD) on 20 August 2009. What are characteristics of reporters, sub-editors, editors etc ? What is news and newsvalue ? There were the questions I needed to tackle at the exam after I joined Journalism and mass communication. I know these are the basic of journalism. Yet working young journalists told that desk never consult them during editing. No doubt reporters go to the field and they know the subject best. But people at desk feel uncomfortable to consult reporters. It is against the basic of journalism. Some young journalists informed that people in desk never give feedback to them. “How can we learn?” they ...

By Harsha Man Maharjan During direct rule of then king Gyanendra, I had heard that film Development Board is preparing a manuscript of film history of Nepal. On 16 August 2009 I met Chetan Karki. He was the author of that manuscript. And the manuscript is still with him. FDB showed no interest on the manuscript. It is about the role of monarchy for development of cinema in Nepal. This issue is always debatable. Now it is fact that then king Mahendra had special interest in arts and creative activities. And he definitely did contribution for development of cinema in Nepal. There is another factor too. D.B.Pariyar made cinema in time of Mahendra’s father Tribhuwan. Few historian thinks that royalist film historians begin Nepali film history from Aama not Satya Harischandra only to praise then king Mahendra. But nobody can deny that Satya Hrischandr was made in India and Aama is the first Nepali cinema made in Nepal. And then king Mahendra wanted to use cinema as propaganda tool. And he d...

Last week I visited Kamana Prakashan to study early issues of Kamana magazine. These are the photos of slogan written on the wall of flats: Do its journalists follow these slogan?

The following recommendations are based on the assessment carried out by the members of the International Mission. 5.1 Press freedom violations and safety 1. Police should investigate thoroughly all threats of violence against journalists and media workers, and the public should be made aware of investigations and prosecutions to discourage attacks, and ensure an end to impunity. The International Mission will closely watch progress in the investigations of the pending cases on the attacks on Birendra Sah, Prakash Singh Thakuri, Prakash Shrestha, J.P. Joshi and Uma Singh. The Mission urges all international agencies and governments to raise the issue of state responsibility during their interactions with the government of Nepal. 2. Press freedom monitoring networks should be strengthened across the country and specifically in areas outside of Kathmandu. In this regard, the monitoring system of the FNJ should be maintained and strengthened, including reporting nationally and internation...

By Harsha Man Maharjan Today is the age of 24 hrs news channel. We are viewing news of children kidnapping. So are we watching about the lynching of innocent alleged kidnappers. Why are these incidents increasing? Does it have anything to do with media-boom? I think it has something to do with media too. Not all. I am not saying media is totally responsible of it. They are disseminating news about the killings, kidnappings and looting. This reporting inadvertently creates of the image of insecure Nepal in people’s mind. People are feeling insecure. One thing is sure. Media is doing nothing to decrease the rate of lynching. They are not proactive on the issue. Here I am not resurrecting mass society theory. But we know we are in transitional phase and there is a kind of lawlessness.

By Harsha Man Maharjan Once again we got chance to see an old drama. There is no difference in its plot. Yes, its actors are different. But drama’s ending is same as previous one. Yesterday government reshuffled people bossing government –owned media institutions: Nepal Television, Rastriya Samacharsamiti, Gorkhapatra Corporationa and Film Development Board. The cabinet meeting appointed Kundan Aryal as Executive Chair of Nepal Television, Amar Giri as Chair of Film Development Board, Bal Krishna Chapagain as chair of Rastriya Sambad Samiti, and Vijaya Chalise as Executive Chair & Shambu Shrestha as General Manager of Gorkhapatra Corporation. Last time Ministry of Information and Communication was under CPN (Maoist)’s hand. Now it is the turn of CPN(UML). It is filling these posts with those near to its ideology. Many of them are from Press Chautari. As a student of mass communication and journalism, I have been doing studies on government-owned media in Nepal. I want to find ways ...

By Harsha Man Maharjan Watching Leni’s documentary Triumph of the Will reminded me of Nepalese newsreels and documentaries made before Nepal Television came into existence. In 1970s panchayat government created Royal Nepal Film Corporation to make films. It made few films and thousands of newsreels. These newsreels were mainly about visit, birth, marriage etc of royal family members. Mobile teams had to screen these newsreels in different places far from Kathmandu during royal visits. I have seen none of these newsreels. They are languishing in two rooms of Film Development Board. And it is difficult to see them. But I can say they are technically poor. Nepal lacked trained human resource at that time and there might also be scarcity of technical instruments. Yes, in this context we can’t make technically sound documentaries as Leni did. She had support of Nazi party. All necessary human resources and technical instruments were available at her call. Recently I watched Leni’s Triumph ...

Harsha Man Maharjan There is a huge uproar in Nepal this week. Unthought-of situations unfolded in political situation. I had not thought that the Maoist will resign from government on 4 May 2009. Neither did I hope to see old footage of the Maoist drilling to its carder of 2 January 2008. About 4-5 hrs of PM Prachanda’s resignation Image Channel broadcast clips of a video in which he was addressing his cadres. Many people were shocked to see it. Next day other TV channels also broadcasted the footage. The Maoist even organized a press meet to provide its view on the content of the video. The caretaker PM even informed journalists that he would be happy to provide other videos if media needed. What will the video incident do to Nepal’s peace process? It is difficult to answer. Only future will give that answer. Actually my interest is with leakage of the video. In a program organized by Martin chautari on media practices, Tirtha Koirala, News and Current Affair Chief of Kantipur Televi...

Many friends preparing for the exam of masters II year asked me old questions of exam. I searched my collection and found these three papers. I lost questions of electronic media. Hope this posting will be useful for friends. Tribhuwan University 2064 Master Level II/II Year/ Humanities Journalism and Mass Communication Comparative Press Laws and Media System (JMC 511) Full Marks: 80 Time: 4 hrs. Candidates are required to give their answers in their own words as for as practicable The Figures in the margin indicate full marks Attempt any THREE questions from Group “A” and FOUR from Group “B” Group A 3x16=48 Describe the main features of ASEAN and SAARC media and legal systems with special reference to Nepal. What are the characteristics of conventional and modern theories of press laws? Explain with suitable examples. Which clauses of the press laws of UK have inspired laws of developing coun...

By Harsha Man Maharjan Whenever I have time I like to rummage in huge chunks of books in second hand bookshops. Many of these bookshops sell textbooks. And these books are in demand. But I am always in search of rare books or reports on Nepal. Who knows what is perching in a dark corner of the shop. You may find a gem. This searching is adventurous. Second hand book stalls at pavement on the wall of RNAC building were my sources. Now they have shifted to the back of this building. It is not easy for shop owners. They have to care about rain, wind, and sun. That’s why they hangs long plastics over their stall and put books on plastic so that they can wrap them in time. Yet rain damages their books. And they have to supply damaged pieces to Kawadi. For some book owners this condition has changed. Especially three brothers of Nawaraj and Bharat have opted for rooms to open shops. It is not easy for them. Now they have to pay rent from Rs. 3000 to 5000 per month. But they don’t have to bo...

By Harsha Man Mahrajan Decoding a text is always a subjective matter. So what I am going to write about Deepak Rauniyar’s debut film, Chaukaith (Threshold) might not be what you think about the film. This film won third prize in 6th Kathmandu International Mountain Film Festival. It has a simple story. Trisna, an enumerator of Census visits a woman living in a Tarai village. Her name is Saraswati Gupta but people know her by her village’s name. Not her own name. Trishna’s visit enlarges Saraswati’s understanding of world. Trishna throws a stone in Saraswati’s calm and serene pound. And Saraswati’s life no more remains same as before. In the beginning Saraswati feels uneasy with Trisna. She has no habit of speaking with strangers. But her hesitation gradually vanishes and they become good friends. And gradually Rauniyar unveils his characters. We come to know more about their lives. Saraswati, a mother of two daughters has grudges: her early marriage discontinued her study. She was stud...

By Harsha Man Maharjan In Ellul’s book Propaganda, he thinks that more we consume media; more we become vulnerable to propaganda. Have I also become a victim of propaganda? Only readers can tell. Today I am writing my feelings on Brian Gilbert’s film Not Without My Daughter . As its regular film show and discussion series Martin Chautari screened it on 4 December 2008. It is based on a true story about the struggle an American woman did to escape from Iran to America with her daughter leaving her brutal and abusive Iranian husband. This is film is only an American perspective. Wanting to now more about the film, I googled. Then I came to know about its controversy and, reaction from Iranian people and the h usband himself. According to IranMania.com, documentary Without My Daughter directed by Alexis Kouros and Kari Tervo , contains the husband, Bozorg Mahmoody’s views. This documentary is not available in Nepali market. To IranMania.com, Alexis Kouros had said: the documentary "...

By Harsha Man Maharjan Many Nepalese people outside of Kathmandu are voicing their views in national issues through talk programs like Nepal Chautari and Hamro Nepal Ramro Nepal of Ujjyalo 90 Network and Aab ko Nepal of Nepal FM Network. It is unprecedented in Nepali history. And Nepal’s transitional phase needs more interaction and dialogue on many important issues. These FM programs are helping in this dialogue. Main reason behind this is the caller has to pay nothing for the call. These networks pay for calls. They use toll free phone lines. Even the content of FM radio stations outside kathmandu is reaching these networks’ offices at Kathmandu through these toll free lines. These networks also use these lines to get suggestions and opinions of listners about other programs of networks too. For me toll free line is new concept. I came to know about this kind of phone line from Nepal Chautari. Antenna Foundation Nepal publishes advertisement of Nepal Chautari highlighting this pho...

By Harsha Man Maharjan Everybody says networking is good for FM radios. It produces synergy. Two station mangers of community radios accepted this too. But they are not happy with what Ujjyalo 90 Network and Nepal FM Network are doing these days. Both of them, Ghamaraj Luintel, Radio Sagarmatha and Gunakar Aryal, Radio Madanpokhara are for two way communication in these networks They were presenting a talk on the topic: Why Networking for Community Radio? On 20 November 2008 at Martin Chautari. Yes there is a huge gap between what goes through the capital and what comes from local radios outside Kathmandu. These two networks must increase the volume of content from outside. There is issue of editorial rights too. Luintel thinks these networks kill editorial rights of local radios. And this happens till there is same boardcasting of packaged news. Many people think these networks are futher concentrating resources in Kathmandu. And local radios outside Kathmandu are not getting adequate...

By Harsha Man Maharjan Kathmandu There are two networks of FM Radios in Nepal: Nepal FM Network and Ujyaalo 90 Network (UNN). Their content is available in satellite and internet. And any radio can hook their content after contracts. This has made this network powerful. They boast that they are heard all over Nepal. But there is negative aspect of network radio too. Here is an experience of Hem Bahadur Bista, Chair of Nepal FM Network and host of talk program Samaya Sandarbha. There was a long traffic jam inside Kathmandu on Monday, 29 September 2008. Kantipur , a Nepali daily published a news on it. Bista desired to do the talk program on the jam on Tuesday. But he could not do that. Reason was national quality of his network. He has to think about unknown listeners in Humla too. So he quit the idea of the program. It shows that though Nepal FM is situated in Kathmandu, it is difficult for this FM to raise local issue being in the network. links http://www.unn.com.np/unn.php http://ww...

By Harsha Man Maharjan Kathmandu Translation is a difficult task. Once I tried to translate George Orwell’s essay English Language and Politics for Mulyankan magazine. I had even informed this to the then editor of the magazine. I translated few paragraphs but it was not satisfactory. At last I quit that job. So I am aware of difficulties of translators. On 21 September 2008 I participated in a meeting organized by Translator’s Society. Translation is alluring job. Who wants not to be a translator, when the rate of translation is Rs. 500 per page? And there is demand of translation. International Non Government Organizations, the UN bodies need translators. Federal set-up will demand more translation. That means it has future too. At Yala Maya Kendra, there were people known for translation like Basanta Thapa, Manjushree Thapa and other. Many issues came during the meeting. I have noted some of them: Translator’s Society should be legal entity. This society should update list of transl...

By Harsha Man Maharjan Kathmandu Big Brother is Watching You George Orwell, 1984 Orwell wrote the novel 1984 in 1948. He was writing about future. It is a negative utopia. The big brother of the novel watches every activity of its people. And everyone has this knowledge. There is no hope for dissidence. I think Nepali government is also trying to resurrect this big brother. It wants to monitor cyber café and is searching ways to stop access with pornography in internet. Adult has right to access pornography. Yes, government must bring out the measure to curb access to pornography by children. It might corrupt children’s mind. Nepali government strongly believes that pornography abets violence on women. But there is no concrete study to prove this. Oh yes, Himal Khabarpatrika reported that many actors have unknowingly act on Nepali blue films. And some of them were only for private purpose. So government must work out on the policy related to x-rated film and material. The Government is...

By Harsha Man Maharjan Documentaries are thriving in Nepal. Moviegoers in festivals prove this. Yet documentaries get lest priority in Nepali television channels. What is the problem? It has to do with imagery we have about documentaries. They were boring and lifeless. It used to be on a festival or a place or a person. Nepali Television created this imagery. Before NTV, Film division under Department of Information produced newsreels, documentaries and film. These newsreels and documentaries are about Panchayat politics, royal personalities or development. These were publicity materials. In 1971 Royal Nepal Motion Picture Corporation came into existence and did same job including others. Kantipur Television added creativity -different camera angles and presentation through Vikalpa, a collection of documentaries. Our imagery of documentary is changing due to film festivals and other international television channels. Film festivals provided exposure and access to different kinds of doc...