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What do they really mean?

Well, it's my obsession with the Twenty20 but this time its something much more serious and something I think needs to be looked at.

One of them was Shoaib Malik's statement at the presentation ceremony at the finals. Where he thanked Pakistan and 'Muslims' all over the world for their support. And that struck me as a really weird statement to make especially at an international level. Where millions of people are watching. And I'm sure a lot of non-Muslims too were supporting Pakistan and even if Pakistan had won, I'm sure a lot of non-Muslims would have again supported them and said they deserved to win.

But I'm willing to give Shoaib the benefit of the doubt. He very obviously wasn't comfortable in English and maybe what he was actually trying to say was lost in transalation. I think that he should have spoken in Hindi if that's what he was comfortable in and the presenters and commentators need to get that and allow them to talk in languages they are well versed in.

But what really really pissed me off was when I was watching NDTV 24x7's coverage of the celebrations in the players homes. A reporter was at the Pathan household in Gujarat and after interviewing Mehmood Pathan, the father of Irfan and Yusuf. After the interview, the reporter turns around and says "That was Mehmood Pathan, the illiterate father of Irfan Pathan and Yusuf Pathan."

Wtf??? What the hell is that supposed to mean? What difference does that make if he's illiterate or not?? Does that make his happiness that India won any less? Does it lessen his joy at the fact that hisn two sons have made India proud? Or is it to point out that an illiterate man realizes the significance of the World Cup?

What then?? I think NDTV owes an apology to Mehmood Pathan and his family. They had no right in reporting what they did. Especially something so irrelevant and unimportant.

Journalism like this makes me sick.
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Comments

Anonymous said…
dont over react lyan...if the poor guy was illerate then he was illerate..does it make a diff to him supporting his country? nope..

the reporter just stated the obvious..truth...thats what fair journalism is all about..and u'd knoe it..rite?
26 September 2007 at 23:28
Gentle Whispers said…
but its irrelevant.. so whats the point of mentioning it.. it diverts from the whole point of the story
26 September 2007 at 23:35
Mynie said…
I support lyandra. Th story was not about the literacy rate in India, it was India winning the T20 world cup. If they had to talk to cricketer's parents, they might well. But the least you could expect from a journalist is to stick to the peg of the story and not digress. It's just another show of the poor journalistic standards in the country.
2 November 2007 at 23:06
Ace said…
Well, since I read about the incident on your blog, I have been trying to google it to see if anything comes up. Surely such a thing wouldn't have gone unnoticed? Well, turns out your post is the only thing that talks about it. Are you sure you heard the reporter right? Did he actually say 'illiterate'? Have any of your friends seen the interview and spoken about the remark?
Well, it is difficult to believe that anyone in his right senses would do such a thing. I mean, it is totally out of context, and in bad taste. Whatever do the reading and writing abilities of Irfan Pathan's father have to do with India winning the T20 trophy? What do they have to do with anything at all?
Cannot blame you if feel sick. I feel the same. By the way, do scrap me a link if you see any report or discussion on the incident.
9 November 2007 at 14:06
Gentle Whispers said…
yeah i will... if i find anything... im pretty sure cause i doublechecked by watching the same report on ndtv 2-3 times.
10 November 2007 at 01:40
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