Rural Goa, unheard, unsung...
Melvyn S. MisquitaMelvyn S Misquita represents a trend among some of the
younger journalists -- well-educated (he holds two M.A.
degrees), Net-savvy, and eager to extend the boundaries
of journalism in Goa should be looking at, apart from
just the Secretariat. Recently, his work made it to the
news in a major way, when the Indian Express carried a
large spread in its national-edition on how Misquita
had traced the strange story of the sinking of a World
War II British passenger liner, BritanniaIII, which had
dozens of Goans (including one of Misquita's
grand-uncle's) on board.
If my entry into journalism was accidental, working
with rural correspondents in Goa was equally
unexpected. One morning of May 1998, then editor of the
Gomantak Times, Ashwin Tombat, asked me to handle local
correspondents who were contributing to the newspaper.
He assured me that correspondents were an integral part
of the newspaper and, that, a strong network would play
a vital role in strengthening the newspaper.
While Tombat's ability to put forth persuasive
arguments eventually convinced me to accept this task,
I was determined not to remain 'stuck' with
correspondents for long. There were many reasons for
this. Firstly, working with correspondents invariably
meant that one would end up merely re-writing their
stories and would not have much time to work on my own
stories. And with barely two years of journalism under
my belt, there was no way I would allow my ambition be
condemned to the mere restoration of correspondents'
news items.
Secondly, co-ordinating with correspondents involved
vast amounts of patience, as each correspondent had to
be handled differently. Moreover, since most were
part-time correspondents and could devote only a few
hours to the profession, I could only expect them to
function for a brief part of the day. Then again, these
correspondents were based in different parts of the
state and my interaction with them was largely
dependent on telephones and other means of remote communication.
The correspondents were certainly happy to have me
around, as till then their complaints seemed endless.
"Our stories don't appear promptly in the newspaper
and, sometimes, they don't appear at all. People in our
locality then get upset and complain that we are not
sending in their stories," was a commonly echoed
grievance. "No one attends to our telephone calls and,
when they do, they keep transferring our calls from one
person to another and they finally disconnect the
phone," was another general complaint.
Their complaints certainly had some degree of
legitimacy.
It is a common perception -- especially among
English-language newspapers in the state -- that correspondents
are third-class passengers, who deserve little or no
decent treatment. Let me cite two instances to prove
this point. In one English-language newspaper, a
correspondent sent me a crime report, which, under
normal circumstances, should have been carried the next
day. To my surprise, the report was not published for
the next two days. The correspondent called me and
sought an explanation for the delay. Unable to give him
a suitable reply, I transferred the call to the
concerned sub-editor, who simply snapped back and
insisted that the correspondent need not bother about
his report and, that, the report would appear only when
there space was available in the paper!
Some time ago, a Vasco-based couple died in a road
mishap in Porvorim and the correspondent promptly sent
in the report. The next morning, I was taken aback to
find the item in a single column, virtually hidden in
the section for continued items on Page 4.
Incidentally, the distribution of saplings by an MLA
not only merited a double-column spread, but also a
decent photograph -- ironically, just alongside the
news item reporting the tragic deaths. The sub-editor's
reply, like his news sense, left me baffled. "So what?
So many people die almost everyday. What was so special
about these deaths?" Unfortunately, the sub-editor
failed to acknowledge the fact that the same news item
was prominently displayed in the other two
English-language newspapers.
A former colleague once aptly described such an
attitude as "'news sense' value which gets transformed
into 'nuisance value'."
In most cases, those serving on the news desk in
English-language papers have never worked as rural
correspondents and are, hence, unable, or in some cases
unwilling, to understand the intricacies of collecting
and sending news items. Confined to the four walls of
the newspaper office, some members of the news desk
play a role similar to that of a cook in the kitchen;
while rural correspondents are the waiters who have to
constantly interact either with an unhappy customer or,
in some cases, a satisfied customer. The news desk
essentially plays a vital role in the making or
breaking of a story sent by rural correspondents.
But then, the news desk is faced with pressures of a
different kind, which are not always understood by
rural correspondents, based as they are in remote
corners of Goa, who rarely witnessed the hectic
activity at the news desk, moments before the deadline.
On numerous occasions, news items placed on the page
had to be removed at the last moment to accommodate
late advertisements. As such, rural reports, no matter
how essential, simply couldn't find the space in newspaper.
Moreover, many correspondents are convinced that their
news items are more important than the others, so much
so that they cannot bear to find their reports delayed
even by a day. Quite often, their unhappiness over the
delay in printing their reports would become more vocal
with each passing day and, invariably, I became their
punching bag. This was largely because some of the
rural correspondents are considered important members
of the public in their locality and, at times, their
prestige and financial gains in journalism would often
be at stake with a delayed publication of their reports.
It must be admitted that over the years, journalism has
been turned into a prestigious and lucrative part-time
option for many of the rural correspondents. A few
years ago, a former editor mentioned to me that he was
on a trip to a remote village in Goa, when he decided
to attend a function in the locality. The place was
packed to capacity and he was forced to stand behind
occupied chairs. To his surprise, the chief guest
happened to be the local correspondent of his own newspaper!
This enthusiasm towards 'extra-curricular' activities
sometimes translates into political affiliation. In a
recent event which established the BJP-journo nexus in
Sanguem, a correspondent with a Marathi newspaper and
member of the Sanguem Patrakar Sangh was been
unanimously elected president of the Sanguem Unit of
the BJP. Similarly, the president of the Sanguem
Patrakar Sangh and a correspondent with an
English-language newspaper, was appointed the BJP booth
president of Tarimol-Sanguem. In most cases, reports
sent by correspondents to the news desk, in the past,
specially when there was no one in particular to look
after this responsibility, simply lacked form and
content. Illegible words either scribbled on scraps of
paper or sent as distorted faxed messages were among
the most popular methods deployed to communicate their
reports. In some cases, only a skilled pharmacist could
decipher the words used by some correspondents. Under
such conditions, the sub-editor assigned to such
reports had the arduous task of converting them into
decent stories. Quite often, the easiest way out would
be to forward the raw report to the dust bin. A
sub-editor flooded with such reports and working under
pressure would invariably exercise this option with
considerable frequency.
Then in June 1998, it was my turn to handle the
correspondent network under the fancy and wordy
designation of "Chief of News Bureau". In reality, I
had to play God in the laboratory. This meant
subjecting numerous correspondent reports to various
quality control tests each day and, in some cases,
creating sense from nonsense, before they were ready to
be read by thousands of readers in and around Goa.
Under such circumstances, I had anticipated that my
association with correspondents would not to last long,
that is, if I wanted to maintain my sanity in the
profession.
But this was not meant to be.
The days turned to weeks, months and eventually years.
And, before I knew it, my interaction with rural
correspondents went on to complete half a decade. I
have since handled thousands of reports either sent to
me through post, fax, emails or even dictated over the
phone. In most cases, the reports may have initially
appeared trivial or insignificant, but a little
refinement and some cut-paste commands have succeeded
in giving a new look to the report. And with
encouraging results.
In a recent case, the Pernem correspondent sent me a
report on action initiated by the local health
authorities, in view of the outbreak of viral hepatitis
in the state. In the second last paragraph of his
report was a mention that the authorities had decided
to shut down the Pernem police station canteen for
operating under 'unhygienic conditions'. In my view,
this was most significant and I refined the story with
this angle as the lead. Taking cue from the news item,
the Director General of Police issued a memo to the
Pernem police inspector, seeking an explanation for the
unhygienic conditions in the police canteen.
Incidentally, Herald was the only English-language
daily to carry this report.
Over the years, I have not only succeeded in building
up my tolerance level to the specific demands of
correspondents, I have also learnt to appreciate the
crucial role of those eyes and ears spread all over the
state. This experience has led me to believe that a
local newspaper which ignores rural news content will
be as effective as an orchestra playing music before a
deaf audience.
While there is consensus on the value of local news
content, the importance of rural correspondents has not
always been appreciated by the powers that be in the
newspaper. A correspondent is often treated like the
spare wheel of a vehicle, detachable and to be ignored
under normal circumstances. The merit is only
recognised in times of emergency, when a big story
breaks out in areas represented by correspondents. Then
too, it is a common trend that newspapers would prefer
to send its full-fledged staffers, often from Panjim,
instead of relying on part-time rural correspondents,
to cover the event. This is not to suggest that
full-fledged staffers have no right to tresspass on the
territory of correspondents, as it were. Rather, a
staffer would benefit a great deal by utilising the
expertise and local knowledge of a rural correspondent
to ensure an effective story.
To cite an example, a staffer was recently asked to
interview noted people in connection with a prominent
cultural festival in a village. The staffer was unaware
that the same festival is celebrated separately by two
groups in the village and, that, the article would need
to carry the comments of people from both groups.
Instead of seeking the assistance of a correspondent
from the area, the staffer went ahead and interviewed
five persons from the village. Eventually, the staffer
realised that four persons interviewed represented one
group, while the sole personality interviewed from the
other group went on to criticise his own group! The
article was published and the damage was done.
Organisers of the second group were aggrieved and
threatened to withdraw advertisements to the newspaper.
The issue was finally resolved when the local
correspondent carried a series of reports to clarify
the position of the organisers of the second group. Had
the staffer sought the assistence of the local
correspondent, the issue would never have been blown
out of proportion.
Then again, the 'who-has-written' preference over the
'what-has-been-written' has plagued many
English-language newspapers and this has largely
contributed to the 'City-Centric Syndrome'. There have
been instances to suggest that a news report filed by a
staffer has been accorded more prominence -- both in
space and display -- than a report sent by a rural
correspondent. Recently, tension flared up along the Tuyem
-Camurlim ferry route, after the river navigation
department wanted to shift the lone ferry to Tar-Siolim
for the five-day Ganesh immersion ceremony. An MLA,
sarpanchas of two village panchayats and over angry 200
people prevented the movement of the ferry. The
correspondent promptly sent the report and the item
could only find place in the lower portion of page 7,
normally reserved for routine and unimportant news items.
The controversy then erupted again for the nine-day
Ganesh immersion ceremony, when authorities finally
shifted the lone ferry from the Tuyem-Camurlim route to
Siolim. Commuters were unhappy to travel by the free
canoe service, while those travelling in vehicles were
forced to take a lengthy detour. On the other hand,
people in Siolim had the luxury of a ferry to assist
them in a religious ceremony. The correspondent sent me
the report but, this time, the item was published on
page 4, normally reserved for stories which have been
continued from page 1. Incidentally, six of the eight
news items which appeared on page 3 -- the most popular
'inside' page for Goa news -- were Margao-based news
items. "At least, you people carried the ferry story. I
sent the same story to my newspaper. But I did not find
my story anywhere in the paper the next day," remarked
an unhappy correspondent of another newspaper.
Newspaper authorities tend to justify this
'City-Centric Syndrome' by claiming that their readers
are concentrated in and around cities and towns and,
hence, an urban-based report would generate more
interest than a remote village-based story. To accept
this argument would be similar to assume that a
nutritional and tasty meal is possible merely with a
generous portion of rice, minus the curry, vegetables
and other side dishes.
Reports by rural correspondents add spice, flavour and
variety to a newspaper. It is no wonder that the
popularity of vernacular papers in Goa has been largely
due to the quality and quantity of local stories, both
from urban and rural areas.
Different standards adopted with rural correspondents
can be quite effective to confuse and demoralise them.
In one incident, a rural correspondent sent me a report
stating that a building constructed by a firm and owned
by an MLA, was being built barely metres from a high
tension pole. A labourer while at work accidentally
came in contact with the live wires and was seriously
injured. Though a police complaint was filed against
the firm and not the MLA, the correspondent was keen to
establish the link since since the MLA was largely
responsible for the negligence. However, the editor
pulled up the correspondent for attempting to introduce
the MLA into the story, when the police complaint did
not specify the direct involvement of the MLA.
Sometime later, the sister of a minister fatally
stabbed her husband to death. Though the minister was
not involved as he was abroad at the time of the
incident, the same editor called up the news desk,
asking them to insert the statement that the alleged
murderer is the sister of the minister. The minister's
identity was not specified in the police complaint and,
yet, the editor wanted to establish the link between
the minister and his sister.
The problems faced by rural correspondents are fairly
common and are not restricted to any one newspaper and
it has become a common trend for local correspondents
to pool in stories and resources. This in turn has led
to the creation of local level associations, commonly
known as "Patrakar Sangh" in most talukas of the State.
These associations have, in turn, branched out into
constituency-level associations. At present, the
numerous "Patrakar Sanghs" in Goa include the
Sanguem-Quepem Patrakar Sangh, Sanguem Patrakar Sangh,
Murgao Patrakar Sangh, Pernem Patrakar Sangh, Mandrem
Patrakar Sangh, Bicholim Patrakar Sangh and the
Bardez-based Zunzar Gramin Patrakar Sangh. Besides
safeguarding the interests of rural correspondents,
these associations provide support to its members and
also promote interactions with society by organising
various contests and cultural programmes.
Having served correspondents across two newspapers for
over half a decade, I have grown to appreciate and
respect their enthusiasm to the profession, despite the
difficulties that engulf them on a regular basis. If my
efforts have paid rich dividends, it is largely based
on my recipe called T.R.U.S.T, which includes the key
ingredients of Talent, Reliability, Usefulness,
Sincerity and Tenacity.
TALENT: Rural correspondents have often been judged by
their talent in the collection of news from their
respective areas. It is this talent that has enthused
many correspondents to remain in journalism for many
years, even though in most cases, monetary benefits
have been too meagre to justify their interest.
I have often worked with rural correspondents who have
little knowledge of English and, yet, they have
communicated to me stories which have turned out to be
impressive reports. There have been some correspondents
who have developed such strong contacts, that they are
easily identified by the masses in different parts of
the taluka represented by the correspondent. These
correspondents are the true representatives of the
newspaper in their areas.
Correspondents with remarkable talent have always
remained the prized possession of a newspaper and, in
many cases, have gone on to become full-fledged reporters.
RELIABILITY: By and large, rural correspondents have
been a reliable lot and have stood by the paper in good
times and in bad. These correspondents have sent in
their reports all year round, without taking into
account their weekly holidays, public holidays or
annual leave. In one newspaper, correspondents were not
paid for a number of months due to acute financial
difficulties and, yet, that didn't retard the flow of
their reports and they continued to serve the newspaper
with the same level of enthusiasm. This level of
commitment and reliability of correspondents will
always be an asset to any newspaper.
I had a correspondent who happened to fly to Bombay in
the morning, but that didn't stop him from sending me a
news item over the phone. Beyond doubt, this
correspondent, despite his busy schedule in Vasco, has
been one of my most enterprising correspondents and a
crucial component in my network of correspondents.
Correspondents located in remote areas usually cover a
huge geographical area and in most cases, travel many
kilometres to either collect or send a report to the
newspaper. Yet, this rarely deters them from sending
their reports.
USEFULNESS: While rural correspondents are primarily
responsible for covering events in their localities,
they are extremely beneficial to newspapers in a number
of ways. They can be of invaluable help in the
promotion of newspaper, be it circulation, generation
of advertisements or other areas of interest to a
newspaper. In fact, some correspondents have even
started advertising agencies of their own.
SINCERITY: This ingredient distinguishes rural
correspondents who pursue journalism as an end from
those who manipulate the profession as a means to an end.
Over the years, I have learnt to respect the large
number of rural correspondents, who have been sincere
to the journalism. This is not to say that rural
correspondents are insulated from pressures while
discharging their part-time duties. On the contrary,
they are most prone to influences within their locality
and hence, their ability to withstand the gravitational
forces of politics and economics has to be appreciated.
TENACITY: Another hallmark of most rural correspondents
is the persistent determination which has been the
driving force over the years. News items on a series of
issues filed by rural correspondents have prompted
authorities to initiate action. Recently, a
correspondent persistently highlighted the illegal
felling of trees in the taluka, inviting the wrath of
timber smugglers. Ignoring numerous threats to his
life, his efforts eventually paid off when arrests were
effected, lethargic local authorities transferred and
brakes applied on the illegal activities in the area.
My association with the Herald is yet to complete two
years, but I am glad that the Herald News Bureau has
developed a team of talented, reliable, useful, sincere
and tenacious correspondents. And I am grateful to have
been involved in this process.