July 3, 2011
Ashadh Shukla Dwitiya, Kaiyug Varsha 5113

Many of us are concerned about your recent TV9 presentation on Hindu “Spiritual leaders are millionaires” in three part series was a misguided and biased. In fact some of us feel that this presentation denigrated, maligned, insulted and belittle Hindu traditions and culture.  TV9 appears to be interested in sensational journalism rather than being objective, unbiased, professional and factual in its presentation.

When such issues are been highlighted, a question is raised – Why are the issues like city Pastor been accused of sexual abuse of minors and sexual harassment case against fake Muslim 'Baba' not been raised and comfortably overlooked ? Why are the Hindus been targeted and questioned whereas the rest are been forgiven ?

Anti-Hindu report by TV9 can be see on following links : 1) TV9 - Spiritual leaders are millionaires - Part 1 : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3sSA6GGxJU&feature=related 2) TV9 - Spiritual leaders are millionaires - Part 2 : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5FFpkH-8GQ&feature=related 3) TV9 - Spiritual leaders are millionaires - Part 3 : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kVhQFBxhpvI&feature=related 4) On H.H. Baba Ramdev : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2TfGRKpUKLM&feature=related Devout Hindus are protesting lawfully against TV9 on following Contact Details: Tv9 # 97, Road# 3, Banjara Hills, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh - 500034 Mobile : + 91-9948290901 Phone : + 91-40-23352336       Fax : + 91-40-23351553 / 22 E-mail : info@tv9.net, response@tv9.net, info@sstmedia.com, news@indiavisiontv.com, web@indiavisiontv.com

A letter was written to Mr. Ravi Prakash, Founder and CEO of TV9 Stations to bring to his notice about annoyance created amongst Hindus due to the presentation on Hindus.

Letter to Mr. Ravi Prakash, Founder and CEO of TV9 Stations

To:  Mr. Ravi Prakash

Founder and CEO, Associated Broadcasting Company Ltd (ABCL).

Hyderabad, AP; India

July 3, 2011

Dear Ravi Prakash Garu:

We are delighted to hear that you are invited to be honored at TANA Conference in Santa Clara, California. It is a great achievement to expand the TV enterprise to an enviable level.

However, many of us are concerned about your recent TV9 presentation on Hindu “Spiritual leaders are millionaires” in three part series was a misguided and biased. In fact some of us feel that this presentation denigrate d, maligned, insulted and belittle Hindu traditions and culture.  TV9 appears to be interested in sensational journalism rather than being objective, unbiased, professional and factual in its presentation.

We request you to be fair, balanced, professional and credible in your presentation. Our request is consistent with your missions and goals of your company Associated Broadcasting Company Ltd (ABCL). We request you to consider, ponder and reflect the follow suggestions:

1) Your website starts with the quotation that “To sin by silence when we should protest makes cowards out of men.” by Ella Wheeler Wilcox. It is an appropriate quotation for any one who would like to protest when it is time to protest.   For Hindus, this quotation is more appropriate than any other religious groups. Hindus should not become cowards by being silent. Consistent with your mission we are protesting against the unprofessional journalism of TV9.

2) TV9 has shown three part series on Hindu spiritual leaders with a title “Spiritual leaders are millionaires” accusing them of deception, sex scandals, killings, expansion of their empires and also implying that they accumulated the wealth unlawfully.

Following Spiritual Leaders are shown in bad light: Swami Baba Ramdev, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Amma Amritananda Mayi from Kerala, Jaggi Vasudev, Kalki Bhagavan and his wife, Swami Nityananda, Swami Ashaaram Bapu and others.

TV9 has not produced any factual evidence about any of the above spiritual leaders concerning attributed charges such as killing, deception, and illegal accumulation of wealth.  Did TV9 investigate any of these charges it is making against the Spiritual leaders?  Of course, not? No investigation.  No evidence.  No proof.  No documentation is produced.  TV9 appears to have relied on the newspaper reports, rumors, gossip, reporters' personal opinion, and un-verified information, without facts.

3) We admire and appreciate the mission and goals of your organization published in your website: http://www.raviprakashtv9.com/html/about-ravi.htm

The website clearly states that it will follow nine policies to realize it’s mission. We will list few of them here. We feel that the three part series on “Spiritual leaders are millionaires”, has failed to follow these policies.

a) One of the policies of the Associated Broadcasting Company Ltd (ABCL) and  (TV9 Telugu is one of the TV stations) is to be credible. “To earn it one would have to resist the facile conclusion and the easy sound bite. All the great media houses of our time are founded on the value of credibility.”
b) “But its very soul would be in peril if the news it aired had the flaw of error or the taint of prejudice.”
c) “ABCL has no biases towards any political party, social group or individual. Its channels report the news in an unbiased manner and believes that this can be achieved by having balanced stories presenting all sides of an issue. ABCL does not provide political commentary but rather provides an honest, accurate, and unbiased depiction of the day's events.”  
d) “ABCL and all its employees will perform their functions in accordance with the highest moral and ethical principles of journalism, and by so doing become a benchmark for the industry.” 

The presentation of TV9 on Spiritual Leaders reveals that there is total disconnect between its stated mission and the reporting. We feel that TV9 has:

    i) Made facile conclusions and easy sound bites,
    ii) Presented news with full of un-verified assumptions and prejudice,
    iii) Ignored to provide balanced stories including all sides of an issue,
    iv) Reported more as a party political commentary rather based on factual information,
    v) Did not provide accurate, honest and unbiased and
    vi) Established lowest principles of journalism.

4) No documentary evidence is given for TV9 reports about supposed killings in the ashrams?  Such reporting can’t be called honest and credible reporting and therefore, it is misleading.

We sincerely believe that TV9 would not end up as yellow journalism: “Yellow journalism, in short, is biased opinion masquerading as objective fact. Moreover, the practice of yellow journalism involved sensationalism, distorted stories, and misleading images for the sole purpose of boosting newspaper sales and exciting public opinion.”  (Source: http://library.thinkquest.org/C0111500/spanamer/yellow.htm).

We trust that you would abstain from this kind of journalism and maintain high standards in reporting.

5) Why did TV9 not report any specials about those Muslims who openly declare themselves as terrorists, who committed terrorist attacks, who is behind these attacks, and who is financing these attacks?  TV9 has so far not reported the teaching content in Madarssas and its adverse impact on rest of the society.

Can you have special coverage on these issues on a fair, unbiased, credible, and honest manner?

6) Why did TV9 not report any specials on Christians, their source of fiancés for churches, the use of this money, the activities of Churches in converting innocent and vulnerable Hindus by dubious means, the sex scandals committed by church fathers in Kerala and other states, the murders of sisters serving in Churches in Kerala?

How can a person who cannot read even one sentence declare himself a Christian overnight and destroying Hindu Gods and walk on them? Have ever reported the methods Christians used to convert vulnerable Hindus?

Can you have special coverage on these issues on a fair, unbiased, credible, and honest manner?
 
7) Every Sunday TV9 has a segment called Nireekshana?   Did TV9 can verify their claims of Jesus saving the people, curing the sick people, and bashing Hinduism? Can TV9 investigate and prove their claims?  Who is responsible for the content of this program? Is it TV9 or Sponsors of the program? Can the sponsors provide actual evidence for these claims?

Can you have special coverage on these issues on a fair, unbiased, credible, and honest manner?

8) We applaud your efforts to save Tirumala campaign from many questionable decisions of the then Board of Trustees of TTD.  As you are aware that the issues faced by TTD are equally applicable all Government controlled Hindu Temples.

Is it possible for TV9 to take up “Save Hindu Temples” campaign and protect them from government abuse of Hindu Temple lands, resources, diversion of funds, auctioning of lands, etc?

Can you have special coverage on these issues on a fair, unbiased, credible, and honest manner?

9) Will it be possible to investigate as to why only Hindu Temples are under government control but not Christian Churches and Muslim Mosques? We feel that the Hindus have been denied of their freedom to manage their places of worship.

Can you have special coverage on these issues on a fair, unbiased, credible, and honest manner?

10) When India is constitutionally a secular country, why the government spends money to subsidize Hajj pilgrimage, build Hajj Houses, impose special taxes on Hindus to when they want to attend their places of worship, build separate Air terminals for Muslims to visit Mecca, appease Muslims and Christians based on religion, and many similar issues.

Can you have special coverage on these issues on a fair, unbiased, credible, and honest manner?

Dear Ravi Prakash Garu: Please know that we are not against fair, unbiased, honest and credible investigation to unearth any issues relevant to the public.  Millions of Hindus were aghast at your presentation. They were shocked, hurt, disgusted, angry and offended. They do not want your reporting to be one-sided and unbalanced.  We request you to consider the above matters we suggested so that you reporting will be consistent with your mission and goals.

SPECIAL REQUEST:

   1. All these Spiritual Leaders have done an exceptional work in religious, spiritual, medical and social fields. They have millions of followers across the globe. To be fair, accurate, honest, balanced and credible, please present 30  minutes segments on each of the Spiritual Leader’s contribution to uplift the general public as a antidote for the one sided presentation by your TV9.

   2. TV9 should run an addendum and acknowledge the bias / slips in the program, or substantiate their claims.

   3. TV9 should bring balance in religious coverage. They should not focus on reporting on only one religion.

   4. TV9 is not an expert on every subject. Hence, they bring doctors to discuss medicine,  political analysts  to discuss politics and so on. Similarly they should develop a team of religious experts to analyze religious topics. In US, every media unit has special writers on religious topics, who have at least undergrad level education in journalism as well as religious studies. TV shows in US solicit the comments of three types of people, to provide a balanced view point and to stay journalistically neutral. Those three types of people are:

   5. People of high stature/esteem in the respective field, common people and their diverse view points, academic scholars who study the particular subject. TV9 should follow such good traditions. Propagating once own religion is permitted by the constitution of India. Bashing other religions is not. Any such incidents should be exposed by TV9 as anti-constituional.

   6. We would be more than happy to collaborate with TV9 to produce shows that uphold the universality, service, balance, harmony, compassion, equality, diversity, tolerance, etc. values of Hindu tradition, but condemn the internal threats to these values, that come in the form of exploiters and  external distractions that come unwarranted.

We will be happy to clarify and discuss these matters with you any time to make India a better place for all segments.  Thank you for your time and reflective consideration.

Sincerely,

Proud Hindu devout

Source: Hindu devout

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