[ampere]

Graphics is just one aspect of it I would say. The point is more on what the newspapers what the public to focus on?

By looking at TOI, I get a feeling that they sidetrack you to a totally
un-important news piece (We can debate, on how important or unimportant a news item can be).
That is where I am let down by TOI.

By the way today I saw half-column advt. in Hindu on the front page.
Sign of the Times?

[manolin]

As much as the newspapers want public to focus on something, the public also equally influences the newspapers to focus on specific topics: and this is shown in the subscription to those kinds of papers. I am sure newsmen, like people of all other professions, also want to be seen as serious people going about a serious business; but if all that serious business is not wanted by the people, how can they force it on the people. Do not be let down by TOI, be let down by the people who subscribe to the TOI. If the TOI subscriptions had dropped when the city supplements started coming out, do you think they would have continued. No chance.

Originally Posted by manolin

Has anyone (the Hindus here) tried explaining the legends of Krishna to their children.

My dad has and quite well. Your point is?

[m-hawk]

The Times Of India has the biggest readership I assume and it is so becoz it give s people to read what they want to !! It has best info about movies and hall s and page 3 photos of who's who and some incident s about the national happening s ! one more opinion although not mine the TOI is read by congress followers I dont know wether it is true !!

[Jayabusa]

Originally Posted by manolin

As much as the newspapers want public to focus on something, the public also equally influences the newspapers to focus on specific topics: and this is shown in the subscription to those kinds of papers. I am sure newsmen, like people of all other professions, also want to be seen as serious people going about a serious business; but if all that serious business is not wanted by the people, how can they force it on the people. Do not be let down by TOI, be let down by the people who subscribe to the TOI. If the TOI subscriptions had dropped when the city supplements started coming out, do you think they would have continued. No chance.

True, but the point is newspapers are not supposed to print what sells. They are supposed to acquaint people with reality, whereas they are busy misleading the public, giving people what they want to read(Please! newspapers are not for entertainment, which is exactly what their purpose has become, sadly) & keep people aloof of stark realities ultimately making the public focus on the short-term, rather than the long-term.

[paragsachania]

I might not be fully sure but definitely confident on this. There are Video cameras Installed at most of the Toll Booths and all the expressways in India and yet TOI Bangalore glorifies the 'fact' that NICE toll booths will have Video cameras and perhaps the first in India!
Can others please confirm is this is indeed correct?
I also remember somewhere during early 2000, a culprit was caught only after going through a series of Video camera captures at various toll booths along NH4 when he'd run away with a brand new merc on the pretext of TD from a show room in Bangalore.
These are those news items which exhibit TOI's frog in a well syndrome and readers who arent well informed suddenly start feeling patriotic about such a development and get defensive when someone tries to prove his point.

[manolin]

@jayabusa

I am sorry to diagree. No newspaper is under an obligation equalling this - "not supposed to print what sells. They are supposed to acquaint people with reality".

A newspaper is any periodical publication carrying public news. As per regulations in India, and I assume similar regulations exist abroad, a newspaper or news agency can be censured/warned/proceded only if it has offended against the standards of journalistic ethics or public taste or that an editor or working journalist has committed any professional misconduct. The Press Council of India, which is the regulating body, can exercise this power if it has a reason to believe. Apart from this, libel/slander are the other things which any person can sue the newspaper for in relation to their newsreporting. Other than these, they are under no obligation to acquaint people with 'all kinds of reality' (as opposed to the entertainment reality which is what is objected to).


My friend, this is also a business. Like all other businesses, it has to go by what customer demands, otherwise the business will pop. The non-intellectual newspapers have been around for as long as intellectual newspapers have been, both are businesses which provide a public service, albeit to different kinds of public, and both are newspapers.

Hence IMHO one may ridicule the TOI and its readers, and shift to other newspapers, but one can not demand that they change what they are doing.

[Torque-ative]

Are you people even serious,....My god !! LOL
The time I live in,..I 'd make my decisions based on what I prefer to look at in the morning,.and move on with life.
So if you don't like to look at beautiful women,..don't.

Now if you are concerned that such early exposure to skin might wreck havoc with a growing mind, fair enough, but can you really insulate them from every such access or exposure ?? Negative right. Might as well adopt a postive. Mindset and teach our kids the maturity to deal with them.

I am guessing a majority of Bhpians are male,...and I'd like an honest answer from these very same people. Have they never gone looking for erotica or porn elsewhere.
Now tell me if you catch your kid fapping to some stimuli (print or electronic) what you gonna do beat him up and throw him out.
Nada right,..why cos you did it too some day too right. Now that didknt stop you from becoming successful or growing up did it.
Why ? Cos we were taught grow up balanced in all aspects. By trying to isolate (which is your choice), you are only making the issue bigger than it actually is.

Sensationalism in new is silly,..and I agree. But people still have a choice to switch channels or. Change subscriptions.
A thread going into pages be-littling all readers of TOI,..just cause these is some. Tasteful pic of julia roberts is ludacris.

C'mon get real. A paper decides to gltz it up a little and you are up in arms akin to the saffron brigade.

Freedom of speach and freedom of choice two things you cannot take away from any free man...!

[LonelyPlanet]

Originally Posted by amitk26

There 70% are people on a rather small sample size of T-BHP which becomes even smaller because a small percentage of people actually read this thread. Adding to that compare number of voters here to the total number of hits on this thread. Considering on a conservative side that 50% hits are unique hits it this means a lot many people did not feel it is worth voting on this topic. Since they did not feel strongly for the question one interpretation is that they do not mind TOI.

So still this 70% is opinion of a small minority.

Now lets check the reality Times of India is 11ths most read newspaper in country ( see the readership table I have provided ) and no 1 among English dailys. So definitely a lot many more people vote for it by paying 2 rupees to purchase it.

None of your arguments prove that that there are certain sections which are embarassing and least required in a daily family newspaper.

Most contents in TOI are great - its only certain sections that the discussion is all about. There is room for improvement even though if you are #1 in english newspaper.

[amitk26]

Originally Posted by LonelyPlanet

None of your arguments prove that that there are certain sections which are embarassing and least required in a daily family newspaper.

Most contents in TOI are great - its only certain sections that the discussion is all about. There is room for improvement even though if you are #1 in english newspaper.

It is your personal opinion .None of my arguments said anything about you being embarrassed or not. Only you can decide what is embarrassing for you.My points were regarding interpretation of vote.

[manolin]

By the way, since concerns were earlier raised in this thread about paid news reports: after last general elections the Press Council of India had formed a committee to investigate similar concerns about paid news reports. They submitted their report this year- a very mildly worded coverup report containing no details and bureaucratic non-sensical suggestions.

I just came across an interesting back story on the entire investigation; apparently the committe originally had a damning report, but that got 'lost in translation'.

[Roy.S]

I've been in Mumbai for a little over a week now and have been reading ToI every morning. The local coverage in the main section is a little better than the Blr version. Bombay times is quite terrible and the supplements would have made good windscreen wipes had they not been printed on glossy paper. Zigwheels is absolutely the worst thing automotive I've ever come across.

[shankar.balan]

TOI is little more than a dish rag. A scandal rag indeed - can be likened to a typical tabloid like SUN or whatever in the UK. But the thing is that Mr Vineet Jain is a marketing genius. He gives the consumer exactly what the consumer appears to want! It looks quite like the majority of readers wish to peer into the lives of the silly ephemeral celebrities that seem to be all over the place crawling in gangs out of the woodwork! Since the TOI supplements deal predominantly with the people we all love to hate and criticize, what is slowly becoming apparent is the hunger for celeb gossip and a certain voyeuristic vicarious pleasure that the majority of readers seem to derive from these kinds of articles/ features!
stupid in my opinion but it is abundantly clear that I fall into the shadow minority which really doesnt matter a hoot to marketeers like Mr Jain!

[ramzsys]

To a certain extent it is not offensive to dig into a celebrity's moments in a party, but it is bloody voyeurism to snap general populace in their private moments. News articles have too much wordiness which i dont like as i am used to the terse expressions in the Hindu.

[manolin]

Originally Posted by ramzsys

i am used to the terse expressions in the Hindu.

I can't help but link this with your signature