Prannoy Roy, the granddaddy of Indian television journalism, and his entrepreneur wife Radhika Roy have stepped down from the RRPR, the promoter company of NDTV. This followed the Adanis converting their debt in RRPR into equity and making an open offer to the public. This marks the end of an era, in Indian journalism.
NDTV, as New Delhi Television was called, changed the landscape of Indian media, showing what professionalism was about. First, as a production house for Doordarshan and later for Star News, the growth of NDTV is mind boggling. The pioneering news broadcaster stayed firm and committed to noiseless, straight, unbiased news presentations. You may have liked or disliked their observations or stances, but you could never hold them guilty of boisterous name-calling or of crude and ranting journalism.
Decline over the decades
Over the years, as channels proliferated, NDTV stood out for giving viewers the most reliable, accurate and unadulterated news. And whenever they have been proven incorrect, they publicly apologised. An abiding picture of innate honesty was when Roy came on air, to apologise for their coverage of Bihar elections. Only a few journalists would have the courage to do that.
NDTV’s news reporting standards were never compromised. But unfortunately, because the news was based on the advertising model, and patronage comes with playing up to the bosses, the media house lost. Change in audience taste and then a change in regime came as a blow. Ad revenues dwindled; meanwhile, the company’s digression to other forms of television, such as entertainment and lifestyle, which wasn’t exactly their forte, cut them in size.
The channel will be long remembered for its high retention rate and for being the training ground for most of today’s top journalists. There was a time when politicians trooped to appear, and wannabe journalists queued up to work there.
Allegations that surface
There have been allegations of financial impropriety, and in the world of noise that we live in, some of them could be true, false, or could carry shades of grey. SEBI barred the Roys from accessing the securities market and from holding managerial positions for 2 years, on allegations that the promoters had failed to disclose agreements to minority stakeholders of the company.
In another case, the apex court quashed the tax department’s notice against the company because its allegations contradicted the revenue department’s statements.
The road ahead
So will NDTV stick to its core principles? The Roy’s still hold a stake in the company but change of ownership can bring a change in reporting. Businessmen take over news channels not to promote journalism, but business.
Earlier to this acquisition, the Ambanis indirectly held control over the channel through the interest-free debt taken by a promoter company of NDTV. Despite that, they had let the track run alongside the lines laid out by the Roys. But today, the structural difference is that the investment is no longer a loan but is converted to equity. And with an open offer being made to the public and friendly shareholders sitting inside (note shares are being traded well above the offer value, and ideally, one should be offloaded in the market than to the open offer), the hold of Adani will be complete.
One of India’s top anchors and a household name, Ravish Kumar, the Magsaysay Award winner, has stepped out of NDTV, indicative of stormy times ahead.
The new owners must ensure that the DNA of NDTV is retained lest it is lost in the spate of me-too channels that float around. It is always essential to have a different viewpoint around. -V Pattabhi Ram and CA. Arpitha Mettu
