There have been endless debates about corrupt politicians, weak leadership and a failing economy in the national media. Some of which leads to action, most of it does not. But all of it is mostly heard – good, bad and ugly. Not just because we witness and face it in our daily lives, but also because it is pointed out ad nauseam by the media. However, when it comes to the media itself, that’s a different story.

It seems that with all the criticism leveled against the electronic media in Pakistan over the last few years, it’s falling on deaf ears. Yet another case in point was the blatantly callous coverage of the Airblue plane crash in Islamabad on July 28. While one can describe for pages on end the morbid, insensitive and self-obsessed histrionics of every channel, once again, misinformation topped the list.

The outpouring of anger against such reckless and damaging coverage has been overwhelming. Most of this has been vented on online blogs, both on national newspapers, as well as private blogs. Angered writers and readers have been buzzing about the lack of responsibility of the electronic media, to the extent that many are calling for an end to the farce that has now become the Pakistani electronic media.  One blogger put it very eloquently: “Just the way you wouldn’t hand weapons to an untrained army, you wouldn’t hand cameras and a press pass to untrained media representatives.”

And there are several hundred more comments to supplement such outrage, only 48 hours after the unfortunate disaster. But the question arises, is anyone in the media listening?

Just the way the media is meant to be a powerful tool for social change, so is the voice of the masses. And in Pakistan’s history, the people’s voice unfortunately, has never been heard. Granted it is probably only a fraction of the literate and internet-inclined who write on blogs, but it is not just the English-speaking elite who form the readership. Many are students from public sector institutions and those belonging to middle to low-level income groups and they too, are angry. It is clear from broadcasts that the electronic media shies away from anyone who chooses to criticise them on their own medium, so blogging is pretty much all there is to go on. But again, the question arises, are those in the media paying any attention to what their viewers are saying about them?

Doesn’t seem so, as reporters and correspondents continue to challenge viewers patience with their smug, self-righteous attitudes, and also continue to wage a power struggle both within their networks and the state, since being a broadcast journalist is now akin to being a celebrity. While they can stage protests in front of the Lahore High Court against regulation to curb their powers, they can at the same time openly flaunt the laws of decency and human conduct while informing the public. An unfortunate dichotomy if there was one.

Change takes time, especially in a country like ours that is averse to sudden shifts in comfort zones. But it seems that change in the media will be excruciatingly slow, if at all. Because the reality is, that the electronic media in Pakistan was established, not as a neutral organ of “voice” and access to information for the people, but as a competitive business for profit, just like the corporate sector. Its about ratings, viewership and being there first, or even not being there at all, but behaving as you were. And when you have that for a foundation, there isn’t much hope for change at all.

Themrise Khan is a freelance social development consultant based in Karachi who occasionally dares to venture into the Pakistani media.

The views expressed by this blogger and in the following reader comments do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Dawn Media Group.