Mumbai, Sep 3: The relentless coverage of Sheena Bora murder case gives the impression that 125 billion people are interested in just one piece of news. Every news channel worth its TRP had their entire army of reporters in Mumbai and Kolkata chasing the accused and all the people involved and claiming victory by flashing it as Breaking News. Also Read - Anubhav Sinha Lashes Out at Arnab Goswami in Tweets, Asks Journos to Give Him a 'Lifetime Award'

Sample this: ‘Indrani Mukerjea ate sandwich’ was breaking news on one of the news channels. Also Read - Netizens Trend #ArrestAntiIndiaArnab on Twitter Against The News Anchor For Alleged 'Communal Anchoring' on Palghar Lynching

Leading the coverage of the case from every angle that it can be covered from, was the most popular English news channel, Times Now. The channel’s editor in chief Arnab Goswami found yet another chance to scream before the camera in the name of Sheen Bora murder. The channel has been covering the murder ever since the news first broke and taking credit for reaching the people involved in the case even before the police. Great work! (ALSO READ: This Pakistani journalist in his own style lambastes Arnab Goswami over fake Dawood Ibrahim report) Also Read - Now Vistara Airlines Bans Kunal Kamra From Flying Till April 27, He Says 'Neither Sorry, Nor Surprised'

But did everything else stop in India ever since Indrani with the help of one of her ex husbands (the number is under debate) allegedly kill Sheena? Well, nothing stops in India and here are some of the stories that channels either skipped or just took note of over the murder of a woman that took place three years ago.

Here are the stories that Arnab Goswami didn’t find important enough to carry:

– ISRO successfully launched Geo-synchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) D6 carrying GSAT-6 from Sriharikota on August 27. GSLV-D6 flight is significant since it intends to continue the testing of CUS. GSLV is designed to inject 2 ton class of communication satellites into Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO). GSAT 6’s antenna is the biggest antenna made by ISRO till date, the size of the antenna being six meters in diameter. This is also the first time that an unfurable antenna is being used in an Indian communication satellite.

– Ex-servicemen continued their protest demanding immediate implementation of One Rank One Pension (OROP) scheme. Their hunger strike crossed 80 days with many retired army men being hospitalised. The veterans were repeatedly promised of a breakthrough in the coming days, but no solution has materialised, as of now.

– Drought conditions in peninsular India worsened by the day due to inefficient rainfall. Several parts of Maharashtra’s Marathwada and western Maharashtra regions and north interior Karnataka are facing tough problems in sustaining cattle and supplying drinking water.



– There were violent clashes in Manipur over the Inner Line Permit issue. Houses of Manipur Health Minister Phungzathang Tonsing and four other lawmakers in Churchandpur district were set on fire. The protest is still going on. The tribal Kuki and Naga students have taken the protest to Delhi, asking the Prime Minister to intervene in the violence.

Apart from these stories, there were several other news worthy stories, but those were given a miss as Goswami continued to delve into various aspects of the glamourised murder of Sheena Bora. The self-proclaimed mouthpiece of the nation, Goswami behaved as if there was no news that was of greater significance than the murder case.

Some may argue that Sheen Bora case should not have been given the extensive coverage that it was awarded. Agreed that the story was full of twist and turns and drama that are the perfect recipe for a television soap. The real question is about the proportion of air time that was given to Sheen Bora case.

In another part of the country, there was another murder, albeit a less glamorous one. Scholar MM Kalburgi was murdered in broad daylight. Why hasn’t your channel tracked this murder case and tried to find out why exactly was Kalburgi murdered and why has the police been slow in responding? Your channel left no stone unturned to track Sheena Bora case and left all other IMPORTANT stories out. The murder of Kalburgi was far more important than Sheena Bora. But you thought otherwise.

Rajdeep Sardesai, a well known journalist and former colleague of Arnab’s, understood the importance of other stories. He even shared a post on his Facebook page questioning the coverage Sheena Bora murder got.

“Which is the bigger story? Murder most foul in Mumbai high society or the killing of an elderly professor in Karnataka? Guess news channels will relentlessly focus on the Sheena murder story because it has all the elements of a gripping best seller: how often is a mother accused of killing a daughter, that too when the mum happens to be the CEO of a media company? On the other hand, Prof Kalbargi was killed in sleepy Dharwad, no glamour and glitz here. And yet, the implications of this murder are far greater for civil society: Will someone be killed for their beliefs? And for speaking out? How intolerant have we become that we settle intellectual debates with a gun? Hopefully, those questions will be raised on prime time across channels. I certainly will,” Radjeep wrote on his Facebook page.

Despite spending several years in media, Goswami doesn’t realise that journalism is not just about what people would like to know but about what they ought to know. Media channels as powerful and as influential as Times Now, should practice some restraint when it comes to the attention accorded to particular news stories.

The clear agenda of Times Now seems to just be hogging the TRPs. If such is the case, I would like to ask Mr. Arnab Goswami a very important question- Why call your channel a news channel, when your coverage gives a news story the proportions of a daily soap drama? Rather call it an entertainment channel and be done with it.