Elephants are dancing: Changing face of print media in Arunachal

Many acquaintances, close friends and even family members have questioned my logic of re-launching the newspaper within quarter of a year, after the closure of my previous daily English newspaper under difficult circumstances. To me, whosoever acted against my newspaper was not against media per se but it was against me, as an individual and as a sibling of the then Chief Minister. Not even for once; I believed that attack on my publication was a media gag. At least three official reports that I know of, vindicated my stand on Times of India (ToI) that I have had nothing to do with Pradeep Thakur or ToI.

Thus, my decision has been driven by sheer passion to bring about media revolution, a process that we had set in motion on September 24, 2009. 

There were times, when Arunachal media was bullied by ‘power that was’; Gegong Apang, the then Chief Minister and his office used to dictate the news to be carried in the dailies; and those who defied their directions were barred from receiving the government advertisement, the only source of revenue those days.

Competition to his daily English newspaper, Arunachal Times was crushed with iron fist. Recall, he had uninterrupted run for 19 long years!

So much so, that owner of ‘Echo of Arunachal’, Nani Dai had to sell her land to sustain the newspaper. Such act lasted for more than a year. She was forced to shunt-out her editor, V Ravindrand, for writing a particular editorial against the then ruling Congress government under Gegong Apang’s regime.

Decade later, the publisher is still in business, doing much better; and editor in question is still editing another newspaper under a dynamic young leader , Gabriel D Wangsu, who himself is a seasoned journalist.

Time has changed, we have had liberal politicians in Mukut Mithi, late Dorjee Khandu, Jarbom Gamlin and we have a new Chief Minister in Nabam Tuki who has always maintained healthy relations with media fraternity and have taken care of welfare and growth of media in the state.

In essence, there is no logic to my decision in coming out with a new avatar.

Whilst I was doing market survey in the end of year 2008, I found the existing newspapers like an elephant who can’t dance. An elephant which has grown too big, too heavy to make an image make-over but 3 years laters, I have been proved wrong. Elephants are agile, keeping up with the changing face of state’s media and readers are very happy with the changes. These are signs that I take pride of.

There are many more for which team Sentinel can take credit for.

Foremost, we were the first newspaper, as a policy, to adopt investigative reports on socio-economic and other developmental programmes. Thus, most of the newspapers, which till then looked more like notice boards rather than newspapers, started changing its reporting pattern and everything else too followed suit.

Today, there are very appealing newspapers with high quality imported newsprints. The first newspaper of the state, Echo of Arunachal’s image and content layout is one of the best in the entire North East region. The newly launched daily, Independent Review has set a new benchmark in presentation and in newsprint, which others will have to emulate to remain competitive.

With changing time, Arunachalees are getting to purchase ‘foreign products’ just for Rs 3 everyday, and my daily’s news print has been left behind in the race.

After the launch of my newspaper 3 years ago, another aspect that changed dramatically, I recall is the compensation scenario.

Earlier, there were exploitations of journalists with pea-nuts doled out even to senior journalists with almost 2 decades of experience; and thus, quality of journalists and journalism was compromised to a large extent. We were the first to pay higher salary to fresh graduate with mass communication degree compared to the seasoned journalists. Currently, journalists in Arunachal are pitted with the best paid journalists in the entire North East region within their age-experience basket.

There is no looking back; my newspaper is not the highest pay master anymore!

Believe you me; it’s such a refreshing change to see the print media changing in front of my eyes.

I believe newspaper sells because of its content and the way it’s put acrossed. New breed of journalists like Sanjay Mosing, Amar Sangno, Taba Ajum, Appu Gapak, Gandhi Darang are doing fantastic job and old guards too have raised new standards. I can vouch for a fact that, today, most of the newspaper houses have ‘sentinel journalists’ in their team whom I had trained and groomed; and they are doing very well, wherever they are. Now I have another batch with me who are shaping up well and soon they too will be gone one of these days, giving me another reason to rejoice.

In losing many battles, I believe I have won couple of wars. I have always said, “Give me 32 young bloods, two from each district; I can change Arunachal.”

Yes, there are prices to pay in such revolutionary work and I have paid mine too. There are bridges that you burn, so be it.

Culturally, people in positions take investigative reports too personal, without realizing that it’s their positions that are questioned, not the person holding the post. But that’s Arunachal today; tomorrow, it would change, for sure.

In a very short span, we created lot many trails, treaded into road less travelled; there are desires to create many more beautiful trails that I could be proud of when I am old. One such new trail would be the launch of first e-paper in Arunachal Pradesh.

I hope that with the launch of first e-paper, www.easternsentinel.in, people sitting in Tawang, Mechuka, Anini and Khonsa too shall read the news like the rest in capital complex- same day, not 2-3 days later anymore. They won’t miss anything published, including job and tender advertisements.

Won’t that be good for this land locked place and its people?