Media scandal: Sorry, it's not about men and women

A male editor of a big news house allegedly misconducted with a woman colleague. Truly, a claim for self-punishment doesn't can be no defence if indeed there has been a criminal act of sexual assault. In this time of pre-poll sensationalism, such a news would serve a perfect recipe for those having some vested interests.

Some sympathy will be expressed, as it has already been done, for the soul who has been at the receiving end. Political groups, human rights groups and this and that panel will raise a high pitch on the issue. Private affairs have become a big reason for public strategising in this country and the latest fiasco won't be different either.

But one question arose in the mind of this writer. Is the news about the big magazine that caused a stir all across the country something unique and first of its kind? Sexual assault of women at workplaces is a common phenomenon in today's new India which has undergone a massive socio-economic churning over the last one or two decades. But is there a kind of over-moralistic noise when something like this happens in a media house? Is there a feeling that if the conscience-keepers of the society are hit by such scandals, then the future of the entire humanity is under threat?

Such a line of thinking reflects our obsession with a make-believe world. If the editor is guilty, drag him to the court but don't create an artificial feeling of 'hate for the man, sympathy for the woman'. It's a disgusting way of handling things.

Why a over-moralistic noise over the latest episode in a media house?

For outsiders, let the fact be clear. Media is not a place of saints. It is also being dominated by the same complicated human psychology which is marked by ambition, jealousy, competition, manipulation and what not. Victories and defeats are not uncommon in such cut-throat competition but what is tragic is that many a times, those who have lesser or little proximity to the power centres in the establishment face the wrath, irrespective of having committed any fault or not.

Men and women don't matter in such circumstances. There are people in this world who, despite working very honestly and diligently, suddenly found himself or herself out in the cold because he/she did not appease the power centres. On the other extreme, there are people who have continued to rise despite giving little hours to the professional work. Yes, people will say that this is how the world works today. The question is: Why then so much fuss about an alleged sexual assault in a media house and why is there so much focus on the fact that a woman was allegedly at the receiving end?

The media world, very similar to the political world, is run by power considerations where gender equation based on morality is not a very wise criterion to judge things. We don't yet know the conclusion of the latest media scandal but the sympathy? Well... it suits only the outsiders...