Media Watch: The constantly falling bar
Slavoj Zizek narrates an interesting joke from the former German Democratic Republic. A worker gets a job all the way in Siberia. He is aware that any and all correspondence of his…
Media Watch: Unlikely avenues of free media
It’s a double-whammy that the Pakistani news media is facing these days. There is the financial crunch, which was predicted by many since long. And then, of course, there is the issue…
Media Watch: A new nadir everyday
He was never Pakistani journalism’s best foot forward, but Arif Hameed Bhatti’s most recent virality is because he has hit a new low. The clip of him interviewing one of the poor…
Media Watch: No subtlety in propaganda
From an economics point of view, India has had only two prime ministers, really. Jawaharlal Nehru and Narasimha Rao. From an exclusively political point of view (which, yes, spills over into economics)…
Book review: Encounters
Short stories are a labour of love. While urdu literature and consequently publication may have thrived on sometimes soul shaking, sometimes scandalous, and sometimes saucy afsanas, English has had it different. Nobody…
Media Watch: Defining ‘indecency’
Pemra‘ s directive to private television channels not to air “indecent content” was bound to be taken apart. By the conservatives, because this was a too-little-too-late, and by the liberals, because of…
Media Watch: Eat the rich
The Press Information Department’’s twitter handle ( @pid_gov ) is, in effect, the official twitter account of the Government of Pakistan. One wonders why, then, those managing the account feel the need…
Media Watch: At least he didn’t take out his gun
He’s on a roll, Faisal Vawda is. His spectacular fancy dress show at the Chinese consulate in Karachi after the terrorist attack there was barely out of the public’s memory that he…
Media Watch: ‘We were never at war with Eurasia’
In George Orwell’s chilling 1984, the totalitarian state of Oceania is in a state of perpetual war with either one of the two other, similarly fascist states called Eurasia and Eastasia. At…
Newsmakers 2018: Asghar Khan – Influential even in death
Pakistan’s first native Air Force Commander in Chief, Air Marshal Asghar Khan’s relevance did not wane in his lifetime, so how could it have waned after his passing? Even in 2018, Asghar…
Newsmakers 2018: Junoon – Blast from the past
There wasn’t any new music. In fact, the closest thing to ‘new music’ that ‘junoon’ has produced in recent times were Salman Ahmed’s ravenous attack on the band’s classic track ‘Sayonee’ in…
Newsmakers 2018: The two Mrs Khans
Reham Khan and Bushra Maneka. The former and current Mrs Khan. The almost first lady and the first lady. One, a modern Pakistani woman, the other a burka clad peerni. Going into…
Newsmakers 2018: Khadim Hussain Rizvi – Ghauris incoming
He seems to stir around winter time. In 2017, it was 20 days in November when Khadim Hussain Rizvi’s men held the capital hostage over the minor change in the parliamentary oath.…
Newsmakers 2018: Manzoor Pashteen
Manzoor Pashteen has been all over the place in 2018, but he hasn’t quite been in the news. When he led a 22 person march from Dera Ismail Khan towards the Pashtun…
Newsmakers 2018: Meesha Shafi – Pakistan’s #MeToo leader
The Me Too movement didn’t hit Pakistan until April last year. The global movement against sexual harassment and sexual assault took down giants including the likes of Harvey Weinstein and Kevin Spacey.…
Newsmakers 2018: Usman Buzdar – The Quiet one
He has been in the news this year, that’s for sure, but not for much of it. Because before he ascended to one of the most powerful jobs in the country, Sardar…
Newsmakers 2018: Justice Saqib Nisar – Blitzkrieg justice
Let’s cut to the chase with this one. We’ve never seen a Chief Justice like this. But as judges tend to do, he might just be setting a precedent, one for judicial…