'CNN' reports trigger controversy in India

'CNN' reports trigger controversy in India

By John Zubrzycki

NEW DELHI (JP): India's normally feuding political parties
found a common cause recently when the launch of a 24-hour CNN
news channel, in partnership with India's state-owned network,
Doordarshan (DD), upset Indian sensitivities on cows and Kashmir.

A teaser depicting stray cattle blocking traffic in the
commercial capital, Bombay, followed later by a weather map
showing India's claim to Kashmir as part of Pakistan, touched off
a storm of protest and rekindled debate on uncontrolled entry of
satellite television in India.

The president of the right-wing opposition Bharatiya Janata
Party (BJP), Mr L K Advani, described the CNN-DD deal as a "sell-
out of the nation's interests".

"The indiscriminate opening up of the Indian economy to
multinationals has already compromised the economic sovereignty
of the country. Now such tie-ups with foreign channels, like CNN,
will enable them to control the human mind," Mr Advani said,
claiming that the distortion of Kashmir on the Indian map was an
"ominous pointer of the shape of things to come."

The US$1.5 million deal, signed on June 30, has been condemned
by the other main opposition parties, including the Communist
Party of India (Marxist) and the Janata Dal, as well as by
sections of the ruling Congress Party.

Although CNN vice president, Peter Vesey, apologized for not
taking into account Indian sensitivities, critics lashed out at
the network for reinforcing cliched images of India, where cows
are considered sacred by Hindus.

The CNN gaffe may make other international broadcasters think
twice about their approach to the rapidly expanding Indian
market. The number of satellite stations available to Indian
viewers has jumped dramatically over the past few years as local
and foreign broadcasters try to plug into growing spending power
of India's consumer conscious middle class.

With 75,000 cable operators, linking 10 million households,
each with an average of six viewers, India's existing satellite
television audience is a massive 60 million people, mainly in the
middle income bracket.

A recent study predicts an increase in TV-owning households,
over the next five years, from the present 50 million homes, to
82 million, with more than half connected to cable. At the same
time the number of stations is expected to rise to 70.

The huge market has not escaped the notice of large
international media players, such as Mr Rupert Murdoch's News
Corporation, which owns 50 percent of Zee TV, the most successful
of the new crop of local satellite stations, and has the same
stake in two other channels--El TV and a Hindi pay-TV movie
channel.

Dozens of Indian companies have announced plans to set up
their own stations, production houses and marketing firms to cash
in on India's booming entertainment business.

To the surprise of many of its critics, DD has met the
satellite challenge head on with new channels and a major
programming revamp, while retaining the lion's share of
advertising revenue. It has even launched its own satellite
station targeted at Indian communities in other parts of Asia.

With a coverage of 85 percent of India and an estimated
viewership of 260 million, DD maintained the advantage of being
the only broadcaster allowed to uplink its signal from Indian
soil--a privilege now shared by CNN.

Other private satellite channels must export their programs on
videotape and uplink them from as far away as Russia before they
can be beamed back into India.

That DD has allowed CNN to uplink from India, let alone enter
into a rebroadcasting agreement with the Atlanta-based network,
represents an extraordinary turn around. Only a few years ago DD
refused to acknowledge that its stodgy state-controlled
programming was no match for the likes of MTV.

Under the agreement CNN becomes the first international
broadcaster to use India's Insat 2B satellite. More
significantly, CNN will offer at least one hour a day of news and
current affairs for airing on DD's terrestrial channels, giving
it a penetration undreamed of by other satellite networks.

Some analysts believe the deal was rushed through Parliament
to punish the Rupert Murdoch-owned Star TV Network for
broadcasting a chat-show in which one of the guests called
Mahatma Gandhi a "bastard bania". The derogatory remark,
referring to the Mahatma's trader caste, forced the producers of
the "Nikki Tonight" show to axe the program.

Following the incident, the government warned it might
prohibit cable operators from relaying Star's signal and punish
Indian companies advertising on the network.

Another of the Star Network's channels, BBC World Service, ran
into trouble recently when it mixed footage of the fighting in
Chechnya with its coverage of the separatist movement in Kashmir.

With a viewership of around 14 million households, India is
Star TV's most profitable source of advertising revenue,
generating approximately $12 million a year. The CNN-DD deal is
expected to erode Star's share of this fast-growing market.

The controversies surrounding CNN and Star underline the
vulnerability of satellite broadcasters to local pressure despite
the transnational nature of the medium. Last year, China forced
Star to axe BBC World Service TV after it screened a
controversial program on the sex life of Mao Tse Tung. Malaysia
tried to do the same when the BBC broadcasted a program on
alleged corruption in Prime Minister Mahathir Mohammad's
government.

Although CNN's berth on insat seems secure, other
international broadcasters will have to tread warily now as their
footprints extend over one of Asia's most enticing markets.