{"id":7316,"date":"2017-12-23T14:10:33","date_gmt":"2017-12-23T08:40:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/?p=7316"},"modified":"2017-12-23T14:10:33","modified_gmt":"2017-12-23T08:40:33","slug":"journalism-news-minutes-coverage-paresh-mesta-incident","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/journalism-news-minutes-coverage-paresh-mesta-incident\/","title":{"rendered":"Journalism: The News Minute&#8217;s coverage of Paresh Mesta incident"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Communal violence erupted in Uttara Kanada district of Karnataka in the first week of December after the body of Paresh Mesta was found floating on a lake in Honnavar town of the district. The region had been volatile for a week following clashes between members of two communities. Mesta&#8217;s body was recovered on December 8. BJP MP from Karnataka Shobha Karandlaje put out a statement the next day alleging Mesta had been brutally murdered by &#8216;jehadi elements&#8217; and accusing the police of a cover up.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet tw-align-center\" data-lang=\"en\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">Congress support to PFI jihadis even when hindu karyakartas like Paresh Mesta are being hacked &amp; burnt to death has given these goons the audacity to freely function w\/o the fear of law and order.This will continue till Cong n <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/siddaramaiah?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@siddaramaiah<\/a> are at the helm.<\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Shobha Karandlaje (@ShobhaBJP) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ShobhaBJP\/status\/939808678915403781?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">December 10, 2017<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>India Today gave prominent coverage to this news the very next day and reiterated the BJP MP&#8217;s claim, putting out gory details of how Mesta had been subjected to &#8216;torture&#8217;.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2017\/12\/Selection_611.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"407\" height=\"511\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-7345\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2017\/12\/Selection_611.jpg 407w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2017\/12\/Selection_611-239x300.jpg 239w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2017\/12\/Selection_611-335x420.jpg 335w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 407px) 100vw, 407px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>India Today did not bother to even verify the information and carried a detailed report on the basis of a tweet by a member of the ruling party. A sensitive issue was sensationalised by spreading false and provocative information. The channel&#8217;s conduct is representative of the tendency of mainstream media to resort to &#8216;impactful&#8217; news, regardless of accuracy. India Today later issued a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailyo.in\/voices\/paresh-mesta-murder-karnataka-video-india-today-shiv-aroor-siddaramaiah-bjp\/story\/1\/21141.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">clarification<\/a> in an article written by its anchor Shiv Aroor which was met with a stinging <a href=\"https:\/\/prempanicker.wordpress.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">rebuttal<\/a> by journalist Prem Panicker. Alt News had <a href=\"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/paresh-mesta-death-rumour-mongering-brutality-sparks-tension-karnataka-police-issues-stern-warning\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">reported<\/a> how attempts were being made to spread rumours of Mesta&#8217;s death and the Karnataka police had issued a strict warning.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-7102\" src=\"http:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2017\/12\/gauravsawantmesta.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"720\" height=\"576\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2017\/12\/gauravsawantmesta.jpg 720w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2017\/12\/gauravsawantmesta-300x240.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2017\/12\/gauravsawantmesta-696x557.jpg 696w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2017\/12\/gauravsawantmesta-525x420.jpg 525w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thenewsminute.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The News Minute<\/a>\u00a0is one media organisation that stood out with its accurate and detailed coverage of the incident. The portal reported the news of Paresh Mesta&#8217;s death with utmost responsibility. The News Minute gave a detailed account of the communal violence in Uttara Kanada district, carrying daily reports on the same. When rumours of Paresh Mesta&#8217;s brutalisation were circulating on social media following the BJP MP&#8217;s allegation, The News Minute was among the first to publish an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thenewsminute.com\/article\/hindu-youth-uttara-kannada-allegedly-tortured-death-district-erupts-protest-72967\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">article<\/a> which put out the response given by the Forensic Sciences Department which rubbished the rumours of torture.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-7332\" src=\"http:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2017\/12\/mestanewsminute2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"926\" height=\"753\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2017\/12\/mestanewsminute2.png 926w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2017\/12\/mestanewsminute2-300x244.png 300w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2017\/12\/mestanewsminute2-768x625.png 768w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2017\/12\/mestanewsminute2-696x566.png 696w, https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2017\/12\/mestanewsminute2-516x420.png 516w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 926px) 100vw, 926px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Following the outbreak of violence in Uttara Kanada, The News Minute did a series of articles on the situation as it developed over the next few days.<\/p>\n<p>On <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thenewsminute.com\/article\/tension-karnataka-s-honnavar-after-missing-hindu-activist-s-body-found-lake-72905\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">December 9<\/a>, The News Minute reported on Mesta&#8217;s body being found in a lake in Honnavar town.<\/p>\n<p>On<a href=\"https:\/\/www.thenewsminute.com\/article\/hindu-youth-death-protests-intensify-uttara-kannada-top-cop-s-car-burnt-72981\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"> December 11<\/a>, the website reported that violence had engulfed the district after Hindutva outfits staged protests.<\/p>\n<p>The very same day, The News Minute published an important<a href=\"https:\/\/www.thenewsminute.com\/article\/hindu-youth-uttara-kannada-allegedly-tortured-death-district-erupts-protest-72967\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"> report<\/a> that laid to rest the rumours floating about Mesta&#8217;s alleged torture. The article detailed the response given by the Forensic Sciences Department which rubbished accusations of torture.<\/p>\n<p>The News Minute was incessant in its coverage of the unrest, with another story on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thenewsminute.com\/article\/stone-pelting-sirsi-uttara-kannada-tense-second-day-over-hindu-youths-death-73060\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">December 12<\/a> which reported on the raging violence in the region.<\/p>\n<p>The next day on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thenewsminute.com\/article\/uttara-kannada-violence-my-son-not-member-any-party-says-dead-teen-s-father-73071\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">December 13<\/a>, the website carried a report on the statement given by Paresh Mesta&#8217;s father that Mesta was not a member of any political party, as claimed by the BJP. The very same day, The News Minute also <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thenewsminute.com\/article\/paresh-mesta-death-karnataka-hands-over-case-cbi-73117\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">reported<\/a> that the case had been handed over by the Karnataka police to the CBI.<\/p>\n<p>The News Minute&#8217;s reportage was in stark contrast to the haste shown by India Today in broadcasting a story it did not deign to verify. At a time when eyeballs and click-baits determine the agenda for many mainstream news organisations, The News Minute&#8217;s responsible and detailed coverage of a sensitive issue is a silver lining.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Communal violence erupted in Uttara Kanada district of Karnataka in the first week of December after the body of Paresh Mesta was found floating on a lake in Honnavar town of the district. The region had been volatile for a week following clashes between members of two communities. Mesta&#8217;s body was recovered on December 8. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":33,"featured_media":7343,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[],"an_content_type":[],"coauthors":[132],"class_list":["post-7316","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"blocksy_meta":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2017\/12\/newsminute-fi.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7316","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/33"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7316"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7316\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7340,"href":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7316\/revisions\/7340"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7343"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7316"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7316"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7316"},{"taxonomy":"an_content_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/an_content_type?post=7316"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=7316"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}