An anonymous tipster sent in a news story which has haunted me since I read it. Sick, sick, sick:
A group of television journalists gave a man matches and diesel to help him commit suicide in order to get dramatic footage which was later broadcast on the news, police said on Thursday.
The man died from severe burns to his body in hospital in Gaya town of Bihar on August 15, Independence Day.
These people aren’t journalists, they are criminals.
Footage of the man, screaming and writhing in pain as he ran with his back on fire, was aired on several television channels. Police identified the man as Manoj Mishra.
“We have seized footage clearly showing a group of journalists handing over matches and some inflammable substance — which we later verified to be diesel — to the victim,” acting Gaya police chief P.K. Sinha told Reuters by telephone.
It’s really depressing that people could be this callous, this heartless. Taking advantage of someone troubled, for what? Sensational footage?
Mishra, who worked as a delivery man, was upset over what he said was a large sum of money owed to him by a state-run dairy farm whose milk he transported to customers, police said.
They handed him a flammable substance and matches, filmed this atrocity and then…
The TV crews left the scene without aiding Mishra who suffered burns to over 70 percent of his body, Sinha said.
Why would such cold-blooded bastards do this in the first place?
There has been an explosion of private TV news channels in recent years in India, each competing aggressively for exclusive stories and dramatic footage.
These channels often show graphic footage of victims of bomb blasts and other violence as well as partly blurred pictures of sex acts while exposing scandals as part of sting operations.
this is one of the most disturbing things i have ever read… i can’t believe this. journalism has gone to the deepest depths of the abyss.
The journalists are sub-human monsters but Mishra is an idiot too. I don’t understand this penchant for people in India to immolate themselves as a statement or protest (or suicide). As for the journalists, they displayed the disregard and low value for human life that I suspect a significant chunk of the Indian population shares.
I don’t understand it, either.
i don’t think NORMAL human beings can understand this realm of thought… it’s just absolutely disgusting..with no value for human life…and more value for ratings/readership/etc…
it’s pathetic at times to watch, see, and hear what the human race has come to…. (shuddering)…
this ‘reality tv’ bullshit has gone a bit too far… and unfortunatley it still has an audience..
this is somewhat like that show/video ‘faces of death’ that i heard about while in high school, but never watched…
Desperation! A lady from my village in Kerala (who even worked at my appachen’s house for a while) killed herself like this after having an argument with her son.
Well, the journalists are beastly, true.
But the man himself isn’t. I disagree with this idea that self-immolation is uniquely unspeakable.
My view is that self-slaughter (by whatever means) is within the realm of existential choice. It is one of the difficult things people do, as is the slaughter of others, either of one’s own volition (murder) or under the aegis of the state (war).
The world’s full of unspeakable things.
Suicide is a cry for attention. Immolating himself makes perfect sense for a suicidee. No one can ignore a freakin burning man running down the street!!!
I just returned from India a couple of days back and it is disturbingly true that the TV media really sucks ass. I miss the good ol’ NDTV or the old Star News (the Pranoy Roy channels)… ever since NDTV broke up news sucks in India.
I watched it on TV couple of days back and at that point of time I thought it was unusual to have cameramen recording some Tom Dick and Harry protesting. But never did I imagine that they actively contributed in the heinous act. These days the sensational headlines and the news tickers on TV in India would even put Foxnews to shame.
Its called poverty and not just any poverty, but 3rd world poverty. If you have to kill someone to get ahead in your profession just to make a couple extra bucks then this is what hapens.
What are you equating third world poverty to the suicide or the act of the journalists giving the matches and diesel? What is your line of reasoning? These things happen – maybe not to this extreme in first world countries regardless of wealth.
I don’t understand this penchant for people in India to immolate themselves as a statement or protest (or suicide).
I am not at all condoning it for a minute. But it is commonly used in Asian cultures – some well known examples are in Vietnam in 1950s-60s. Even Central Asia.
Could have some roots in dharmic religions, and cultures within, and spread in Asia through Buddhism. An excerpt:
Its just not self immolation. Burning other people alive is also pretty popular in that part of the world.
A group of television journalists gave a man matches and diesel to help him commit suicide in order to get dramatic footage which was later broadcast on the news, police said on Thursday
Wow. this is truly shocking in it’s barbarity. Journalists encouraging a man to die for some news/photography. Will there be justice? But then, I have been influenced by western mores. I do not know how the locals are taking this.
Burning other people alive is also pretty popular in that part of the world.
Source please.
The concept of ‘infotainment’ seems to have come to a full circle. I hope the goverment jails the bastards and revokes the licenses of whichever muck-raking TV station they work for.
Please stop trying to blame Buddhism for this ‘kay? Think Hindu Sati, that’s probably where it came from.
Please stop trying to blame Buddhism for this ‘kay? Think Hindu Sati, that’s probably where it came from.
Omfg. These “people” helped a man kill himself to boost their own images and all you can think about is saving face for your religion. For 2 seconds, just 2 seconds, try to push aside your own religious (not philosophical) biases and concerns and recognize this as an issue of humanity. (I know this is a South Asian blog and that’s inherently hard for some) Before anyone is a member of any religion, race or caste, he/she is a human being. Please, please, try to think of it this way.
I’m tired of people missing the mo’fuckin’ forest for the mo’fuckin’ trees.
This is another one of those attempts at Sensationalism rather than Journalism …
Could anyone point out the channels to which these journalists belonged/ sold the story?
There was another incident a few months back where a man was shown puttin kerosene on himself and then lighting himself up, these so called 24hrs news channel kept this scene on the loop. Nobody came to his rescue and kind of just stood on the outside making sure they had a good angle to capture this nonsense. Also, how about the guy from Gujurat burning himself in protest of Fanaa, a movie. Wonder who egged him on??
I’d check the news to see if it was true first. Also what are the names of the reporters? So much ‘news’ is planted depending on your agenda. See the current articles re Pakistan: usually PR offices pay prominent people to say/write something. I’d really do a long term financial check on people who write such articles. Like the NY reporter who could NOT see terrorists in Kashmir even when the US finally could. Some PR offices are well funded and quite happy to give a scholarship to your child to an Ivy University or some equivalent untraceable goodie if you are in an influential position. How I ache for true, useful news!