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CNN IBN trying to ’steal’ my contributing blogger!



Just kidding…

If you live in India, you would have definitely heard (or seen) this recently launched news channel (with a difference! Sic…) CNN iBN. I have had my share of bad experiences with the ‘content developers’ from this channel and people seem to have issues with them stealing away reporters from rival channels including of course NDTV.

Now, the interesting part is that the web team of the same news channel is currently hounding one of my contributing blogger dudes. Thankfully, they are not asking him to exclusively write for them so they are kind of leaving him to continue Blogging for me. However, the stories, which I get to hear about their interactions, leave me in no doubt that their web team has serious issues related to common sense and sensibility.

From what I know, Blogging is all about freedom and if you do not have the module to let your bloggers Blog, stop contacting them and start working on getting the basics complete first. They would probably be more than happy to contribute if you make it easier for them to!

Update: Hmm… I lost my chance at getting the 15 minutes of fame by calling the concept of the CNN IBN dude as stupid. Now, my friend has probably suffered due to me blogging about him and how he was being contacted to blog for CNN IBN. Apparently, they are not prepared to handle ANY kind of criticism. Damn fools. They lost a brilliant blogger just because I said something about CNN IBN on MY Blog!

This entry was posted on Monday, February 27th, 2006 at 07:56 am and is filed under Amused, Fun, Technology. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed. Tags: , ,

Viewing 13 Comments

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    CNN- Chicken Noodle News...
    IBN--ummm I cant say anything.

    Everyone claims to be with a "difference"; even BJP was a party with a difference. Rajdeep Sardesai, who loves to call the RSS as khakhi nickerwallahs, must be definitely squirming at the way his "baby" has turned out to be...a FREAK.

    As for the content module...ahhh. Word Press isnt good for them. Open Source anyone? Thankfully Microsoft hasn't developed a serious rival to Word Press.
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    should i apply for a post in that company? they won't be able to match my current salary however. :( tough luck...
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    I have a personal feeling..seeing the media and the kind of crowd it caters too that having much IQ is a necessity.

    If you ahve an IQof around 20- you become a camera man...
    Less than 20, U d even become a better cameraman who swings the camera from side to side and cant hold it steady..specially in Tech shows...

    If u have IQ of 30- you'd become a reporter. So, you'd have "breaking news"...

    More than 30- You'd be a news reporter and the most visible face on TV...
    More than 40 and you'd be a news caster and even have a blog of your own.

    Sushubh, sorry. U dont belong to any of this category. You an definitely an overkill for such an organisation. I really doubt whether you can join "such a company". Salary wouldnt have been a bar. But it would be serious maladjustment problems with those people who haven't yet learnt to breathe in fresh air to their brains...

    Maybe, you'd just land up in a graveyard with zombies et al and having moth eaten brains from years and years of disuse.
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    well... that is the reason why i left my 'secure' job to venture into the unknown where their is probably no future for a lazy guy like me to be successful in the long run. but it's better on the mind and heart to do what i want to do without any idiots telling me to do what should be done... and as people have told me, it works well.
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    Independence is important. I value it more than anything else. Indeed, I hate taking orders. When I was working during those graveyard shifts and had to go through performance appraisals, that was the most irritating time I faced. Instead of doing something constructive, we were forced to go through the rigmorale.

    Independence is good. You become aware of your own responsibilities...
    Though on the flip side, there aren't many who would be willing to stick out their necks.
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    if the issue is independence I am happy am independent.
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    i posted a reply on the broadbandforum and a comment on the broadbandblog but looks like its gone for moderation coz it has a link :-) you should "stay on topic", separate your need for media-bashing from the need to bring awareness of this broadband hassle to the mass audience:

    (ps: yes, i do think these tv channels like CNBC, CNN/IBN, Headlines Today, Times Now, NDTV etc are just second-class tv-tabloids overall compared to the real-deal CNN, BBC), but some of their shows, tech show, connekt, gadget guru etc, do have some good spots on them:

    ------------------------------

    instead of people haphazardly contacting these people willy-nilly, wouldn’t it be neater if you gather/organise the message and send it to the media people you are in contact with? let them review the scenario and think about how they want to present it on TV…

    it will be a massive win for the consumer (you n me) if this whole ‘broadband starvation’ topic gets mainstream (common man) awareness :-)

    it doesn’t have to be a big splash, like some shocking expose or anything… let it at least start off somewhere, maybe a small item on one of the tech shows (Connekt on IBN, Tech Show on CNBC, Gadget Guru or NDTV, then there’s headlines today) who knows if they decide to do a “themes” or series, call it “Broadband India”, where every week they pick a subtopic to discuss.

    i’ll be so happy if this topic starts to gradually come up on say CNBC or their other CNN/IBN channel :-)
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    (oops, a clarification) i think CNBC and NDTV are not too bad, CNN/IBN and HeadlinesToday are just freakin' tabloid-ish (sensationalism). Times Now - i havent been watching too much (i think its new , isnt it?)
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    ha! nice Chicken Noodle News. and that too just when you thought things couldn't get any worse than NDTV with Sardesai, along comes this news channel with [adjective deleted] Sardesai that combines the worst of CNN and the very worst of NDTV. how worse can it get?...
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    the latest news channel cnn-ibn led by rajdeep sardesai is simply fantastic.
    they are introducing new concepts which are really eye catching and intersting.
    but the jealousy shown by ndtv is clearly evident. havent u guys noticed that whatever cnn ibn shows ..immediately u can see the same concept in ndtv. looks like prannoy roy is scared that cnn ibn will become the best news channel in few months and ndtv will be left nowhere.
    ndtv's only good shoe-the big fight has also become useless after the boting vikram chandra has taken sardesai's place....
    cnn ibn is the ultimate news channel..wait a go-sardesai!!!!!!

    full form of ndtv - nonsense, demiening, tormenting visuals
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    Look what I Found: Good Bad or Ugly?

    The Night Reporters.......!!!
    -By George Koshy (CNN-IBN)


    For someone, comparatively new in journalism and also fresh from a print background just the idea of a grave-yard shift gave me the jitters. the first question that apparently hits you is how to keep track of any news when calling up your sources at this insane hour could very well be risky enough to lose them.


    One thing you make sure is to dig up all the music cd's and books that you may have wanted to read for a long time but never really could find the time....what better time than,when you are on the night shift. Just the time, to catch up on all of these.


    Someone suggests calling up the control room and keeping a track on things...but two nights down the line and you realize there are more things happening on other channels than anything the bored sleepy cop on the graveyard shift would ever mumble to you between animated yawns.


    And then you happen to talk to a reporter from another channel...and this nice soul promises to alert you to anything he comes to know...Quite a relief I must say...just to know that you are not on it alone....and then finally on the fourth night you get an sms...a fire somewhere.....you are completely woken up from the mild slumber that creeps in from doing nothing...


    You wake up everyone else...the logistics, the cameraman, the driver...and everyone else you find sleeping around...just to put up an air of urgency...and emergency...and most of all a plain attempt at showing off that...hey dude...I finally get a chance at some action. You rush to the car....and between frantic calls to the reporter who gave you the news, you remind your driver to drive faster...sooner and also remind him that he's now driving for a news channel and not for some saab who's anyways bored of getting back home after a party.


    You reach the spot and the first thing that hits you is the plethora of cars from other channels that are also parked there and a few, following you through the same narrow lane...and lucky you, the incident is a mild/minor one to really report anything...A final attempt(considering you were the last one to reach the spot) to get the administration heads to give you a bite on the issue.... and then you start chating with the other reporters...A discovery in the making for you..... this new community........the community of Night Reporters


    A pleasant bunch in themselves......after the initial ice-breaking...the focus is then shifts to where to go from there.....one suggests the "usual place" the other suggests a place he's newly discovered...another suggests some really cool place to eat. And finally the destination chosen on consensus.....The fleet of cars now move to the decided destination. This time around....the Sea Face at Worli.


    It's quite a party with some having brought their "dabbas" from home and with the chaiwallah on the cycle, making a decent buck. It's quite a nice experience......jokes.....experiences and the like do the rounds. On-camera guffaws etc...the clichés.....common industry talks.........all start doing the rounds...and then comes a whistle.....it's the the cop on his mid-night beat.


    Out to make a quick buck from this "mixed group of college students making a ruckus on the sea-face", the havildar hits the ground with his 'lathi' and comes rushing, yelling for everyone to clear the place...and then all of a sudden his heart misses a beat....as he notices from the corner of his eyes, the cars parked next to the jolly group...he gives them a second look...this time over....a close one......and he notices the "PRESS" stickers with the company logos on all of them


    "Ha sagle media walle aahe" (These are all people from the media) his partner mumbles to him...and then in a manner that could put a school kid caught stealing a cookie...to shame, the cop does a complete turnaround and smiles at the group....comes over, inspects the food being devoured upon......and in the most innocent voice asks, "kai kartoye..??? Jevan challalele aahe kaai?" (What are you doing..?? Eating?). And this sudden softness, only because he sees that we are a group of journalists.


    A couple of chais down and someone suddenly reminds us of the silent sounds of hunger creeping in our tummies...and the next venue....DADAR Railway station......and a couple of newer discoveries....bun maska.....midnight pav bhaji or bhurji pav....and the best of them all....succulent Chocolate chai...(ever heard of that anyone...????)


    Fed and content....and with a promise to call and be alerted incase any news breaks in the next few hours before dawn, the late night party breaks.....and you return back to office.......content and relieved by the thought that there are more eyes out there with you....hunting for news....a group you simply call the "Night Reporters"
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    Rajdeep Sirdesai- a man who thinks sun actually comes out of Aamir Khan's backside. The interview he had with Khan and resulting publicity he gave for considerable number of days looked as if Aamir was his idol god. This was a time when fanna was banned in Gujarat during the support Aamir gave to Medha Patkar regarding Narmada water going to Gujarat and other states. Patkar has always been against water reaching Gujarat and the issue of settlements for those affected only came afterwwards. It is this person Medha that Aamir was supporting. It is very surprising to see that a respected organisation like CNN being affilited with 3pence outfit like ibn.
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    The mud slinging is almost funny.....

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