“Shed a tear for all”
Through the years, Parsiana has earned the deserved respect of the discerning for its excellent reportage of relevant news. Its insightful coverage of all matters related to the Zarthoshti community has, perhaps, set the gold standard for penmanship and lofty journalism. By staying on the straight and narrow even when faced with financial challenges, it has proven that it is possible to carve out a niche for true journalism, without yielding to either the pressure of fear or allure of favor.
Your recent editorial ("Shed a tear for all,” Parsiana, September 7, 2014) highlighting the plight of the hapless Yazidis in the face of a relentless pogrom by the fanatical ISIS (Islamic State in Iraq and Syria) addressed one glaring shortcoming in your magazine thus far; namely a refusal to cover international stories of a more diverse nature. Well done!
This has caused me to urge you to also address another lacuna in your otherwise admirable repertoire. Parsiana seldom highlights issues of misconduct on the part of erring Zarthoshtis. On the rare occasion that it does, it is not done in a timely or comprehensive manner. For example, take the recent case of the once famous school in Bangalore which is headed by a Parsi. It was in this school that an innocent six-year-old was repeatedly raped by a member of the staff. The principal, the school and the police authorities were in a state of constant, and even defiant, denial for days after this. Relentless media coverage of this shocking and barbaric incident forced subsequent remedial measures.
After an interminable and unexplained delay, Parsiana finally covered this story ("Bangalore child rape case,” Events and Personalities, September 7, 2014). Although this story first broke in about July 2014, it took Parsiana over a month to bring it to the attention of its readers! Why? Moreover, the coverage given was very sketchy — and even cursory, at best!
Surely, Parsiana could have reported this story in a more timely, pro-active and exhaustive manner? This is particularly regrettable, given that it was all over the national media, making front-page news for most of the time.
It is only when we expose such stories in a timely, frank and forthright manner, and debate them openly through your revered pages that we will begin to set right the many malaises that beset our otherwise distinguished community. I trust that you will rise to the occasion and carry such stories more prominently, and promptly in the future. You will gladden me even more if you scoop these! All power to your sails!
MALCOLM R. PRINTER
malcolmrprinter@gmail.com
The editors reply:
Being a semimonthly with a limited amount of space, Parsiana does not give timely coverage to ongoing news stories that are extensively covered in the local and national media. Developments take place rapidly and unless there is some conclusive action such as an arrest or a final decision, it is not always practical to rehash cases that have been widely disseminated and already seen by all. Our energies are devoted more to the stories that are not generally written about but are pertinent to the community.