Comments on: India’s primary concerns

By: About the ISB Event — Part 2

About the ISB Event — Part 2 — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 12:56:13 +0000

[...] that the Times of India had run and which Mr Mishra had won. I don’t really hold the ToI in very high regard. Judging from the content and concerns of the ToI, I think that the majority of its readers must be [...]

By: Vinay

Vinay — Sat, 29 Jul 2006 06:58:47 +0000

Has anyone here noticed the completely biased editorials and reportage of the Slimes? It’s editors regularly spew venom on RSS/BJP while never criticizing even the most obvious follies/inaction of the Congress/Left. The Times group led by the Jain family is widely seen as a rather biased, leftist propoganda vehicle rather then a quality news-delivery instrument.

By: Atanu Dey on India’s Development » Peddling Pornography

Atanu Dey on India’s Development » Peddling Pornography — Sun, 19 Feb 2006 11:46:55 +0000

[...] g. I wonder how much they get paid for peddling pornography on the front page. {See also India’s Primary Concern.}

10 Comments to ‘Peddling Po [...]

By: JockInTheBox

JockInTheBox — Unknown, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

Jivha’s blog deservedly calls it the “Slimes of India”

By: Suhit Anantula

Suhit Anantula — Unknown, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

Yes. This is definately the Slimes of India.

And apart from this they have a utterly useless supplement everyday “Bombay Times” which carries more of the stuff you have highlighted.

And the newly announced “Zoom” entertainment channel by the Times group may just be the like “Boom” movie.

Suhit.

By: Reuben

Reuben — Unknown, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

Atanu,
There was a time when there used to be a difference between TOI’s main paper and its supplements (Padgaonkar era and earlier). Since then, the branding/marketing folks seem to have taken over, in an attempt to reduce what was once a fine newspaper to the absolute lowest common denominator (not very different from U.S. media, mind you).

The line dividing advertorials and news seems to have dissapeared, with the TOI stable carrying news on such astonishing developments as the Times group’s decision to launch some co-branded credit card. They do not seem to worry about what this does to their credibility as a news organisation.

In defence of the marketing folks though, the circulation of the paper has skyrocketed since they took control.

BTW, if you think the Bombay edition is bad, you need to read TOI Bangalore. There is no pretence even at drawing a line between the main newspaper and the Bangalore Times. Call it dumbing down, I guess.

By: Nandkumar Saravade

Nandkumar Saravade — Unknown, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

I was a loyal reader of Times of India, for the last 2-3 decades. Due to the blatant commercialisation of ToI, I had started relying on ‘Indian Express’ for serious news for the last few years, though continuing with ToI though for old times’ sake, if you pardon the pun. Last month, out of disgust at a particularly obnoxious item, I threw in the towel and rang up my vendor to switch to ‘Indian Express’ pronto.
The worrisome part, however, is that ToI has a large circulation and thus in a position to cause severe damage to the thinking faculties of a large number of young people, who presumably comprise bulk of its readership now. I hope the folks who run ToI realise this and turn the paper around.

By: Reuben

Reuben — Unknown, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

“The worrisome part, however, is that ToI has a large circulation and thus in a position to cause severe damage to the thinking faculties of a large number of young people, who presumably comprise bulk of its readership now. I hope the folks who run ToI realise this and turn the paper around.”

Nandkumar, the problem is that ToI is a business and like any other business, the bottomline matters. The marketing folks have proved conclusively that catering to the lowest common denominator is a best-seller. So, unless they begin to drastically lose readership, why should they turn the paper around?

If I am the marketing chap, my brief is to increase sales and revenue, not shape the minds of young India.

By: Suhit Anantula

Suhit Anantula — Unknown, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

Reuben:

From the Marketing point of view you are right. In Hyderabad Deccan Chronicle has the dubious distinction of the “LCD” brand. TOI did one step better. It lowered the LCD in Hyderabad and now DC and even The Hindu is trying hard to fight it.

They have succeeded like no one in terms of marketing but in the case of the Media Industry there is also something called responsibility.

TOI, managers and owners, can shape a generation of Indians on how they think. They have the “social responsibility” part built into their industry. And due to their misplaced emphasis on the “financial bottomline” they are forgetting the “social bottomline”.

Suhit.

By: praveen Shinde

praveen Shinde — Unknown, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

The TOI , I think may be using more than 1/3th space for advertisments.
Many times the international section is largely swallowed by advertisments of sizes of more than half the page.