Atanu Dey on India's Development » The Slimes of India

The Times of India is a Porn Rag

Atanu Dey — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 07:47:59 +0000

I am not against porn. It has its place but that place is not in the pages of newspaper that pretends to be a national newspaper. It’s a dismal situation. Here’s a picture compiled by someone — graphically illustrating the fact that the Times of India peddles porn. They have been in that business for a long time. I wrote about it in June 2004 — Peddling Pornography. See also this April 2004 post about the Slimes of India.

Comic Relief: Reading the Times of India

Atanu Dey — Sun, 09 May 2010 07:25:19 +0000

In the face of all that is grim and distressing, there’s always the relief of reading the TOI — affectionately referred to by its admirers as TOI-let paper or the Slimes of India. This hot Summer Sunday morning was brightened by an article, “The Benefits of Surya Namaskar.”

It starts off with a bang:

The simple Surya Namaskar that has been practiced in India for years has recently found a whole lot of takers.

Practiced for years? You don’t say! Wow!! And “a whole lot of takers?” As in a couple of hundred?

The idiots don’t understand the distinction between centuries and years. They may as well have written, “. . . has been practiced for hours and weeks . . .” Silly morons.

Then the article goes on to make claims it is a cure-all: it keeps you physically fit, mentally fit, emotionally fit; it stimulates the cardiovascular system, the digestive system, and the nervous system; it helps the “endocrinal glands like the thyroid, parathyroid and pituitary glands, function normally”; gives peace of mind and improves concentration.

OK, but I want to ask, does it also help you defy gravity?

The article certainly defied common sense. It ends with “If you have trouble sleeping at night, the Surya Namaskar will help you fall asleep without using any external stimulants.”

Oh now I get it. Like all normal people, I have been taking stimulants to help me go to sleep. I cannot do without a couple of double cappuccino espressos and a few cans of Jolt to quickly put me to sleep.

Thanks to Surya Namaskar, I can avoid the stimulants — because Surya Namaskar is the perfect substitute for stimulants and will gently ease me into sleep.

OK, enough of the silliness. The fact is that the paper is a rag. One commenter on that article notes the saving grace of that article: “At last one article in life and style that doesn’t stink of porn.”

No pr0n in the TOI? Someone at the editorial desk must have been sleeping on the job.

Peddling Pornography

atanu — Sat, 26 Jun 2004 03:06:17 +0000

Caught a glimpse of the front page of The Times of India while commuting to work this morning. I noticed that they are now peddling pornography to increase their circulation. No wonder they are referred to by some as The Slimes of India. The top left hand corner of the front page declares in bold print:

Internet Hawker Puts Brittney Sex Video Up For Sale

A few weeks ago it was confirmed that the newspaper has paid editorial-page content that masquerades as honest reporting. I wonder how much they get paid for peddling pornography on the front page.

{See also India’s Primary Concern.}

India’s primary concerns

atanu — Sat, 10 Apr 2004 06:04:07 +0000

The ~~Slimes~~ Times of India is a widely read English newspaper in India. It perhaps reflects the concerns, the choices, the culture, and the mindset of those whom I refer to as the residents of India (as opposed to the residents of Bharat, the larger non-English speaking rural population). The print edition of the paper lands on my desk every morning.

I read, like many others I suspect, top to bottom and left to right. Therefore the first thing that I see in the newspaper is the top left-hand corner. From the bunch of piled up newspapers, here is what I see on the top left-hand corner of the front page:

American beauty: Teens use Botox to beat prom nightmare
Split wide open: Cruise and Cruz bury their romance
Britney Spears: raunchy show rocks Toronto
“Lovesick” Bob Dylan stars with model Adriana Lima in lingerie ad
Toxic Britney Spears: Inspiring porn movie, starring a look-alike
J-Lo and new beau beat hasty retreat on spotting Affleck

Let me repeat that — it is The Times of India. And it is on the front page top left-hand corner every single day, the place that is reserved for the most important bit of the day.

India is shining? I think it is really poor.

{See also Peddling Pornography.}