The official autobiography of Vinod Mehta, currently the editor of the weekly magazine Outlook, which was started to take on the monopoly of India Today.
An excellent guide for journalists, those interested in media. It indicates how the government of the day irrespective of the ruling party will censor free press in india, ensure that there is no unfavorable coverage of the government and officials who matter. The author provides a glimpse of his life, right from his family migrating from Pakistan to Lucknow in India , working and living in England, Mumbai and Delhi.

He has started or worked with a number of periodicals including newspapers, magazines such as Debonair, Indian Post, Independent, Pioneer, often resigning or being sacked because of his disagreement with the proprietor over the content of the periodical. The business interests of the proprietor have often been adversely affected due to the negative coverage, with nationwide raids for harassing the business owner.

The editor will realize that negative coverage of a large business group like Tata or Reliance can adversely affect the financial performance of the magazine or newspaper, as these groups will ensure that the media house does not get any advertising, essential for survival. Even a small negative story like worms in cadbury chocolates are not covered in the media due to the clout which cadbury has with the media in india. Powerful people in India are extremely sensitive to even the smallest negative stories and take it personally.

Often the editor will have to make the uneviable choice of only carrying positive stories which are boring and adversely affect the circulation, or sensational negative stories, which often help increase the circulation of the magazine/newspaper and wide receive publicity . However, the magazine as well as the proprietor will often be punished for the negative stories. Thus though Outlook has excellent content, it has comparatively fewer advertisement compared to other less honest magazines,

Author : Vinod Mehta