Kashmir Media In Crisis
The space for ethical and professional reporting is being rapidly undermined by the rise of social media pages masquerading as media organisations. Many of these pages started as memes or entertainment platforms. Khalid Bashir Gura explores the growing dominance of self-styled social media journalists in Kashmir and the subsequent erosion of professional journalism ethics.
On July 7, 2025, as Srinagar witnessed long-overdue rains, the dichotomy of media reporting in Kashmir was more palpable than the difference in temperatures.
With parts of Srinagar waterlogged, the mainstream media reporters became conspicuously absent, only to be replaced by self-styled social media anchors claiming to be journalists. They ended up highlighting people’s problems.
However, while highlighting people’s issues is part of journalism, the reportage of these social media anchors, on a daily basis, has been breaching norms and ethics of journalism at the altar of garnering views, likes and shares.
Herd Mentality
On the same day as the rains, Sahil Sofi, a resident of Shehar-e-Khass area of Srinagar, was glued to one of his social media platforms where he was watching an emotionally charged video of one such social media anchor who has over a million followers now.
Sofi dedicatedly listened as the self-styled journalist was emotionally appealing to viewers like him to like, share and comment on the video as much as possible.
The details of the video were startling and depicted the level to which journalistic ethics have fallen in the region. The self-styled journalist revealed the registration number of a motorcycle involved in an accident. He didn’t stop there. He explained the gruesome details and broadcasted live the graphic images of the accident, which he said were necessary details for the family of the victim to understand as to how it happened.
However, for the followers of this self-declared journalist, he is famous, and people trust his “news” updates.
“Even my parents follow him and often talk about what he reports. He keeps it relevant, and his updates are quick and relatable,” a young female follower said.
According to her, these social media page operators are “sincere” with the ability to uncover hidden “truths”.
“They give voice to the voiceless.”
Abdullah, an undergraduate student, who wished to be identified by his second name, said, “These people are easy to access. Irrespective of the ethics, some of the videos uploaded address people’s basic problems or give vent to their pent-up emotions. The majority of people don’t consider the ethical aspect of journalism.”
However, Abdullah, while recognising these self-styled journalists, is also confused about how they are different from professional news reporters.
“When one watches some international platforms on television or social media, their standard is better in terms of content and presentation,” Abdullah said.
“How can a journalist be biased and vulgar? Irrespective of one’s religious association, ideology or beliefs, as a journalist isn’t one supposed to be neutral?” he asked.
He said mainstream news organisations have “degraded” themselves and are following the “viral” trend culture.
Deplorable Cases
In April 2024, a boat ferrying school children capsized in the river Jhelum following incessant rains. Reporters of mainstream media, along with these self-styled reporters, rushed to the site. Both groups barged into houses of grieving families, asking them questions that made them wail and cry.
Some Facebook page anchors didn’t leave the spot till they broadcasted live their tears and their consoling exercises.
Interestingly, some of these Facebook anchors have multiple criminal cases registered against them.
In another case, a doctor faced the music at the hands of these unprofessional self-styled journalists. His reputation was tarnished through a botched-up story by one Facebook page anchor, who didn’t even seek his version of the story.
Dr Rassieq Aslam, a senior resident, said that he has witnessed multiple cases where these self-styled journalists put doctors up for public wrath through their biased commentary.
“They start the media trial. There is already so much negativity about doctors. Sometimes this kind of irrational reporting even hampers the decision-making of doctors,” he said.
“The line of treatment for the patient may get impacted in some cases.”
A group of journalists, while seconding Dr Aslam, said that these social media pages report about events, people and issues in a very biased manner. “Till the other side of the story gets space, the damage is already done.”
A senior Kashmir-based journalist, who wished anonymity, said a few years ago, a video of a so-called reporter barging into the Covid-19 isolation ward had surfaced in which he coerced doctors and patients to talk on camera.
“A reporter with a gun-mike and a smartphone was going ward to ward without even wearing a PPE kit and making fun of doctors,” the journalist said.
“It brought collective embarrassment to the community.”
In another case from earlier this year, a mentally challenged man had built a Kaabah-like structure for his followers in a remote hamlet of Waripora.
The site was soon engulfed by scores of these masquerading journalists who turned the mentally challenged man into dinner-time discourse for Kashmir society.
Following hue and cry, the administration woke up and demolished the structure, but the bizarre questions of these masquerading folks continued. They soon swooped in on the family, neighbours and followers of this mentally challenged man. They ended up cyclically replaying some words that the mentally challenged man was incoherently narrating, leading to it becoming a popular meme in Kashmir society. However, the same week, a local trucker was allegedly killed by government forces. These self-appointed reporters conspicuously choose to turn a blind eye to the whole episode.
In February 2019, a Facebook page duped a gullible audience. He uploaded a picture of an old lady from Srinagar claiming that she had been shot six times and needed charity. He shared the bank account details as well. The disturbing image made people re-share it, without cross-checking the authenticity of the case.
However, upon investigation by a few professional news outlets, a contrary picture emerged. The lady in the picture, despite being old, had never appealed for charity as she had been earning on her own.
A senior journalist said, “These reporters violate basic norms of reporting like consent for video, photo, suicide, murder, crime, disasters, accidents or breaking any news.”
A New Identity
Unlike former conventional journalists, who believe this burgeoning breed has brought disrepute to the profession, these self-styled reporters often play multifaceted roles.
With most of them without a journalism degree, they masquerade as passionate reporters, activists, investigative journalists, and advertisers to increase their following and gain access to power corridors.
A group of accredited journalists said, “This is the new reality and definition of journalism in Kashmir. This is how people perceive journalists these days. It is embarrassing.”
As per them, sometimes officials are shocked to learn that serious journalism and serious journalists, who ask uncomfortable questions, still exist.
“Now journalists are not approached for redressing issues pertaining to society but to crowd-fund,” they said.
A senior journalist recalled facing frequent remarks stating, “You (journalists) all are thieves.”
Comical Evolution
In Kashmir, a politically sensitive and complex place, while credible journalism is gasping for breath, the unprofessional social media pages are being let to usurp the vacuum being created. Most of these page owners do not have any official address.
Many of these so-called media houses started as meme pages or entertainment platforms. Post 2019, various meme pages reinvented themselves to turn into “media” houses.
Journalists On New Media
One needs to assess what the criteria are to be a journalist. Is a microphone and a phone the criterion to be a journalist? Are there any checks and balances? Does one need a journalism degree or training?
Many journalists and news media platforms operate independently and do critical news stories with the help of social media platforms.
While mainstream media is finding it difficult to stay afloat, most of these Facebook page handlers are enjoying lavish lifestyles and state awards. Also, unlike professional journalists, these Facebook page operators face no editorial oversight, no legal responsibility and no ethical accountability.
A senior journalist, who has worked with international platforms, said: “The ugly practice of sensationalism, click bait, content creation, social media influencing, shouting on top of your lungs, repeating the parroted lines, mispronouncing words, romanticising bureaucracy, acting as amanuensis of the powerful, not being able to form a coherent sentence in any language is —not journalism.”
“Your ability to critically analyse what’s happening and what’s going to happen is journalism,” he said.
“Some people have been parachuted by different stakeholders to push their narratives. The saturation is so high that no one knows who they are working for. Nobody has any idea which channels or media organisations they are working for.”
He said a journalist’s investigation, insightful analysis, and objective commentary with data hold power to account and make it uncomfortable.
“Your storytelling should be people-centric,” he said.
He, however, recalls instances of fights between the journalists of his era who used to fight over the sharing of money distributed by different government “agencies”. “This degraded the integrity of the profession.”
Yawar Hussain, a freelance journalist, opines that the rise of social media around the globe has changed journalism for the better as well as worse.
“In third world regions, like Kashmir, while technology has led to news being disseminated to and from remotest areas, it has also led to unprofessionalism creeping in,” Hussain said. He said professional journalism isn’t sensationalism-driven. “It isn’t confined to interviewing people. It focuses on adding that information to the societal discourse which isn’t already available.”
“A professional news story adds information that the people associated don’t want to be published,” Hussain said.
Umar Mukthar, another journalist, said that new media across the globe has been dominated by professionals, while in Kashmir it is populated by non-professionals.
A journalist working with a national media outlet opines that since high-speed internet became cheaply available, content creation for social media to get traffic has become the norm. “It has become a nuisance and an epidemic.”
A senior journalist with more than three decades of experience said that irrespective of the gravity of the situation, the content now is being dramatised by amalgamating music and emotions. “It is biased reporting without adhering to the basic principles of journalism like accuracy, verification and a balanced approach.”
“One cannot force someone to speak or shove a microphone into their face. In recent elections, only two people gave consent to talk to us out of two dozen we approached.”
He said back in the day, he had to go through multiple hierarchies in the newsroom.
“When I was a cub reporter, there were multiple checks in place before it was disseminated to the masses.”
A senior media educator said that there are good untrained reporters—if they can be called that—and bad untrained reporters.
“There is good content being produced, and there is bad content being produced. Unfortunately, the bad stuff is often extremely bad, and it becomes a striking example. We need to deal with this issue holistically,” he said.
Public Relations or Journalism?
Journalists with decades of experience have been pointing out that non-professionals are blurring the lines between news and public relations by presenting the latter as the former.
A journalist working with a national daily said that what began as a social media trend has quietly evolved into a parallel information network, one that increasingly serves interests far removed from the principles of journalism.
“The biggest beneficiaries of this unchecked ecosystem are not the people, but the powerful. Elements within the police, civil administration and other state actors have found these platforms to be convenient tools for personal PR and narrative management,” he said.
He said with little scrutiny and no professional standards to adhere to, these pages can be mobilised at will, to amplify selective information, silence inconvenient facts and shape public perception.
“The cost of this is the erosion of public trust in journalism and blurring of lines between news and propaganda,” he said.
He said that, unlike professional journalists, these Facebook page operators face no editorial oversight, no legal responsibility and no ethical accountability..
Normalising Cringe
With professional media houses not calling out the unprofessional practices by self-styled journalists, the lines haven’t blurred but diminished.
Journalist Umar Mukhtar opines that post-2019, access to power and undeclared censorship has shaped the prevalent media landscape in Kashmir.
Journalist Yawar Hussain said, “The common people being gullible end up watching infotainment and emotionally charged content, which they think is news. Also, these unprofessional folks are mostly cultivated and backed by the state.”.
“They are given the leverage to report on certain topics for which the traditional media is barred. Commoners watching an unprofessional report on these issues end up thinking why professional media isn’t able to do it.”
He said that the professional media hasn’t only abandoned its responsibility of redefining journalism on social media but rather ended up playing and copying the cringe content.
“Journalism has been reduced to infotainment as most so-called professional organisations now disseminate that only. Most of the old generation reporters, who are editors now, are themselves new to the new media,” Hussain said.
“They present a picture that everything is alright with stories revolving around science, scholarships, and entrepreneurship, etc. and this way the so-called professional media is doing the biggest disservice to the profession.”
A senior journalist said that nowadays newspapers don’t invest much in reporting or beat specialisation as they mostly rely on wire services.
“They don’t go to dig stories, but now the news comes to them.”
Media Illiteracy
The content produced by the self-styled journalists, which is widely consumed and endorsed by the Kashmiri populace, also raises a question about the necessity of media literacy in society.
Tahil Ali, an independent fact-checker and researcher, said, “I think media literacy is indispensable for everyone who is on social media or in fact for even those who aren’t because we have instances where fake news was broadcasted by even mainstream news channels.”
He said that fact-checkers have a heap of misinformation to debunk daily because fake news circulates as much as real facts do.
“Take up the case of the recent India-Pakistan war, there was a lot of old footage that was circulated, there were fake images of fighter jets that were circulating and much more. It puts many communities at risk,” Ali said.
He said that media sensitisation or media literacy should be made mandatory for all, like environmental science.
Attention Economy
According to research, titled Emotion shapes the diffusion of moralised content in social networks, moral-emotional language, particularly outrage-driven content, spreads more rapidly on social media because it triggers strong emotional reactions.
“It’s natural, with the mushrooming of social media platforms for news, there is competition between them, and content is the currency,” fact-checker Tahil Ali said.
He said producing sensational content also guarantees engagement—likes, shares, and clicks.
“The Facebook algorithm rewards content that generates strong emotional reactions like outrage, shock, fear, even joy. Unfortunately, fake news often taps into these emotions more effectively than factual reporting does.”
“The more sensational or polarising a post is, the more likely it is to be amplified by the algorithm and pushed to wider audiences,” he said.
Psychological Ramifications
Dr Yasir Rather, a psychiatrist, opines that irresponsible reporting—especially of sensitive issues like suicide, violence, or vulgar content—can cause significant psychological harm to a person
He said sensational coverage of suicides, for instance, can lead to copycat behaviour, especially among vulnerable populations.
“Someone who died because of suicide suddenly is all over the news, their whereabouts, situations are discussed, which somewhere can trigger an imitative behaviour in a person who shares a similar situation he said. Those who are struggling with mental health issues may start having stronger suicidal ideations after listening or seeing reports of suicide,” Dr Rather said.
He said graphic or emotionally charged reporting of violence can trigger trauma responses, anxiety, and desensitisation.
“Vulgar or intrusive content erodes societal boundaries, normalises harmful behaviours, and may particularly affect children and adolescents who are still developing emotionally,” he said.
He said that the media has the power to influence thought and behaviour—when used irresponsibly, it can deepen distress, spread misinformation, and harm mental well-being.
Dr Rather said that constant exposure to tear-jerking content—especially tragic, emotionally overwhelming stories—can lead to emotional fatigue, desensitisation, or in some cases, compassion fatigue.
