New Millennium, Old Communication Methods Indian consulate officials in Rome and Lisbon hired star hotel space to set up communication centres for the visiting media delegation. Invariably, there would be a mad rush among the 40-odd reporters to grab the six or seven personal computers. It was a forgettable first-come-first-served experience. Those who got a first go at the keyboards complained of stiff deadlines, but carried on punching in story after story for hours on end, little realising that others too have deadlines to catch. Making way for others and sharing the available resources amicably, sensibly was NOT the name of the game. In retrospect, it seemed eminently sensible of a few journos that they brought along vintage portable typewriters with them. They would key in stories inside the cabin immediately after the media conferences in the special flights, and then fax across the sheets the moment they reached the communication centres. Laptops do not yet seem to be popular among the Indian correspondents. Only one (or is it two) of them carried laptops. Others would happily call their offices via the free VSNL international lines at these communication centers and dictate the stories or give live phone-in audio inputs for the radio/television programmes. A national newswire photographer was armed with a digital camera. He would have digitized images of his shots ready in a jiffy, visuals that can be transmitted/emailed via modem/Net, again in a jiffy. But the only problem was he was not as blessed with language/typewriting skills as he was with hi-tech gadgets. So he would end up spending considerable time struggling to key in the captions for his deadline-sensitive photographs. Reporters were not always at hand to help out our man, hardpressed as they were by their own deadlines. Had the government provided a photo film developing-and-printing facility and resources (mechanical and human) to transmit audio and video files, India could have had a better, timely coverage of the PM's visit. Modern Maharajahs Have The Cake And Eat It Too Everyone knows journalists like to be treated like Maharajahs. Most of them are seen as people with inflated egos. Any hurt caused to The Scribe's Ego could spell disaster (read negative reports in the mass media). India's international carrier Air-India perhaps knows this better than anyone else, if the almost non-stop flow of souvenirs is any indication. The government had chartered Air-India's Harsha Vardhana -- a jumbo Boeing 747 -- for the special flight. The aircraft's interiors, customised for the PM's tours, are complete with facilities for in-flight media conference, film projectors, two floors for VIP and VVIP passengers. It was a story of the Maharajah and Modern Maharajahs. Some of the latter, in the guise of journalists, would smoke cigarettes by the dozen inside the cabin during the flights. So what if the PM is on the same flight, so what if bright No Smoking signs highlighted cabin etiquette, so what if the thick grey smoke choked the non-smokers? We are journalists, you know. The Air-India crew would politely point out the electronic signs, then make amends quickly by distributing, gratis, premium branded cigarettes and liquor. Often times, the aircraft's interiors would reek of tobacco and alcohol during the flights. As the tour progressed and one got to know each other, the nuisance became tolerable though!! On the ten-hour night-time return flight from Lisbon to New Delhi, a few ageing journalists could not take the hardship of sleeping in a sitting posture. As the night fell and a crescent moon and bright stars materialised in the blackness outside windows, and as supper and desserts began to dull the brain, the free space in front of the PM's exclusive cabin soon acquired the contours of an Indian railway station platform. Air-India's blankets were spread on the floor and the cushions meant for back support on the seats, were given the task of supporting tired (and swollen with-pride?) heads. (Earlier in the flight, the PM himself had apologised to journos for an inconvenience at Lisbon's military airport prior to the departure.) BACK     NEXT: Namaste Pradhan Mantri-ji; Your Bharat mahaan; Vignettes of Rome; Asians Ahoy!; Life and style in Rome; Vajpayee da Gama; Dining with a VVIP's daughter-in-law; Spotlight on Portugal; The old and the beautiful Portuguese; Youth on their toes; TV is cool; Lisbon is a party in June; Air-India to remain Air-India; How India will get UN Security Council seat; A joyous nation dives to depths of sorrow. Tell us what you think of this diary
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