Anchor Power

I’m a big fan of the Pakistani Anchormen. Many of them have true grit. And to do what they are doing for years and years; it takes discipline, guts and drive. What is more, the recent media boom has brought them out of that box and onto the streets where the common man wanted to see them.

Hamid Mir is the definitive common man’s thinking equivalent. Unapologetic and controversial, Hamid Mir brings into less than his cutthroat talk show a wild Punjabi spirit that is forthright, witty, and sharp. While some hold issue with his mode of questioning, others just appreciate a man who gets his guests straight to the point, forgoing the typical verbal drill we are so aptly provided with. He is best known for being the first man to interview Osama bin Laden, after 9/11, risking life and limb.

Hamid Mir is doing a great job during this newly found period of independent media but what differentiates a good anchor from a great anchor is having a serious grasp on the subject under discussion. It is very easy today to place two politicians opposite each other on the screen and make them fight and get kicks out of it. And this kicks that Hamid Mir seems to be getting are more visible when he chuckles while reporting woes of common men who are lined up to get CNG from a filling station or when he sits back and allows CM Shahbaz Sharif time to what CM wants to say rather than asking him what people needed to listen. Earlier, Hamid Mir’s remarks while standing with a minister and a senator from Balochistan in Gwadar while reporting on plight of local people may perhaps be allowed in a drawing room but not on air when everyone is glued to the tube expecting some ‘news’ on important national issues.

Point here is that Hamid Mir, and other anchormen must work on a fine balance and responsibility to the people who are watching them. My suggestion: Hamid Mir, please be serious while you use your anchor power.