Journey of Journalism: From The Killing Fields of Cambodia to Peepli Live

The Killing Fields and Peepli Live are a reflection of their times in terms of media principles and the ethics involved in it. The Killing Fields is set against the backdrop of the Vietnam War while Peepli Live is the manifestation of the Indian electronic media of today. There is a huge difference in the way media principles were treated during the 70’s as in The Killing Fields as compared to the present day scenario. The treatment also differs due to demographic reasons and the sensitivities of the people in a particular country and their preconceived notions for society at large. The media today is more ruthless and aggressive with regard to getting the story. On the contrary, The Killing Fields also tries to showcase the humane element in a journalist. In sharp contrast to this, the journalists of Peepli Live show no compassion for a person who has declared to commit suicide due to the atrocities of his life as a farmer. They are only concerned about getting ‘live coverage’ of such a sensational piece of news, even at the cost of compromising media ethics. Both Schanberg (journalist in The Killing Fields) and Nandita (journalist in Peepli Live) try desperate measures in terms of getting their stories but Schanberg is more ethical in his manner.

Dith Pran & Schanberg in The Killing Fields

The journalist's equation with its sources can be traced by analysing Schanberg and Nandita's dealing with their associates. Sydney Schanberg’s relationship with Dith Pran and Nandita’s relationship with Rakesh are similar in a way because both Dith Pran and Rakesh are locals of the place where these journalists had landed because of their stories. Dith Pran was all the more vital in Schanberg’s journalistic venture as he acted as a translator and guide for him in an alien country. Rakesh, for Nandita was the source of her Peepli story. Schanberg treated Pran with humility but also exploited him for his purpose to the extent that he was left back in Cambodia in a very disturbed state of affairs. Dith Pran had great reverence for Schanberg, just as Rakesh admired Nandita and aspired to become a journalist. Unlike Schanberg, who earnestly kept searching for Pran till he found him, Nandita left the village of Peepli after her story is over, without even realising that Rakesh is dead.

TV Journalist Nandita in Peepli Live

For Schanberg, Cambodia was the highlight of his existence, was peepli similarly important for Nandita? Errr...No!
Reporting from the killing fields of Cambodia was not just the job of Schanberg as a journalist, but also the very essence of his existence. His involvement in the social and political life of the country and his in depth understanding of the subject and plight of the people made him the voice of the country. His life revolved around the people of the country he inhabited during that period. He tried to do justice to his profession in his endeavor to bring out the blatant truth behind the bombings in Cambodia during the Vietnam War. But for Nandita, Peepli was just “another brick in the wall”. Nandita, as a journalist doesn’t connect with the people of Peepli nor does she show the empathy that is exhibited in Schanberg’s character.

The Killing Fields establishes media as a responsible organisation which takes into account the agony of people by investigating in situations where keeping a watch over authority is required. Schanberg, a journalist brings out the loopholes in the US war strategy which turned nightmarish for the people of Cambodia because of the mistaken bombings on the country. Schanberg, by addressing this issue through the power of Press sets an example for journalists and his quest is also rewarded in the end. On the other hand, the television journalists (in Peepli Live) who come to cover a farmer’s (Natha) suicide show no sense of compassion towards him. Natha is just a subject of their story and they reduce journalism to mere sensationalism. Also, Peepli Live emphasises the accepted norm that the print media serves as the source of news or lays down the premises of a story. As far as the perception of media is concerned, print is considered a more serious form of journalism than the popular television journalism which thrives on “Yellow Journalism”, as shown in Peepli Live. 

I think both the films are successful films about journalism and they give a fair idea of their times. The Killing Fields focuses more on the life of Schanberg as a journalist in the backdrop of the effect of the Vietnam War in Cambodia. While Peepli Live adequately presents the nuances of the world of television journalism in India today. Peepli Live comes alive in its portrayal of the real world of the media industry, especially television. The unending quest for ‘breaking news’ every other minute, the race for Television Rating Points (TRPs) among channels, the lack of empathy, unethical practices for getting a story, sensationalism in news, concocting of stories by journalists are some of the aspects of journalism brought out brilliantly in the course of the film. 

From the time of Schanberg (70’s) when we also had journalists who were very respected, to the present time when public perception of media seems to have reached an all time low, what went wrong? Journalism is considered to be a noble profession. When we talk about the time of Schanberg (70’s), journalists were respected because of the work they did and the general perception was that journalists are empathetic people who served as a link between the public and the authority. Journalists were like watchdogs of government and media was a platform for the redressal of people’s grievances. As time passed, journalism gained momentum more as a commercial venture and journalists turned into propagandists of government and administrative bodies. Thus, the respect once commanded by them is coming down. The practice of unethical means has resulted in the overall deterioration of the media community. But generalising on this basis is not right since journalists still play a pivotal role in any country.