Friday, April 24, 2009

Economic Times Journalist barred by SEBI for forging letters to rig stock prices

As it is, Financial Journalism is not a high point in the annals of Indian Journalism. In its interim order, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) barred two promoters of Pyramid Saimira Theatre Ltd, and 228 others, including Rajesh Unnikrishnan, Assistant Editor, The Economic Time.

The Economic Times, India's largest selling business daily, is part of the Bennett Coleman Group. Flushed with cash from its print media operations, the group created Times Private Treaty, an investment group that does dubious 'stock for ads and editorial coverage' deals with companies.

Pyramid Saimira Theatre Ltd was a client of the said Treaty Operations. The Times Group has special editorial people to deal exclusively with Times Private Treaty clients in all of its major editorial offices.

Result: Hapless journalists who are forced to do what the master says - forget investigative reporting, work on his master's share market earnings.

In the Pyramid Saimira case, the journalist has been accused of forging a letter so that it appears to be a SEBI letter. Not surprisingly, this story has been largely ignored by the business press in India. Among the mainstream newspapers, only the Indian Express and DNA carry it.

Related:
What we must learn from India's largest Newspaper
The sorry state of Financial Journalism in India
The Indian Media would like us believe there is no recession

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3 Comments:

At 4:54 PM , Anonymous Jayanta Bhattacharya said...

Despicable... Of course, the Times of India has long lost its credibility on news coverage and dissemination.

The sense of honour has long departed the group making it an invertebrate. Sadly, most other Indian media houses are towing the line. The most glaring example is the tabloid type TV channels that have flooded our living rooms through the box.

There was a time when I used to dislike Shekhar Gupta for he always seemed to carry an air. Now I know that he is entitled to it. There are a very few editors in India left now who have chosen not to turn their media houses into whorehouses.

 
At 5:58 PM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

The ET website now carries the story in brief. Strangely, they say Unnikrishnan is an "employee", not "journalist".

Being the press, these guys have a way with words. By that token, Barrack Obama is federal government employee not the President.

- Chandan

 
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