What happens when you tell a bunch of journalists that those in the news media should be willing to be scrutinised just as they scrutinise others? All journalists sitting around would agree and nod good-naturedly. What happens when you actually begin scrutinising any one of them? His or her outrage will most likely outdo Arnab’s.

Times Now’s Newshour on General VK Singh’s “presstitute” comment (aired on Wednesday, April 8) was delightful for all of the drama and irony that played out. Some intended and some not. But most of all because it ended up being a conversation that is rarely seen in mainstream media –a conversation about news media, its slants, its role and its independence.

I’ve been really nasty to Arnab here even as I have spoken about the justification of his relevance and belligerence here. He has been our prime muse for Clothesline forever. But the night before last, the Newshour had an important conversation. One that was long due. I’m not sure though that is what Arnab had in mind when he set up the panel (or maybe I’m being too cynical). Arnab Goswami, Shekhar Gupta, Hartosh Singh Bal, Swapan Dasgupta, NK Singh and Ajoy Bose made some compelling points, indulged in some excellent and spirited debate and also some outrage-packed sparring with the typical arrogance that one sees in netas and journalists (less so in netas now). The show got so much right even as it had the Newshour’s notorious circus element. Sambit Patra and Khushboo provided some comic relief and lots of noise. A gentleman called R Rajagopalan just sat there on the bottom right corner window and watched the whole thing, laughing occasionally or yelling a word or two.

We at Newslaudry have carried several pieces criticising the code of not calling out our peers when they screw up.  It’s a healthy practice to criticise and be criticised. It can be done without making enemies or friends and just commenting on each other’s work. It helps everyone get better. And it’s not a call to war. But journalists have very thin skins, even as Shekhar Gupta claimed otherwise on the show.

Not having that discussion isolates us in our own island of ideological, political or corporate affinity. On April 8, we saw Newshour have that conversation. Wasn’t always great, but at least some parts were.

So what did the show get right?

Shekhar Gupta made his debut on the Newshour. Now, while there may be a very good reason for Mr Gupta of the “we will be the Bentley of journalism” fame (whatever that means) for never appearing on the fish-market type noiseroom that the Newshour is, he made an exception. After all, what can be more delicious than using the same platform to put General V K Singh in his place, which the General had used to call Mr Gupta all sorts of names for his story that didn’t mention the “c word”. Revenge is a dish best served cold and  this would be too tempting an offer to pass up even if it meant sitting next to Arnab (fade up: Jiska mujhe tha intezaar, wo ghadi aa gayi aa gayi).

It’s great that Gupta decided to do so. Untouchability in any form is not a good thing. And Gupta also pointed out to Arnab that his show had attacked Gupta and Indian Express with General Singh as the ally. Arnab cringed, just a little. A moment worthy of a becoming a classic like Deewar’s – khush toh bahut hoge tum scene.

So, while Gupta did show up, Arnab got impatient in the beginning because here he was aiming for a shouting match and Gupta was slowing down proceedings with a long-winded (classic Shekhar Gupta style) explanation of how the entire profession of journalism was being targeted by a loose cannon who represented the government. Arnab quickly cut short Gupta’s opening with -“So since we’ve dealt with this part of the story should we move on to the real issue here and I go back to the panel.” The polite way of saying, doesn’t anyone want to shout or call General Singh names yet?

And he went to Swapan Dasgupta hoping he would make things livelier by setting up a sitting duck. Still no luck. So, Arnab went with “And by the way it’s open, feel free to come in anyone” since the journalists were rather well-mannered and letting each other speak (at least in the beginning). We were already five minutes into the debate, no one was interrupting the other, no one had called anyone any names and Sambit Patra had not even spoken yet. This was getting dangerously non-Newshour like. In fact, Patra made his first intervention in the 14^th minute. Imagine that!

But when Patra entered, the Newshour got its mojo back.

Each time the BJP’s loudest voice got a chance to speak, he successfully derailed the entire conversation into directions that even the ever-in-control Arnab could not manage. Patra used every emotion available: “I will not come to your show…. You don’t want me, I will not participate. I’m not dying to participate in your show”; “Of course I will use this platform to speak my mind”; “Senior people like you all cannot get personal on a young person……who am I to threaten you. I am a poor fellow. A poor panellist who is deprived of his right.” (Fade up: Jitne bhi tu kar le sitam, ro ro ke sahenge hum.)

Ajoy Bose could be heard telling Arnab, “Tell him we love him.” (Fade up: Sooraj hai tu, mera chanda hai tu. Haan meri aakhon ka tara hai tu.) Yes we do. Not all journalists are angry and mean.

The other bit of comic relief was provided by Khushboo. See, the debate was about General VK Singh using the word presstitute for journalists, suggesting journalists were up for sale and would report or write based on a monetary reward. But Khushboo decided to go with “No-one-becomes-a-prostitute-out of-choice” angle. She almost totally killed the show when she steered the conversation to talk about how prostitutes are forced into the business, they don’t enjoy it, they do it to feed their family and so on. The good old “haalaat ne aisa bana diya babuji nahin to meri maa ke bhi sapne the.” Fade up: meri zindagi hai kya, ek kati patang hai cut to Deewar, Parveen Babi pulling out the red sari her mother had given her to wear as dulhan before halaat pushed her into high-class escort zone.

Arnab wasn’t on screen but his perplexed voice tried to cut in several times with okay, okay…and finally took control of the conversation steering it in to the action movie zone it was intended to be and not a Pakheeza-type tragedy that Khushboo was attempting to make this show.

So, while there was all that fun, there was also the very important discussion on media ethics and media scrutiny. And this part of the debate actually made sense. You had Arnab saying when Swapan Dasgupta was interrupted: “You may not agree with him but let him complete his point.” Arnab said this. Go get a glass of water, sit down recover from that shock and read on.

So the debate was already in a zone where a conversation was being had and people weren’t just shouting at each other. And then came some remarkably ironic moments that would make Shakespeare happy. Dasgupta said “the media must ask itself, is it above scrutiny?” and the media “must learn how to get blows just as it delivers blows”. And when Hartosh Singh Bal delivered one, not to Dasgupta but generally, stating that everyone in an editorial position should disclose their bank details and income sources, Dasgupta didn’t take the blow as well as he was saying it must be taken. Sigh! Just a few seconds after he had asked the media to learn to subject itself to scrutiny. He came back with a retort to “not make baseless insinuations in a slimy fashion”. And later he said, “Do not question my integrity. You can question ideas, but do not question integrity”. “Look at my credentials, look at my education…”

That’s when I realised if Mani Shankar Aiyar was a journalist, a BJP supporter, wore spectacles and didn’t have a moustache, his name would be Swapan Dasgupta. I could not help wondering if Mr Dasgupta could see the irony of the situation. Were his words to Arnab “you must learn to receive brickbats” echoing in his cavities still?

This one exchange showed us all that’s right and wrong with journalism. There are people willing to ask questions and there are people too above it all to answer. There are people yelling at each other making a spectacle of what is called news and there are people who can tear through that noise and still give us a moment to think about where we are headed and where we can go.

Here was a conversation that threw up an idea. It may not be the best or even acceptable to many journalists or editors, but it’s an idea. If someone has a better one, spit it out. A conversation is good. Something can emerge.

Another wonderfully dramatic moment was when Dasgupta mocked Arnab calling Times Now a “responsible entertainment channel”. Arnab paused. Didn’t react immediately. But his jaw stiffened. He came back with a Radia tapes reference obviously pointing at NDTV and Barkha Dutt, which is Dasgupta’s default TV appearance zone. It’s where you’ll find him any day of the week just like you find any old money Dilliwala at the Gymkhana club bar on a weeknight. Arnab shot back and said, “We don’t seek bouquets. We don’t seek gratification.” In unrelated news, Swapan Dasgupta, earlier this year, was appointed by Specified Undertaking of the Unit Trust of India on the board of Larsen and Toubro and was also awarded a Padma Bhushan. By now Gen. VK Singh was not even remotely being mentioned in the debate and it was all about journalism and journalists. (Fade up in VK Singh’s voice: Jo haar kar bhi jeet jata hai, use Baazigar MoS for Defense kehte hain.)

This episode of Newshour was supposed to be about General VK Singh but turned out to be about the news media. Maybe that’s not what Arnab had planned but that’s what happened. And it was great (the Khushboo and Sambit Patra interventions not withstanding).

The show saw some unlikely alliances. Arnab and Gupta on the same side. In fact, while Patra provided the comic relief, Gupta and Arnab looked at each other and laughed (Fade in: wo jo hum mein tum mein karaar tha, tumhein yaad ho ken na yaad ho).

Dasgupta who is used to the calm quiet sophistication of NDTV reacted at one stage and said: “This is getting like a bloody public brawl.” Duh! Times Now. Newshour. This is Spartaaaaa.

At one stage Dasgupta feeling isolated being bashed by Arnab and Hartosh (because Patra by now was sitting back and watching the fun) clutched onto a straw telling Gupta who was on the bash-VK-Singh side with a “You are endorsing the jholawalas who talk about some workers…” Pointing to the common enemy, Dasgupta pretty much reached out to Gupta – we both share our hatred for jholawalas, don’t leave me out in the cold at Arnab and Hartosh’s mercy. Damn! That was desperate.

These set of tweets are typical of what is wrong in the conversation about journalism. Not naming someone and referring to them pretty much ends the conversation. Conversations must be had. Names need to be taken and Dasgupta’s advice must be heeded even if he doesn’t do so himself. It need not be at the audio level that Arnab prescribes, but the idea is sound. It’s important and it’s about “bloody” time.