In May, Operation Sindoor dominated headlines. But in the scramble to break news first, many outlets stumbled on the basics of verification. It’s a familiar pattern that repeats across war zones worldwide. 

This was the theme of the session ‘From Op Sindoor to international conflicts, lessons for the media’ at The Media Rumble 2025, which took place in Bengaluru on October 3 and 4. The discussion, moderated by Pooja Prasanna, featured independent journalist Nirupama Subramanian, The Hindu international affairs editor Stanly Johny, Himal Southasian editor Roman Gautam, and BBC South Asia and Afghanistan correspondent Yogita Limaye.

Addressing the deluge of misinformation during Operation Sindoor, including bizarre claims that the Pakistani army chief was hiding in a bunker, Stanly pointed to “sustained efforts to provide misinformation throughout the conflict which did not advance India’s interests at all. On the other side, the Indian media came out very bad.”

Nirupama highlighted how the narrative was completely different on the other side of the border, that Pakistan had “won” the war. 

On competitive nationalism and journalists acting as warmongerers, Roman said that these “journalists are making things much worse for the Indian state even when that is the mission they are carrying abroad”. “The term godi media is very widely used.”

Asked whether journalists are prepared to protect themselves during such conflicts, Yogita recounted her experience working with a television network during the 26/11 attacks. “We had no protective gear, no training whatsoever…a lot of journalists could have been killed.”

Perhaps the festive season is making us sentimental or it’s all the firecracker smoke in our eyes, but we’re proud of the community we’ve built. And we want you to be a part of it. Click here to get a whopping discount on a joint subscription.